Living history lessons that engage students in role playing have garnered negative headlines for being racially insensitive at times. Teachers need "a higher level of content and pedagogical knowledge" to teach these types of lessons, says LaGarrett King, an associate professor of social studies education at the University of Missouri.
Using student-driven ideas in lessons can help learners overcome distractions and stay on task, high-school teacher Dianne Pappafotopoulos writes. Pappafotopoulos shares how students' interest in the game Fortnite sparked an idea to use an "escape room" concept in her own lessons.
Teachers can help students build math and reading skills by pointing out similarities in vocabulary in both subjects and encouraging students to persevere when challenged by assignments, writes Texas educator Valentina Gonzalez. Students stronger in one area over the other also can learn to transfer those skills to improve their weaknesses, she writes.
Some 62% of Americans living in high-poverty areas with few economic and educational resources say a college education is very important, according to a Gallup survey. However, only 29% in these areas said they have access to an affordable college education.
Educators should strike a balance between raising students' test scores and engaging students in non-quantifiable skills, according to Howard Fields, a K-6 principal in the Webster Groves School District in St. Louis, Mo. In this commentary, Fields shares tips for better ways to support students than flawed "fluff" and "tough" approaches.
One South Carolina school district is considering switching to a four-day week in an effort to recruit and retain teachers. District officials say they will open the idea up to public comment before deciding on implementation.
A traumatic first year in teaching has led to an amazing career as an educator for Laura Bradley, NBCT. The veteran educator explains why she is still in the classroom and why she intends to stay there. Read on.
Toolkit helps system leaders embed Board certification
National Board Certified Teachers have advocated for ways to bring accomplished teaching -- and by extension, improved student learning -- to scale using National Board Certification as a foundation for job-embedded, relevant and engaging professional learning. Now a toolkit helps make that work easier. Read on.
If you only think about your own advancement, your own success, you run out of fuel pretty quickly. But if we believed in something bigger than ourselves, that kind of motivation is self-sustaining.
