WHAT WORKS IN EDUCATION The George Lucas Educational Foundation

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George Lucas and Milton Chen
Credit: Edutopia

Edutopia is where The George Lucas Educational Foundation's vision to highlight what works in education comes to life. Through our website and videos, we document and present the fresh ideas that lead to inspiring educational success stories.

For nearly 20 years, Edutopia has researched, written, and produced videos documenting successful and innovative programs that show what 21st-century classrooms should look like.

Short versions of these stories will be broadcast on your local television news station. For the full story on the segments you've seen, choose from the titles below.




Boys dancing with smiles and hands in the air

Music and Dance Drive Academic Achievement

Opera and dance help first and second graders learn to read, write, and understand geometry. (Tucson, AZ)


Teacher listening to a student in class

Transformed by Technology

High Tech High, a network of K-12 public charter schools, uses rigorous projects and portfolio assessments to revolutionize learning. (San Diego, CA)


Little girl counting lego blocks

The Magic of Math

Math is integrated into every subject in every classroom -- and students love it. (Roseburg, OR)


Girl and boy opening up their guitar cases

An After School Network
That Works

Too old for child care, too young to be left alone -- keeping middle school students safe and engaged. (Providence, RI)


Girl picking lettuce in the garden

The Edible Schoolyard

The garden and the kitchen are learning labs for social studies, math, and science. (Berkeley, CA)


Girls play acting

Peace Helpers

K-5 students learn conflict resolution, leading to a happier and more successful school. (Brooklyn, NY)


Girl on a climbing wall

The New Phys Ed

Adventure sports transform gym class into a lab for teaching leadership and cooperation. (San Rafael, CA)


Teacher showing kids how to use the hand held device in the field

Tracking the Horny Toad

Junior scientists team up with local farmers to research an elusive species. (Waterville, WA)


Older boy explaining computer to younger boy

4-H Tech Wizards

Technology connects high school students to their communities and helps improve graduation rates. (Forest Grove, OR)


Two boys dressed up and acting like airline pilots

Five-Year-Olds Pilot
Their Own Projects

Hands-on learning begins in kindergarten, and the kids can't get enough of it. (Auburn, AL)


Girls writing in a foreign language at a whiteboard

Students of the World

At Walter Payton High School, students immerse themselves in global culture. (Chicago, IL)


Group of kids working together in a tight circle

Change of Heart in Alaska

A school system's investment in social and emotional learning is paying off both socially and academically. (Anchorage, AK)


Class of kids dancing

How Are You Smart?

Teaching to students' strengths and improving their weaknesses. (Gainesville, GA)


Boy scanning a drawing of a turtle

"Nobody Feels Stupid Here Anymore."

For these students, creating a CD-ROM to teach others is the best way to learn. (Portland, ME)


Boy building a model out of foamcore

Learning By Design

Architectural internships deliver real-world experience for high school students. (San Francisco, CA)


Park Ranger talking to class outside about a colonial waterwheel

Integrating Knowledge

A school achieves great success by teaching subjects together. (Malden, MA)


Boy at presentation with sign attached to an umbrella that he's going to Yale

YES Prep: College Bound

A low-income school with high expectations -- every student goes to college. (Houston, TX)


Boys in canoes on the river taking notes

A Gateway to the
Outside World

Technology lab connects middle school students with nature, history and their community. (Little Rock, AR)


Girl and boy painting a life-size paper mache horse

School-to-Career Learning

Students explore career possibilities and get a head start on "what to be when I grow up." (Grand Prairie, TX)


Girls working in a pasture with a pig in the foreground

A Night in Heifer's
Global Village

Middle school students experience firsthand how to live and survive in developing countries. (Perryville, AR)


Kids filing by an alligator head touching sharp teeth

Wetland Watchers

A nationally recognized service-learning project where middle school students are stewards of their area's fragile wetlands. (Destrehan, LA)


Professional illustrator working on a lion

Animating Dreams:
The ACME Animation Program

High school students draw on the expertise of professional cartoonists. (Birmingham, AL)


Kids in the field identifying plants

Taking Class Outdoors with Environmental Education

At the School for Environmental Studies, learning is about becoming an expert and solving real problems. (Apple Valley, MN)


The front of the high school with a big metal Y

Houston's YES Prep:
Discipline on the R.I.S.E.

Students consider the "Scarlet Letter" to be tough but fair. And certainly effective. (Houston, TX)


Kids talking about the stock exchange

Kids Invest in Funds --
and Their Own Future

K-8 students hone math skills and learn practical lifelong lessons by managing a class stock portfolio with $20,000 in real cash. (Chicago, IL)


Girls at a computer

School Uses Games for Learning and Assessment

Computer simulations are natural learning tools for a generation of video game players. (Washington, D.C.)


Little kids in circle

Character Development

An entire school district lays the foundation for 21st-century learning by building relationships, skills, and confidence. (Louisville, KY)


Boy with headphones on in the bus

On the Road with The John Lennon Educational Tour Bus

A recording studio on wheels brings music education to schools and lets teens produce their own tunes. (Across the country)


Kids dancing in international dress

Success Spoken Here

An elementary school that immerses students in languages, global awareness and academic achievement. (Seattle, WA)


Teacher helping a little girl who is making a sour face

High Expections

A focus on teamwork, individualized instruction, and ongoing assessment is improving achievement of minority and low-income K-6 students. (Portland, OR)


This article originally published on 9/15/2009

Comments (3)

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Former Executive Producer, video , Edutopia

Jim, You can find contact

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Jim,
You can find contact info on the John Lennon Busat http://www.lennonbus.org/. Good luck.

Saw a TV report 9/16 about a

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Saw a TV report 9/16 about a traveling music-appreciation program. Would like additional info such as a schedule and any opportunity to influence schedule.

Janet M. Bullock

I am impressed and would like

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I am impressed and would like to know more to help students at the 8th grade level.