If educating the "whole child" is becoming a central theme in the work of schools, we must know the whole child: the whole child includes their family life circumstances, their needs, feelings, and experiences. Poverty and incarceration exist in the lives of some of our children. Hour Children...in Long Island City is an organization worth considering as a model. The organization's name reflects the belief that the lives of these children are formed around three hours: the hour…

Standardized testing (now dubbed 'high stakes testing') has something in common with Carnegie Units. They are boundaries educators face, push against, and climb over. They are also barriers that in some cases are perceived rather than real. But they do go hand in hand with each other. At this point we are all keenly aware of the negative views of the use of standardized testing and some are becoming aware of the clash between the need for flexibility in 21st century schools and…

Grades are part of schooling and of how teachers communicate progress and development to parents.  How can this idea ever take hold especially in a public school?  Or, for that matter, how can the use of standardized tests used as high stakes measures ever be diminished?  We wonder. As the power of social media grows and the engagement of those who are advocating to abolish grades catches fire, is living in the "can't happen world" becoming a dangerous place?…

Schools need to be re-designed now but across the nation bond issues to refurbish existing facilities continue. Change is demanded by the times we live in, by those who are at the edge of the new economy and, most importantly, by the children who are arriving at school. Once the world starts spinning, it is natural to hold to what has worked in the past. Public schools have served well for a century or two. They are also one of the few remaining relics of communities that used to be…

Confounding findings from the recent Brookings Institute reported that superintendents could not be directly connected to student achievement. The report found that,  "In the end, it is the system that promotes or hinders student achievement. Superintendents are largely indistinguishable."…

No one, no teacher, no school leader, no one escapes the complex responsibilities our jobs and our lives include.  Balancing our lives and our work requires thoughtful organization...think of it as our life's inbox.  Clutter in our minds is tantamount to clutter in our inbox and visa-versa.  The effect of making a To Do List in order to de-clutter our minds and help us accomplish what needs to be done, unpacking and organizing thoughts can be duplicated by taking control of our bulging…

Teacher preparation programs have to catch up.  Until then, filling the gaps that those shortcomings create has become the responsibility of the teachers and leaders in schools which hire recent graduates. Those districts large enough have teacher leaders, including department chairs, and curriculum personnel in the district office who can support the principals. Together they carry the burden of developing the novice teacher. But, many more schools have only the principal and the…

We think sleep is an important factor contributing to good physical and emotional health. We think good health is part of the foundation needed for learning. And we think the time is right to reexamine school schedules. But why not take advantage of the interest in changing school schedules and roll the rest of what needs to change for 21st century learning into this conversation? Schools for this century include research, re-designed curriculum,…