WHAT WORKS IN EDUCATION The George Lucas Educational Foundation

Log In

We share evidence-based K-12 learning strategies that empower you to improve education.

Featured:

The Power of Collaborative Learning at The College Preparatory School

High school students in group at round table

Featured:

Nichole Pinkard on Digital Literacy (Big Thinkers Series)

Featured:

How to Thank a Teacher

Blogs on Education Trends

Education Trends

RSS

Get insight from educators on the latest ideas and innovations changing the way students learn.

In the News: 14 Open Educational Resources for High School

Matt DavisOctober 15, 2012

Tags Classroom Technology, Current Events, Online Learning, Open Education Resources

To kick off this week's curation, we'll start with something we published here at Edutopia: the last video in our Tech2Learn series. The videos, which were co-produced by Teaching Channel, look at inspiring ways educators use tech tools in the classroom.

Students Deserve Real Sex Ed

Christopher PepperOctober 9, 2012

Tags Current Events, Curriculum, Health, , Middle (6-8), High (9-12)

Health education includes a lot of topics -- nutrition, fitness, substance use, mental health, violence prevention and communication skills, to name a few -- but the one that always gets the most attention is sex ed. And lately it's not just getting attention in class.

It's been all over the news.

STEM to STEAM: Art in K-12 is Key to Building a Strong Economy

John MaedaOctober 2, 2012

Tags Arts Education, Education Reform, Integrated Studies, Science, Visual Arts

As the nation embarks on a new school year, education leaders from President Obama on down are facing a renewed commitment to the STEM subjects -- Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics -- as a driver of innovation. And what better advertisement of the power of STEM education than the recent landing of the Mars Rover? Like the original Apollo missions to the Moon, they powerfully reveal the magic of science and engineering. Just this summer, the Obama administration announced a laudable new "teacher corps" dedicated to excellence in the STEM subjects, and as far and wide as Estonia, a new policy is spurring debate about the value of teaching programming to elementary school students.

In the News: Five Web Tools to Help Teach Bloom's Taxonomy

Matt DavisOctober 1, 2012

Tags Technology Integration

Wow, October is already here; the school year is flying.

Banned Book Week is kicking off the new month, offering a chance for classroom conversations about freedom of speech and censorship. Last Friday, Edutopia took a quick look at some censored books in a great Five-Minute Film Festival, which rounded up some of the best Banned Book videos from around the Web.

Won’t Back Down: An Engaging and Misleading Film

Mark PhillipsSeptember 26, 2012

Tags Accountability, Community Partnerships, Education Reform, Parental Involvement

The film Won't Back Down is scheduled to open in wide release on September 28. Yet, weeks in advance of this date, there has been a veritable deluge of extremely strong emotional and critical responses. Both the film and the responses deserve our attention, because they are each symptomatic of the polarization that is plaguing both public education and national politics in this country. Every teacher and parent should see the film, but should also be fully prepared to view it critically.

In the News: Do Classroom Expectations Affect Student Performance?

Matt DavisSeptember 24, 2012

Tags Current Events, Education Reform

Last week, several thought-provoking studies made the news. Here's a look at a few studies and other interesting stories -- including a school district that pays for college, a case for why Wikipedia should be used in the classroom, and a look at how high-stakes testing can encourage cheating.

Parent Trigger Laws: Why It's Better to Embrace Collaboration

Anne OBrienSeptember 24, 2012

Tags Education Reform, Parental Involvement

Parent trigger laws have been attracting a lot of attention of lately. At least 18 states (some say 20) have considered legislation including parent trigger language over the past two years, with seven states enacting some version of a parent trigger. And a major motion picture set to release on September 28 chronicles a fictional account of a parent and teacher "pulling the trigger" to improve an elementary school.

Hall Talk: Is the Chicago Teachers Strike the ‘Super Bowl’ of Ed Reform?

Matt DavisSeptember 14, 2012

Tags Achievement Gap, Charter Schools, Classroom Management, Education Reform, Science

It was a fascinating week in education news, with, of course, the Chicago teachers strike taking center stage.

Hall Talk: Want to Make STEM Learning Hip? Reality TV Might Help

Matt DavisSeptember 7, 2012

Tags Classroom Technology, Mobile Learning, Online Learning, Technology Integration

So it's Friday, and Edutopia is back with a roundup of useful, unusual and interesting articles, blogs and videos from around the Web.

We started curating Ed News here last week, and we'd love your help. In the comments, let us know of anything from the education blogosphere that grabbed your attention this week, or you can reach me on Twitter (@EducationMatt), where I tweet what I read throughout the week.

EdNews: BYOD, STEM, Arts Integration (Weekly Roundup)

Matt DavisAugust 31, 2012

Tags Classroom Technology, Education Reform, Mobile Learning, Math, Science

It's hard to keep up with the endless stream of education news and research that hits the Web every day.

To help you stay in the know, Edutopia is launching a weekly roundup of blogs, news, and other useful resources that come across our desks. Each week, we'll be on the lookout for recent stories that are interesting, inspiring, and have people talking. We'll also let you know about important policy decisions that might affect you, practical ideas for your classroom, and hopefully we'll have a few funny surprises along the way.