October, 2022

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Humble Leadership

A Principal's Reflections

Suppose you were to research or Google the qualities of effective leaders. In that case, all you would come up with are the typical characteristics such as good communication, ability to make difficult decisions, having a vision, models, and listening intently, to name a few. What doesn’t show up in routine searches is humility. There is a strong link between this trait and effective leadership.

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No One Told Us How to Be Assistant Principals

My AP Life

Educational leadership classes are great for the principalship. Not so much for the job of assistant principal. AP DeAnna Miller shares helpful advice she has found on her own in the books of Baruti Kafele (values and beliefs) and Ryan Donlan (day-to-day management and more). The post No One Told Us How to Be Assistant Principals first appeared on MiddleWeb.

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GatherED: Global Teacher Education “Languages as tools for developing global citizenship”

Pedagogy to Share

I am in a hotel in Crete writing to process an inspiring three-day inspiring workshop funded by the Erasmus + program. When I arrived in Rethymnon in Crete from Israel, I knew I would be participating in a GatherED international workshop about language education in multi-lingual and multi-cultural classroom environments. I immediately discovered that the learning was engrossing, and the powerful emotional connections with fellow participants extended well beyond any expectation.

Education 130
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Much ado about NAEP

Dangerously Irrelevant

Scores on the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) are down after the pandemic. Surprise! Four big thoughts on all of this… 1. Below is the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) graph of daily COVID cases in the U.S. Note the huge spike in January 2022 due to the Omicron variant. Also note that the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) chose to administer the NAEP tests in March 2022 , during the downswing of that huge spike in cases and after two years

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PROOF POINTS: Colleges that ditched test scores for admissions find it’s harder to be fair in choosing students, researcher says

The Hechinger Report

One college admissions officer at a large public university described how test-optional admissions had spurred more disagreements in his office. A third reader on an application was often called in to break a tie when one staffer said ‘yes’ and another said ‘no.’ Without SAT and ACT scores, he explained, the job of admitting students had become more subjective and more time-consuming.

Research 144
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Lego’s Parent Company Acquires Edtech Firm BrainPOP

ED Surge

The company that owns Lego is diving headlong into K-12 education’s switch to digital. Kirkbi A/S, the private investment and holding company that owns a controlling stake in Lego, acquired the video animation company BrainPOP for $875 million. The deal was announced Tuesday. Fueled by the digital transformation of K-12 learning, the acquisition is expected to be only the first of many for Kirkbi A/S.

EdTech 141
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Strategies to Empower Reluctant Staff

A Principal's Reflections

As a leader, have you ever been so excited about a new initiative or innovative idea only to learn that some of your staff weren’t as equally thrilled? Early in my career, this was more the norm than the exception. I vividly remember getting excited about improving parent communication with, at the time, a state-of-the-art app. Since I saw the inherent value that it would have in the hands of my teachers to get information out readily while building relationships in the process, I couldn’t wait

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What is Compassionate Communication for Coaches? Hear from Expert Megan Tschannen-Moran

Edthena

When instructional coaches strive to correct teachers instead of communicating, they’re playing a game where everyone loses. Compassionate communication is a key component of evocative coaching , an effective coaching model from Megan Tschannen-Moran. Her idea of a win-win game? “Coaches coming together with teachers in connection to open up the realm of possibilities.”.

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Thinking about NAEP in Colorado and the Denver Public Schools

Dangerously Irrelevant

[this blog post is a follow-up response to the Twitter exchange with Van Schoales posted below]. Hi Van. Although I’ve admired your work for years, you and I have never met, which means that we don’t have a relationship to lean into. Seth Godin reminds me that ‘ if your audience isn’t listening, it’s your fault, not theirs. ’ So please take this post as a very-public apology for whatever anger or defensiveness I sparked by my tweet.

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When your disability gets you sent home from school

The Hechinger Report

The phone call from her son’s school was alarming. The assistant principal told her to come to the school immediately. This story also appeared in The Associated Press. But when Lisa Manwell arrived at Pioneer Middle School in Plymouth, Michigan, her son wasn’t sick or injured. He was sitting calmly in the principal’s office. John, who has ADHD and finds it soothing to fidget during class, had been removed from the classroom after he refused to stop using a pair of safety scissors to cut his cut

Tutoring 144
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Google Discreetly Acquires Edtech Analytics Company BrightBytes

ED Surge

Google has silently acquired a widely-used K-12 data and analytics company. The tech giant confirmed, in an email to EdSurge, that it's picked up BrightBytes for an undisclosed amount. The acquisition does not appear to have been publicly announced. And Google declined to provide any details, including when the sale had taken place. But an email about the deal sent by Google to a school district in early May, obtained by EdSurge, cites May 17th as the expected date of the transaction.

