Schools are struggling to become schools of this century, making sense of whether this important work is the result of mandates or whether they are really left to discover what lies beneath those surface fixes. Behaviors required for learning include attention, focus, interest, motivation and, yes, readiness. Those behaviors are difficult to engender, simultaneously, for all students in a classroom. To create that space requires the highest art and the science of teaching and the open…

The different use of the time has merit, and there are barriers that need to be addressed first.  There are required minutes of instruction in different areas from K through 12.  Those requirements vary from state to state. But often schedules are built based upon past practice without realizing that there may exist an opportunity for change that is not being used. And there are barriers because of state requirements.      …

The Nobel Committee has chosen two advocates for children to share the Nobel Peace Prize. Those two advocates come from different countries, with different religions. Those trying to lead education forward all with different voices, coming from different perspectives, are all fighting for the quality of the system. All the constituencies, parents, teachers, leaders, policy makers, pundits, enter the conversation about education with different opinions, but all are fighting…

The proposed newer version of the ISLLC Standards increases the number of standards to 11 and consistently adds the words "well being" when talking about the success of every student as the introductory stem to every standard descriptor.  As in the earlier standards, the 2014 standards are followed by functions that describe ways in which leaders can demonstrate each standard. It is about action. The functions include words like those in the standards: develop, nurture,…

e-Learning is growing in its capacity and accessibility.  As an increasing array of courses are developed, and the levels of instruction reach down into our high schools, they offer potential for variety and individualization that otherwise cannot exist. Getting in on the action now, before policy makers decide their use and impose limitations, is a good way to seize the moment. If school districts joined with state departments of education to analyze whether these online courses are…

Schools continue to struggle to make sense of student engagement and its relationship to student achievement.  Some students come to class ready to learn and remain engaged no matter the lesson. This has always been the case. But far more students become increasingly disengaged with their learning. The response is to intervene with more teaching and learning time, counseling, removing privileges like clubs or sports, and/or the "call home" to engage parents in the solution. With the…