What to Make of This Story?
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The Seattle Times has an initiative called The Seattle Times Save the Free
Press Initiative and its editor, Brier Dudley, wrote an opinion piece in
today...
Eyes Cast Backwards
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“all these are but dreams and shadows; the shadows that hide the real world
from our eyes.” ― Arthur Machen, The Great God Pan Much of this month has
bee...
June’s Parent Engagement Resources
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#DYK summer learning opportunities can be as close as your backyard?
@SmithsonianEdu has tips for parents & educators on nature play, a type of
hands-on le...
Come On People Now, Smile on your Brother
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So—I am a Democrat. Not a surprise to anyone who regularly reads this blog.
I think Democratic thoughts—Health care is a right! Fully support public
educat...
"The Quietly Powerful Senate Parliamentarian"
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Elizabeth MacDonough is not a household name. A “parliamentarian” sounds
like a persnickety bureaucrat rapping her gavel when speakers exceed their
al...
When Will We Wake Up?
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German psychologist Karl Groos was among the first researchers to take play
seriously. Working in the late 1800's, he is credited with what has been
call...
Mattel Promises AI Toys
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Today in our latest episode of Things Nobody Asked For, we've got the
announcement that Mattel has teamed up with the folks at OpenAI to bring
you toys tha...
Help Us Wish Diane a Happy Birthday!
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The Supreme Court heard the arguments in St. Isadore of Seville Catholic
Virtual School vs Drummond, which seeks to establish a religious charter
school....
Schools Need to Prepare for Those Masked ICE Agents
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Persons traveling in groups, wearing masks and often vests that say
“Police” or “ICE”– no other identifiers, including refusing to identify
themselves by n...
Analyzing UFT election results – from 2022
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JD2718 blog posts from May and June 2022. Post-UFT election for the last
two decades I have done some analysis of the numbers. I am getting ready to
start ...
Around The Web In ESL/EFL/ELL
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Eight years ago I began this regular feature where I share a few posts and
resources from around the Web related to ESL/EFL or to language in general
that ...
OK WE’RE AGAINST KINGS. WHAT ARE WE FOR??
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More than five million demonstrators in about 2000 communities stepped
forward to declare their opposition to Donald Trump, on June 14th. “No
Kings Day” wa...
Bizarre WAPO Opinion Piece by Hanushek and Raymond
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By Thomas Ultican 6/17/2025 It was déjà vu all over again when Eric
Hanushek and his wife Macke Raymond’s shared their views in the Washington
Post. They c...
The Man In The Back
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At the Christina School District Board of Education meeting this past
Tuesday, Board President Donald Patton used his last meeting as President
to air a li...
Marines invade California. Who's next?
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In his June 10 Oval Office press conference, Trump said that “people who
want to protest will be met with very big force”, adding that such
individuals “ha...
What Lessons Are We Learning from Our Students?
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“Mr. Vilson, I’m in a doctoral program, just like you.” One of my former
students posted a picture of a quad at an established university. ...
Read More
...
What Lessons Are We Learning from Our Students?
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“Mr. Vilson, I’m in a doctoral program, just like you.” One of my former
students posted a picture of a quad at an established university. ...
Read More
...
79
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It was May 23, 1946, in a New York City Hospital, that 30 year old Sylvia
Livingston Bernstein gave birth to the 2nd and final child of her marriage
to L...
Il Papa è Morto
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Francis brought a distinct pastoral outlook to his papacy. A simple man, he
lived in a small apartment in the guesthouse. He sought to make the church
acce...
Trump plays Putin’s Playbook
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Recently Aleksander Dugin was interviewed on CNN, last week, and he stated
that he believes Trump is closer ideologically to President Putin than to
Washin...
Mike Shulman the ARISE UFT Judenrat
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I was surprised to learn that Mike Shulman has aligned himself with ARISE.
I previously supported him, advocating that the Castle Doctrine could have
bee...
How Do We Fight Trump?
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Dear Friends, I don’t know when and why it hit me. But I suddenly realized
how serious Trump is about changing the country into something that
horrifies. I...
Are we all on the same team?
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Copied from Quora; I didn’t write any of this… As an American I ask my
fellow Americans, why can’t you realize at the end of the day we are all on
the same...
Who is the new CEO of Teach For America?
-
From 1990 until 2013, the CEO of TFA was the founder, Wendy Kopp. Under her
leadership the program grew from a small organization that struggled to
make pa...
Site Index - Updated December 31, 2024
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When I was teaching,
I got tired of hearing how bad American educators were.
