Closing a school or a district in order to prevent the spread of illness or to avoid dangerous weather is no small task. Closing schools requires collaboration between the individual school, the district, and local health officials. UNESCO points out that school closures create a variety of distance learning challenges to consider: Parents unprepared for … More Distance Learning Tips During School Closures
Mental health support can be a key to preventing on-campus violence, but what can schools do to protect students and staff in an emergency? Behind the walls of schools located in urban centers, rural landscapes, and suburbs, US students and teachers have been practicing for the worst situation possible. Since the tragedy at Columbine High School … More 5 Ways to Conduct Safe Intruder Drills
The number of shootings that are occurring at schools is rising. According to the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), there have been 417 school shootings in the United States between 2010 and 2019. Sadly, when those annual totals are broken down, an upward trend becomes quite clear. The past two years have seen more school … More Build Up Student Mental Health, Not Fences, to Prevent School Violence
According to Media Smarts, 23% of students reported that they’ve said or done something cruel to another person online. 27% reported that they’ve experienced the same from someone else. With the increased use of collaboration tools and social media, children can be bullied 24 hours a day, seven days a week. Now is the time … More 5 Signs of Cyberbullying
Every day, millions of students engage with computers and tablets for learning purposes. Teachers spend hours monitoring the progress of these students, ensuring that they stay on task by using either proximity monitoring or an MDM. To accomplish this, Google products are often favored by schools as they allow easy collaboration and seamless incorporation with … More Google Docs: A New Way to be Cyberbullied
Becoming a school site administrator is one of the biggest steps an educator can take in their career. Leaving the classroom for the front office is a big decision. Some teachers wait decades to make the switch, while others do it much earlier in their career. The interview process for a principal position can be … More 5 Important Reminders for your Principal Interview
A school is only as good as the teachers that work at it. In order for students to reach their highest potential, they must be taught by knowledgeable, caring, and thoughtful teachers. Ensuring that every student has a highly qualified teacher needs to be a top priority for all school and districts. Here are five … More 5 Ways to Attract Highly Qualified Teachers
For the past two years, I have written a culminating post on education practices and ideas that need to be retired. I am pleased to report that the 2017 and 2018 articles have been read and shared over 50,000 times by educators around the world. So, without further ado, here are five educational practices and … More 5 Educational Concepts We Need To Eliminate In 2019
Teacher evaluation systems differ from district to district, and from state to state. There are differences in the amount of observations, timelines, yearly goals, and rubrics. However, the purpose of teacher evaluations should remain constant: to provide teachers the valuable feedback they need in order to continue to improve their craft. Sadly, according to research, … More 5 Ways to Strengthen the Teacher Evaluation Process
Teacher Pay I believe that the biggest elephant in the room is the lack of adequate pay for our nation’s teachers. This past year, teachers from Oklahoma, Arizona, West Virginia, Kentucky, and Colorado, walked out of the classroom to protest low wages. It is growing increasing difficult for teachers to be able to afford to … More The 5 Elephants of Education
