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 [...]
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 [...]
One of my favorite scenes in literature is where Tom Sawyer convinces all the boys in the neighborhood to whitewash the fence for him, a task he had been given as punishment. Not only does he not have to do the work, but his friends all empty their pockets of [...]
Competency-based education focuses on student learning and mastery of skills, not seat time. Many schools have begun to, or have already shifted to this type of model. Students can benefit from competency-based education because it's more flexible, and ensures that they really learn a concept. It's not based on [...]