*My Promise *
WHEN I STARTED BLOGGING IN 2011, I said I planned to speak ...
Number 18 — A barely-hanging-on Blogoversary
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Blogoversary #18 SEPTEMBER 14, 2006 I started this blog while I was still
teaching, in 2006. I had just begun my 31st year as an educator. Just like
in pre...
Student "Growth" Measures Are STILL Biased
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This caught my attention:
New Jersey school districts may soon be evaluated differently, *with a
greater emphasis on student growth* as compared to stud...
AIN’T IT AWFUL
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As the terrible feelings of dread and angst spread across the world the
great majority of the American people feel powerless before the onslaught
of those ...
Vote NO on the UFT Contract. Here is Why:
-
The best reason to vote no on this contract is this: UFT Unity* lied* to us
in 2018. They misrepresented that contract. It was predicated on deals we
wer...
Testimony to the CPS Truancy Task Force
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I prepared testimony for one of two public hearings held by the Chicago
Public Schools Truancy Task Force, a body mandated by state legislation.
The meetin...
There Is A Teacher Shortage.Not.
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THERE IS A TEACHER SHORTAGE. And just to be sure you understand, it’s not
that teachers don’t want to teach. It’s not that there aren’t enough
teachers cer...
Book Banning Turns to Dick and Jane
-
Breaking News: Dateline February 4, 2022 - Parents in Dimwitty, Alabama
have asked the Dimwitty Board of Education to ban the children's primer *Fun
with...
Have You Heard Has a New Website
-
TweetHave You Heard has a new website. Visit us at
www.haveyouheardpodcast.com to find our latest episodes and our entire
archive. And be sure to check out...
Follow me at Substack
-
I've moved. Follow me at Substack
I'm now posting regularly at Substack. You can subscribe for free to my new
Edu/Pol blog at michaelklonsky.substack.com
...
Aspiring Teachers Get New Help Paying For College
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[image: colorful classroom pattern]
*; Credit: shuoshu/Getty Images*
Cory Turner | NPR
New rules kick in today that will help aspiring teachers pay for c...
Tips Akses Situs Judi Qq Tanpa Perlu Takut Nawala
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Kegiatan berjudi slot melalui situs judi qq online, sekarang sudah
dilakukan oleh banyak penjudi Indonesia. Tentu, Kamu yang sedang membaca
artikel ini a...
The Threat of Integration
-
I have lived in the same house in the Miracle Mile section of Los Angeles
for over 30 years, where up until now I have had little or no interaction
with th...
We fight for a democracy worthy of us all!
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The nation stands at a crossroads, said NEA President Lily Eskelsen García
in her final keynote address to the 2020 NEA Representative Assembly and
it’s up...
The Passing Of Chaz 1951-2020 Age 69
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I am the son of Chaz and like to inform you that he passed away this
afternoon from the COVID virus. My father passed in peace beside his loved
ones. We ar...
The Fight For Our Children
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*The number of suicides among people ages 10 to 24 nationally increased by
56 percent between 2007 and 2017, according to a new federal report showing
the ...
Read to Self: Just a Kid and a Book.
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Date: Monday, January 5, 2020 Place: My classroom Student: Mrs.Mims, could
we start doing Read to Self again because I got this great book for
Christmas an...
Reminiscences
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I just finished dumping the rest of my lesson plans. I guess I held on to
the calculus ones for so long because I spent so much time working on them
an...
Just Asking for some Teachers I know.
-
Recently Wisconsin Governor Tony Evers stated, We must … recognize that
part of supporting our kids in the classroom means supporting the educators
who t...
Cara Menang Bermain Judi Bola Online
-
Bermain judi bola online tentu saja memiliki kesenangannya tersendiri baik
itu mendapatkan keuntungan maupun ketika menantikan hasil skor pada sebuah
perta...
A Critique of Standards-Based Grading
-
It first happened to me about ten years ago. I was beginning my third year
of teaching in a new school in Washington, DC. Social studies teachers were
si...
My First and Last Visit to Hudson Yards
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Figuring I did not need to invite any more darkness and vulgarity into my
head than that provided on a daily basis from Trump’s White House, and
after read...
Reduced time for testing? Not so fast.
-
NYSED and Commish Elia continue to say that the NYS Assessments are of
reasonable length, I completely disagree.
Here is what NYSED states are average expe...
The World According to Michelle Rhee
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The men behind the curtain fashioning the brave new world of corporate run
education in America! Michelle Rhee is the founder of StudentsFirst, The
New T...
