Here’s our friend Janet Ilko asking teachers to tell the public what matters in school so that we can get beyond all the standardized testing. More and more teachers are wringing their hands about the irrelevancy of the tests and all the time consumed with prepping kids for them and giving them. But as Janet […]

It’s encouraging to hear of more and more teachers advocating and making their voices heard. Here are two fresh examples, one national and one local. The national item is the “Occupy the Department of Education 2.0” event that just took place in Washington D.C., organized by the new Network for Public Education. The report on […]

We’ve already said we’re fans of Megan Allen, Hillsborough County fifth grade teacher who has spoken up to Congress and other public officials. Now read her advice on finding your inner teacher leader, your courage to speak up publicly to advance teachers’ voices in public education policy decisions. Ms Allen, it turns out, is active […]

The wider public, being less connected to schools than we teachers are, tends to have some limited concepts of our work and how to improve it. But in some fascinating and extremely helpful research the FrameWorks Institute provides smart advice on how to talk about education with the wider public. General attitudes about schools differ […]

There are hundreds of ways to make education more meaningful that teachers and community members are pursuing– and the public needs to hear more about them. Here are two very different initiatives featured today at Education Week – Teacher. In Washington DC, the Young Playwright’s Theater Program partners with schools, enabling students to write and […]

So today I browsed through a number of TED talks on education. Many start from the premise that “the system is broken.” But then I came upon the uplifting TED talk by 4th grade teacher John Hunter, on “Teaching with the World Peace Game.” Now he may seem like a superstar — which can mislead […]

With spring vacations and Easter and Passover finished, we return to our effort to encourage educators to tell our stories to the public. Here are several examples of how whole school districts tell the world about their smart work. Read about Epping Elementary School, in New Hampshire having kids read non-fiction books of their own […]

This is a sad and ugly day in Chicago as the announcement has come that 50 schools will close this summer, primarily in neighborhoods populated by low income African-American families. We mark this moment — as we continue to share the voices of good, skilled, caring teachers who continue to make a difference for kids […]

Once again our friend, Peter Smagorinsky, University of Georgia Professor of Education, has written another great teacher portrait in a newspaper, the Atlanta Journal Constitution. Education reporter Maureen Downey shepherds these pieces into the paper. This represents an excellent solution to the hesitancy of many teachers to write about their own wonderful classrooms. So fellow […]

I was half aware of this fresh focus for deeper public understanding of education but now here it is — the film, “Race to Nowhere,” the wide response to it, and the filmmakers’ invitation to hear teachers’ and parents’ stories (Thanks to my TSU partner, Marilyn Hollman, for calling this to my attention). So we’re […]