Students and even some educators feel that digital hall passes should not be in schools. Parents have concerns as well. What is behind these concerns, and how can they be addressed? Digital hall passes, sometimes referred to as electronic hall passes or 'e hall passes' are becoming increasingly popular. They [...]
Solving the issue of wavering student engagement is no easy task. But it's an important one. Consider this scenario. You ask a high school student - "What do you want to do after high school?" The answer? "I don't know." As students get closer to graduation, most of us [...]
Digital hall passes for schools, sometimes referred to as electronic or e hall passes, are growing in popularity. What is a 'digital' hall pass? These systems replace the paper hall pass method by using software and/or scanning equipment to issue passes for students. But the question is - why [...]
How do you provide interventions that work, when student have varying needs and are a different levels of understanding? It's a tall order. At many schools, teachers and school leaders work hard to meet student needs while still providing them progressive, grade-level learning standards. But what happens when some [...]
Chronic absenteeism, referring to a student who is missing more than 10% of the school year, is of rising concern for schools and districts nationwide. Rates have doubled since the pandemic; from pre-pandemic levels of 13% to 26% for the 2022-23 school year. When students aren’t in school, they [...]
Innovation can be a tricky word to define, especially in education. There are so many educational philosophies and ways of doing things that change, sometimes because of current research, and sometimes because it’s trendy. What makes an 'innovative' school? But far from being just a ‘flavor of the [...]
As a new principal, I realized that I have a tragic flaw when it comes to leadership. To flip an old cliché, my issue is that I often don't see the trees for the forest. I am a big picture thinker to a fault. As a teacher, focusing on the [...]
Guest post. Relationships in Education All too often, our schools are focused on metrics of academic performance and based on standardized test scores. Because of this, the significance of interpersonal relationships in shaping a student's academic and personal trajectory often doesn't receive the attention it deserves. The advisory model [...]
At one High School in Massachusetts, administration was searching for transformation. As in many schools across the country, educators are seeking a way to improve learning for students, to make the shift from a schedule driven by content, to one that enables students to build relationships, master what they're [...]
On the first day of class every year, I have a student volunteer come up to the front of the classroom, and I teach them how to putt a golf ball. I use tape to put a straight line on my floor, and I demonstrate how it is possible [...]