The New York Times highlighted the power of phonics in a recent article. Usually you read of intensive reading interventions for elementary school students; however, schools in the Memphis area are providing teacher training and deeply embedding phonics to improve the reading of high school students. “One student said her grades had improved, and she […]
Is universal preschool creating the results we all hoped? Unfortunately, two recent studies show it is not. The Hechinger Report explains, “In practice, as communities around the country offer free preschool to more and more tiny Americans, the results are uneven.” This is a disappointing but eye-opening finding. For decades, we were all led to […]
Special education and students who receive district-provided interventions have long been in the news, even before the pandemic started. It’s no wonder the pandemic made learning even more difficult for these students though. In fact, the Department of Education recently found that the Los Angeles Unified School District failed to adequately provide and track special […]
We’ve all seen the headlines about teachers leaving their profession in droves over the last two years. “Highly qualified teachers and administrators will find other professions that not only pay better but also publicly value their skill sets and do not subject them to constant abasement,” says an instructional specialist writing for the Hechinger Report. […]
The Hechinger Report recently came out with an article detailing the slump in reading ability across grades and demographics. Surprisingly, this trend did not emerge with COVID.
At this point in the pandemic, we can see that “educators are looking at a long game, perhaps three or more years during which schools must do their core work better.” As the Los Angeles Times points out “[i]f we simply return to pre-pandemic methods, that won’t happen — because before the pandemic, we weren’t […]
School is back in session. Parents and students are muddling through the ups and downs from school closures due to outbreaks to kids getting to see their friends and schoolmates in person. Schools and districts prepared as best they could “to do something different for the 2021-22 school year to make up for those losses.” […]
In a recent Op-Ed, Barry Garelick, veteran math teacher and author of articles found in The Atlantic, Education Next, and more, explains the importance of “repetitive practice [that] lies at the heart of mastery of almost every discipline, and mathematics is no exception.” Garelick goes on to explain that “iterative practice is key to attaining procedural fluency […]
