Misguided Direction

An Opinion Piece

By Joey J. Cohen, Ed.D., Principal – Patchogue-Medford School District

The future of education is not just in jeopardy with the current political climate set forth by Governor Cuomo, Chancellor Tisch and former Commissioner King, it is decidedly bleak. I have spent nearly twenty years in education, currently as an elementary principal, holding…

Though we are New Yorkers, we try to write with relevancy for all who lead education. But, sometimes, the best examples do come from our state....well, maybe not best, perhaps a better word is striking. New York's Governor Andrew M. Cuomo was recently re-elected to a second term. He has enthusiastically claimed the  "we must improve schools" podium, stepping into his school improvement agenda including pre-k programs and teacher evaluation.…

A lot of people think John Dewey invented the Dewey Decimal System. No, that was Melville Dewey.

John Dewey is America's premier educator. He is often called the Father of American Education. He was the guy, about a century ago, who started all the liberal/collectivist/progressive/experiential/socialist/cooperative stuff.

 He wanted children to work together in an harmonious group. He didn't want anybody learning too much, because that would create…

Can we deny that there are those who have bestowed tenure on those who didn't deserve it? Can we deny that there are those who could do a better job of developing their teachers and principals?  These debates bring with them confusion, resentment, and resistance. We have also seen top notch professionals commit daily to getting better and to caring even more. Most of us want a surgeon, if we need one, to have performed an operation multiple times before we come under the laser or the…

Got community service?

How to create a volunteer fair

By Verdel Jones

 …

Whether a school has a majority of its students living in poverty, or only a small percentage of students living in poverty, keeping poverty on our minds is important.  Reading about, talking about, and doing something about those students living in poverty may cause us to do something different from what is happening for those students now   Read more....

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Leaders, do not mistake an introvert as one without capacity to lead. Whether a superintendent looking at a pool of candidates for other leadership positions in the district, or principals looking for teacher leaders, or teachers considering teacher leadership, all need to pay attention. Create time and spaces for introverts to contribute and increase the number of opportunities for leadership and quiet leaders to emerge.  …

 Suppose you had a $1 billion grant to dumb down the country.

  Would you need to do a lot of fancy research to find the best ways? Not at all. Hang on to your money. According to this article, what they're doing  now in the public schools works perfectly, thank you very much.

 Here are the six essential techniques, boiled down. 1) Make the classroom as fact-free as possible. 2) If there is information left, efficient teaching is not allowed. 3) Nothing…

Exhausted from the changes that have taken place in these last years, no one can accuse schools of not trying.  Before there is little energy left, we offer a solution that is both simple and enormous.  Stop.  Stop adding programs, changing programs, and exchanging programs. Stop responding to external pressures as they arise. Start thinking about the system as a whole. What is the central purpose? It must always begin with the children. If we begin and end with the…

Listen Up, Legislators: People Want Better Sex Education Than What Many States Require

Teacher/administrator communication, or its lack

Administrators and teachers are mostly in agreement about the importance of trying new tools and methods for instruction, yet each identifies the other as an obstacle, writes Jordan Shapiro in The Hechinger Report. Administrators want teachers to adopt new methods, but feel teachers resist change. Teachers yearn to be creative, but feel this is impossible within a rigid bureaucracy. Blame creates a gridlock that…