Whose Opinions Matter in Education World?
-
It's hard to identify education heroes and sheroes. And perhaps even harder
to pinpoint just whose work is slanted, paid-for and dishonest.
Blockchain: Life on the Ledger
-
Originally posted on Wrench in the Gears:
I created this video as a follow up to the one I prepared last year on
Social Impact Bonds. It is time to examine...
New Local Businesses in Sacramento
-
Starting a new local business in Sacramento is a monumental task, but can
be accomplished with footwork, perseverance and knowledge. One must learn
the loc...
Lesson Plan: Rhyme and Rhythm in Poetry
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I’ve started a recent unit on poetry with my class. I’m not a poet, and I’m
not a poetry fan (I don’t hate it, but I’m a prose gal), so this makes it
harde...
The Apotheosis of Betsy DeVos
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Betsy Devos has drawn few headlines in recent months, and that is a good
thing for the Secretary of Education. Her tenure began with Vice President
Mike P...
Education Is a Civic Question
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In their final post to end Bridging Differences' decade-long run, Deborah
Meier and Harry Boyte urge readers to put the energy, talents, wisdom, and
hard w...
Site News: New Home for Education News & Commentary
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Quick! Get over there! The daily education news roundup and education
commentaries that you're probably looking for are now being published over
at The Gra...
Should We Be Grateful?
-
In an odd turn of events, and with little explanation, Michigan Governor
Rick Snyder has decided to return the state’s School Reform Office back to
the Dep...
An Open Letter to NC Lawmakers
-
An Open Letter to NC State Lawmakers and NC State Superintendent Mark
Johnson: I am a NC native, voter, and public school teacher. I am
addressing you all ...
The Secret to Fixing Schools (My Next Bestseller)
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The Secret to Fixing Schools (My next bestseller) Prologue I just finished
watching a fascinating documentary on Netflix entitled, “The Secret”. The
film p...
Farewell, Sleep
-
Today is the official last day of my spring break. I've done a scientific
survey: My natural bedtime is 2 AM, and my natural wake up time is 9:41
AM. Tom...
REPORT: States With the Best and Worst Schools
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States With the Best (and Worst)Schools
By *Evan Comen, Michael B. Sauter, Samuel Stebbins and Thomas C. Frohlich*
January 20, 2017- http://247wallst.com
...
Test Refusal = People Power
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In recent months, social media has been ablaze with talk of regular folk
taking action to resist the Trump agenda. Protests are a daily occurrence,
and ev...
Random Musings and Observations. . . .
-
I’ve been gone a while from the blogging scene. Some of my more regular
readers no doubt noticed but did not hassle me about it. Thank you for
that. Sinc...
AB 934: A LEGISLATIVE FIX FOR VERGARA?
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By Michael Stratford | in the Politco Morning Education Report | via email
05/24/2016 10:00 AM EDT :: Two national education groups are backing a
Califor...
MY NEW BLOG
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My new blog will consist of fictitious headlines, meant to be a blend of
humor and satire. I apologize ahead of time if any other satirical site has
simila...
Thank you
-
Dear Readers,
Thank you for visiting *The Perimeter Primate*. This blog is being retired
for the time being. Although I no longer post here, I do still s...
I am Retiring
-
I have some news: I am retiring from the PBS NewsHour and Learning Matters.
[[ This is a content summary only. Visit my website for full links, other
conte...
New Beginnings: Kickstarter and EdWeek Teacher
-
Greetings to InterACT readers one and all! If you’ve been following posts
here recently you might recall that I’m moving my blogging activity to
other loca...
Adelaide L. Sanford Charter School
-
*“With Adelaide L. Sanford Charter School closing, Newark families must
move on.”* The Star-Ledger (NJ), 6/25/2013
NEWARK — Bobby and Troy Shanks saw the...
BiljaST / Pixabay Six years ago I began this regular feature where I share a few posts and resources from around the Web related to ESL/EFL or to language in general that have caught my attention. You might also be interested in THE BEST RESOURCES, ARTICLES & BLOG POSTS FOR TEACHERS OF ELLS IN 2019 – PART ONE and THE BEST RESOURCES, ARTICLES & BLOG POSTS FOR TEACHERS OF ELLS IN 2019 – PART TWO. A
(Note: I am going to publish this same post once each month to remind regular readers and inform newer ones about how to access my “Best” lists) As regular readers know, I have about 2,100 categorized and regularly updated “Best” lists. You can find all of them in broad categories here . The link to that page can also be found at the top right of my blog: My Best Of Series I also have them all on
I thought that new – and veteran – readers might find it interesting if I began sharing my best posts from the first half of this year. You can see the entire collection of best posts from the past thirteen years here . Who among us have had to attend a professional development session that has been a complete waste of our time? All of us (see The Best Resources On Professional Development For Te
Here’s another list for All 2020 Mid-Year “Best” Lists In One Place! I only have a few more to go… Here are the ten most popular posts appearing this blog over the last six months: 1. List Of Knowledge Questions My TOK Students Are Using This Year For Their Oral Presentations 2. The Best Websites For Creating Online Learning Games 3. The Best Online Virtual “Corkboards” (or “Bulletin Boards”) 4.
