Blogs on Teacher Leadership

Teacher Leadership

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Get support and guidance from change makers who are organizing and implementing real improvements to our educational system.

Dr. Richard CurwinApril 27, 2012

Ineffective communication between parents and teachers can be a major obstacle when trying to solve problems with students, but fortunately it can be improved. Let's first examine the two major causes of communication dysfunction.

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Vanessa VegaApril 26, 2012

"To know is not enough" was the theme of this year's American Educational Research Association conference. Over 13,000 researchers from over 60 countries met in Vancouver, Canada to present papers and posters in over 2,400 sessions.

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Anne OBrienApril 19, 2012

As we close in on Earth Day 2012, it seems fitting to reflect on the school's dual role in environmental protection.

Like all entities, schools have an environmental footprint. Those in the school generate trash. They use energy for heating, lighting, photocopying and so on. Schools are cleaned using chemicals that have environmental impacts. The list continues.

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Bob LenzApril 6, 2012

Day after day, Alone on a hill,
The man with the foolish grin is keeping perfectly still
But nobody wants to know him,
They can see that he's just a fool,
And he never gives an answer,

But the fool on the hill,
Sees the sun going down,
And the eyes in his head,
See the world spinning 'round

--The Beatles

This poem was on the blackboard when I walked into Mr. Cooper's fifth grade classroom in 1975. Soon we were listening to the Beatles sing the Fool on the Hill and interpreting the poem as a class. This brief introduction to contemporary poets was the hook for a project that transformed my future: the Personal Poetry Book Project.

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Dr. Richard CurwinApril 4, 2012

I have the greatest respect for coaches; not every coach of course, but those who care more about their players than about winning. I include those who coach drama, choir, band and all those who spend so much of their time and energy on helping children far beyond the confines of the classroom. Good coaches make great teachers.

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Bob LenzMarch 23, 2012

When do you start a movement? How do you start a movement? What happens when things actually move? These questions and more have been swirling in my head since the gathering of the Deeper Learning Network Community of Practice at High Tech High last week in San Diego.

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Anne OBrienMarch 21, 2012

According to the recent MetLife Survey of the American Teacher, teachers, parents and students all agree that parent engagement in schools has increased over the past 25 years. Given the role that family engagement plays in not only academic success, but life success, that is great news. However, the survey also noted that parent engagement remains a challenge for many schools.

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Elena AguilarMarch 16, 2012

Teachers and administrators all over are trying to figure out how to support English Learners (ELs). One of the schools that I work with, United for Success Academy (UFSA), in Oakland, CA, has launched a concerted effort in the last year to address the needs of their ELs who comprise some 90 percent of the student body.

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Nicholas ProvenzanoMarch 15, 2012

'Tis the season for state technology conferences. I recently went to my state conference, MACUL, and was excited to see some great presentations. There is nothing like being in the audience when passionate educators talk about the awesome things they are doing in the classroom.

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Ben JohnsonMarch 8, 2012

The controversial author Norman Mailer said, "I don't know what I think until I write it down." Joan Didion perhaps said it better in this way, "I write entirely to find out what I'm thinking, what I'm looking at, what I see and what it means. What I want and what I fear." Donald Murray, a pioneer of the writing process, stated, "...all writers 'are compelled to write to see what their words tell them."

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