EdTech 140
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Core Elements of Personalization

A Principal's Reflections

Many concepts are looked upon negatively as they are associated with buzzwords, fads, or a lack of substance. You won’t get much of an argument from me as to the validity of this view because it is true in many cases. Educators want proven strategies that can be implemented readily that will address diverse learner needs while leading to an improvement in outcomes.

Cultures 521
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Navigating Zimbabwe’s Competence Curriculum: A Push for Student-Driven Tech

Digital Promise

The post Navigating Zimbabwe’s Competence Curriculum: A Push for Student-Driven Tech appeared first on Digital Promise.

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Resources for Teachers and Instructional Coaches – September 2022

Edthena

The beginning of the school year can go by quickly! September has passed and you may not have had time to stay up-to-date on the latest resources for teachers and coaches. That’s why we’ve rounded up the top resources from September 2022 and included the highlights here. From maintaining teacher vision to boosting student engagement, these reads have great ideas and resources for teachers and coaches.

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The Key Three of Teacher Retention

Education Elements

The teacher attrition crisis in US education has been in the headlines a lot in recent months. Many districts and schools started the 22-23 school year woefully understaffed, leading districts to implement drastic stop gap measures just to open their doors. Some districts opened this fall with armies of substitute teachers, shortened school days, and were forced to implement confusing and sub-optimal alternative schedules.

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PROOF POINTS: Leading dyslexia treatment isn’t a magic bullet, studies find, while other options show promise

The Hechinger Report

In 2019, a grassroots campaign led by parents succeeded in passing a wave of dyslexia legislation. At least seven states, from Arkansas to Wisconsin, now require teachers to be trained in the Orton-Gillingham teaching approach and use it to help students with dyslexia read and write better. Many more states mandated hallmarks of the Orton-Gillingham method, specifically calling for “multisensory” instruction.

Tutoring 143
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Demystifying Social-Emotional Learning and the Controversy Surrounding It

ED Surge

A few years ago, it seemed like social-emotional learning was rocketing into the mainstream. More people were talking about why it is important and how it can help kids develop. Many schools were adopting social-emotional learning programs and frameworks, weaving practices that support social and emotional development into various parts of the school day and reporting material improvements in student behavior and outcomes.

Research 139
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Your Ticket to More Effective Lessons

A Principal's Reflections

During my training to become a teacher, I was immersed in the work of Madeline Hunter when it came to lesson plan design. Her Instructional Theory into Practice (ITIP) model helped me identify the strategies I would use on a daily basis to help my students learn. These included the anticipatory set (hook), reviewing prior learning, checking for understanding, forms of practice, and closure.

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We’re back in school. Did we lean into care or compliance?

Dangerously Irrelevant

Most schools here in the U.S. now have been back for a month or two. And I’m hearing from educators that things are … ‘better.’ Which has me wondering, “How are we defining better ?” As we all know, the end of the 2020 school year and the entire 2020-21 school year were an incredible challenge. Schools shut down. People died. Everything was disrupted, and everyone was scared and anxious.

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How My Class Found Joy in Learning Through the Process of Discovery

Digital Promise

The post How My Class Found Joy in Learning Through the Process of Discovery appeared first on Digital Promise.

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Personalized Learning - From start-up to fully scaled

Education Elements

Gaps. Learning loss. Interventions. All of those words represent important topics that existed pre-pandemic yet were magnified when students returned to in-person instruction. But in true educator fashion, resilience prevailed. Many districts and campuses found innovative ways to meet students where they were. We saw organizations revisiting their missions and visions to determine if what students now needed matched their organization’s statements.

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Momentum builds for helping students adapt to college by nixing freshman grades

The Hechinger Report

SANTA CRUZ, Calif. — Joy Malak floundered through her freshman year in college. This story also appeared in National Public Radio. “I had to learn how to balance my finances. I had to learn how to balance work and school and the relationship I’m in.” The hardest part about being a new college student, Malak said, “is not the coursework. It’s learning how to be an adult.”.

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How Metaphors Shape Edtech

ED Surge

The tech world is teeming with metaphors (you might say the way an ocean is teeming with fish). Sometimes those metaphors are helpful for understanding new innovations and ideas, but other times they can be up to something else, as a tool of persuasion trying to shape the narrative. For this week’s EdSurge Podcast we’re looking at how metaphors shape technology in education.

EdTech 119
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Better Feedback for Deeper Learning

A Principal's Reflections

In order to learn and grow, some type of feedback is needed along the way. While an experience can be a foundation for learning, it is the feedback that often serves as a catalyst for reflection. At this point, learners gain valuable insight into the strategies being used so that adjustments can be made to make better progress. There is also a robust research base to validate its importance.

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Congratulations, Silver Lining for Learning!