geralt / Pixabay Here are my thoughts about what the fall will look like in the Sacramento region – let me know what you think! I'd love to be back in the classroom, but I wouldn't bet on a whole lot of those hybrid plans taking place or, if they get started, lasting long. — Larry Ferlazzo (@Larryferlazzo) July 10, 2020 I may be wrong and, if so, it won't be the first or last time. However, if I
Clker-Free-Vector-Images / Pixabay Wow, school reopening has been getting a lot of attention the past few days. I’ve already shared some of the most interesting and useful resources that have appeared. Here are a few more that I’ve picked from the blizzard of coverage. I’m adding these to THE BEST POSTS PREDICTING WHAT SCHOOLS WILL LOOK LIKE IN THE FALL : The American Academy of Pediatrics has ce
Canva has so many tools in one that it’s one of the most versatile apps on the Internet. However, it has has one major shortcoming – the inability to collaborate in “real-time.” You could have others work on a project with you, but only one person could work on it at the same time. Especially during this pandemic, this inability makes it less attractive to have teachers encourage students to use
Strategies for Using Music in ALL Subjects is the headline of my latest Education Week Teacher column. Five educators share multiple ways to use music in nonmusic classes, including having students create their own songs to help remember content and y interpreting the music of different eras in social studies classes. Here are some excerpts:
I thought that new – and veteran – readers might find it interesting if I began sharing my best posts from the first half of this year. You can see the entire collection of best posts from the past thirteen years here . A meta-analysis of math and reading interventions targeting middle and high schools students experiencing academic difficulties found several interventions helpful, but found one
Q&A Collections: Cooperative & Collaborative Learning is the headline of my latest Education Week Teacher column. All Classroom Q&A posts sharing advice on Cooperative & Collaborative Learning (from the past nine years!) are described and linked to in this compilation post. Here’s an excerpt from one of them:
Nine years ago, in another somewhat futile attempt to reduce the backlog of resources I want to share, I began this occasional “” post where I share three or four links I think are particularly useful and related to…ed tech, including some Web 2.0 apps. You might also be interested in THE BEST ED TECH RESOURCES OF 2020 – PART ONE , as well as checking out all my edtech resources . Here are this w
I thought that new – and veteran – readers might find it interesting if I began sharing my best posts from the first half of this year. You can see the entire collection of best posts from the past thirteen years here . Conmongt / Pixabay I’ve certainly taught my share of lessons on “grit” over the years (see The Best Resources For Learning About “Grit” ). In them, I’ve generally included a very
VirtuEL is an annual free day of professional development for English Language Learner Teachers. It’s organized by Tan Huynh and Carol Salva. This year’s conference takes place on Saturday, July 25th, and you can read all about it here . There are lots of very useful workshops being offered. I’ll be giving this year’s keynote, and the topic is: We “will either find a way or make one”: Overcoming
In the face of today’s Trump administration insanity (see THE TRUMP ADMINISTRATION LOST ITS MIND TODAY ABOUT REOPENING SCHOOLS ) , our California Teachers Association did what they had to do, and what every teachers union in the United States should do – take Donald Trump head on. You can read the letter it sent to the Governor and other state officials here. The letter goes on to say: From a pub
This summer’s #EllChat_BkClub is starting now, and you can find out all the information about it here. The book study is on two science books – the new The Science Teacher’s Toolbox , which Katie Hull and I edited, and Teaching Science to English Learners , which I helped the Science teachers at our school adopt for a fall book study last year. The next book on the book club’s list in August is T
geralt / Pixabay Discussion about fall school reopening is hot-and-heavy these days. Here’s my latest thinking – for what’s worth: Lots of districts have already made a definitive decision to reopen in various ways – five days per week for everybody, hybrid models, etc. I wonder if districts like ours who have not made determination yet should plan on opening with full-time well-planned remote le
DariuszSankowski / Pixabay Education researcher Cara Jackson shared a useful thread on Twitter this week. She gave me permission to share her tweets here. I’m just highlighted a few of them, but the whole thread is worth reading. They provide a pretty good ideas of what researchers have said works to improve academic achievement. She comments on John Hattie’s research, and you might be interested