Dangerously Irrelevant

In March 2020, some world-renowned university faculty invited me to help launch a new website and podcast initiative, Silver Lining for Learning. Although I eventually bowed out due to other time commitments, the weekly live conversations and guest posts were super fun and informative. I am greatly appreciative of the opportunity that I had to help get Silver Lining for Learning up and running.

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How Schools and Districts are Supporting Digital Equity

Digital Promise

The post How Schools and Districts are Supporting Digital Equity appeared first on Digital Promise.

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Personalized Learning - From start-up to fully scaled

Education Elements

Gaps. Learning loss. Interventions. All of those words represent important topics that existed pre-pandemic yet were magnified when students returned to in-person instruction. But in true educator fashion, resilience prevailed. Many districts and campuses found innovative ways to meet students where they were. We saw organizations revisiting their missions and visions to determine if what students now needed matched their organization’s statements.

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What does the ‘metaverse’ mean for education?

The Hechinger Report

Editor’s note: This story led off this week’s Future of Learning newsletter, which is delivered free to subscribers’ inboxes every other Wednesday with trends and top stories about education innovation. Subscribe today! Sometime in the past year or two, you’ve likely heard the word “metaverse.” It’s the future, the next big frontier of the internet, if you ask technology CEOs or researchers.

EdTech 128
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If We’re Serious About Student Well-Being, We Must Change the Systems Students Learn In

ED Surge

Educators and parents started this school year with bated breath. Last year’s stress led to record levels of teacher burnout and mental health challenges for students. Even before the pandemic, a mental health crisis among high schoolers loomed. According to a survey administered by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in 2019, 37 percent of high school students said they experienced persistent sadness or hopelessness and 19 percent reported suicidality.

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Ask a Teacher: Why Teach Economics?

ACRE

It’s #EconEdMonth, the time of year where we highlight resources and strategies for teaching Economics across disciplines and content areas. This year, I asked a few Arkansas teachers to share what they love about teaching economics. Here is what they had to share. There are five key strands in the Arkansas Economics Standards: Economic Decision Making, Exchanges & Markets, National Economy, Global Economy, & Personal Financial Management.

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Technology for the purpose of WHAT?

Dangerously Irrelevant

This year I am serving as both an ISTE Ambassador and an ISTE Community Leader (in addition to some other ISTE volunteer work). Recently I had the pleasure of publishing a post on ISTE’s blog titled Before Using School Technology, Know Your EdTech Purpose. In that post, I connected the ISTE Standards for Students and the 4 Shifts Protocol. Here’s an excerpt: Hope the post is useful to you.

EdTech 63
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How I Help Students Address Climate Change with Hydroponics

Digital Promise

The post How I Help Students Address Climate Change with Hydroponics appeared first on Digital Promise.

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Resources for Teachers and Instructional Coaches – October 2022

Edthena

It’s spooky how fast October went by! Scared that you may have missed resources for teachers and coaches this past month? We’ve rounded up the top resources from October 2022 and included highlights here. These three reads have great ideas and resources for teachers and coaches around supporting students’ productive struggle, classroom essentials, and prioritizing teacher self-care.

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College admissions is already broken. What will happen if affirmative action is banned?

The Hechinger Report

It’s crunch time for thousands of high school seniors seeking spots at selective U.S. colleges, an annual ritual that appears to get more competitive every year, inviting hysteria, hair pulling and enormous anxiety. And just wait: College admissions is about to get even more complicated, with a major shake-up on the horizon that could forever change who gets in and why.

Sociology 120
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My School Learned The Hard Way That Edtech Saves Time, But It Can't Solve Human Problems

ED Surge

I’m so sick of hearing about self-care and feelings. Life just happens to us, and there’s not much we can do about it. A former student of mine shared this opinion in a class seminar about Transcendentalism. Not exactly what Whitman had in mind, but I digress. While I am accustomed to hearing stories about former students, this one surprised me more than others.

EdTech 118
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Realigning Education & Career Expectations in Schools and Families

Pedagogy and Formation

It's difficult to write a post like this one without appearing that I'm being (at least indirectly) critical of teachers, and parents. As a former teacher, I'm aware of the challenges in teaching, whether infants, primary or secondary. And as a parent, and more recently a grandparent, I understand how tough parenting can be. All levels of education have their own unique issues in 2022, there are also some issues that are common to all.

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Civics U: Immigration

Civics U

Immigration and immigration reform have been issues in past American history, and are still issues in American government and politics. This article will not enter that debate, but will review key elements in immigration history and law. Some of these also have a bearing on current issues and decisions. All of the settlers who came to America were immigrants, and all current citizens are either immigrants or descendants of immigrants, except for indigenous Native Americans, although some would a

Civics 52