Conmongt / Pixabay The Trump Administration has been losing its hold on rationality over the past couple of days in their efforts to force schools to reopen for a regular schedule (see DEVOS TELLS TEACHERS THAT THEY JUST NEED MORE SOCIAL EMOTIONAL LEARNING SKILLS, NOT MORE MONEY, TO OPEN SCHOOLS SAFELY and Trump Administration Uses Money To Pressure Colleges To Teach In Physical Classrooms – I Be
Q&A Collections: Teaching Social Studies is the headline of my latest Education Week Teacher column. All Classroom Q&A posts sharing advice on Teaching Social Studies (from the past nine years!) are described and linked to in this compilation post. Here’s an excerpt from one of them:
geralt / Pixabay Here are new additions to THE BEST POSTS PREDICTING WHAT SCHOOLS WILL LOOK LIKE IN THE FALL : School openings across globe suggest ways to keep coronavirus at bay, despite outbreaks is an important new article from Science Magazine. Florida Orders Schools To Reopen In The Fall For In-Person Instruction is from NPR. Seeking guidance for reopening schools? is from Ed Source. A Bett
I thought that new – and veteran – readers might find it interesting if I began sharing my best posts from the first half of this year. You can see the entire collection of best posts from the past thirteen years here . The National Archives has a collection of eighteen different sheets that can be used by students for analyzing primary sources, including versions specifically made for use with E
Trump Leans on Schools to Reopen as Virus Continues Its Spread is today’s NY Times article that gives a good overview of the Trump Administration’s effort to make school reopening part of their campaign apparatus. I’ve written a couple of posts over the past day providing more info: DEVOS TELLS TEACHERS THAT THEY JUST NEED MORE SOCIAL EMOTIONAL LEARNING SKILLS, NOT MORE MONEY, TO OPEN SCHOOLS SAF
OpenClipart-Vectors / Pixabay On the heels of yesterday’s actions by the Trump Administration (see Trump Administration Uses Money To Pressure Colleges To Teach In Physical Classrooms – I Bet You K-12 Is Next ), Education Secretary DeVos continued the push at a conference today (see White House Pushes To Reopen Schools Despite A Surge In Coronavirus Cases ). These two tweets tell the story: Anoth
is the headline of my latest Education Week Teacher column. Three educators share advice on working with instructional aides/paraprofessionals, including having a “team” mindset and demonstrating empathy. Here are some excerpts:
I’m continuing with my mid-year “Best” list posts… I’m adding this post to All 2020 Mid-Year “Best” Lists In One Place! Seven years ago I began publishing a regular Classroom Instruction Resources Of The Week post. You can see all my “Best” lists on instructional strategies here. Here are my choices from the past few months: How to Create a Project Based Learning Lesson is from Cult of Pedagogy.
How We Talk About the Achievement Gap Could Worsen Public Racial Biases Against Black Students is an article in Ed Week (which is the source of the quote in the text box) about a new study. Fortunately, the study, Experimental Effects of “Achievement Gap” News Reporting on Viewers’ Racial Stereotypes, Inequality Explanations, and Inequality Prioritization , is not behind a paywall. Researchers fo
I thought that new – and veteran – readers might find it interesting if I began sharing my best posts from the first half of this year. You can see the entire collection of best posts from the past thirteen years here . I’ve posted a lot about a growth mindset, related research, and how I apply it in my classroom (see The Best Resources On Helping Our Students Develop A “Growth Mindset” ). New st
I’m making a change in the content of the regular feature. In addition to sharing the top five posts that have received the most “hits” in the preceding seven days (though they may have originally been published on an earlier date), I will also include the top five posts that have actually appeared in the past week. Often, these are different posts. You might also be interested in IT’S THE THIRTE
The Trump Administration, in a effort to support its political agenda of getting things “back to normal,” announced today that colleges could either teach classes in a physical classroom this fall or lose gobs of money by not having their international students be able to stay on their campuses. You can read about it at the NBC News article, U.S. says foreign students may have to leave if their s
A ‘Communication, Action, Reflection’ Cycle Makes a Teacher-Paraprofessional Relationship Work is the headline of my latest Education Week Teacher column. Three educators share ideas on how to make a teacher-paraprofessional relationship work, including throug