Schools Don’t Need to Ban Homework, They Just Need to Make It Better

School districts around the country are doing away with homework, according to the latest education headlines. But research clearly shows that the solution to homework…

Great Teachers Turn Life’s Challenges Into Lessons and Inspiration for Others

As teacher leaders, we go out and we inspire; we fight; we motivate, and we do it because we love students and believe in educators.…

Political Philosophy Isn’t Just for College Students, It’s Making My Students Stronger Readers

Alongside the whiteboard in the front of my 12th-grade English classroom in Philadelphia, there are sentence strips listing the names of the authors we have…

These 11 Books Were Banned But You Should Read Them Anyway

Finding a book to read shouldn’t be complicated. After all, making a choice about what literature we choose to digest is an everyday decision, one…

The Teacher Leadership Movement Just Gained a New Champion

“The teacher leadership movement needs to be front and center in closing opportunity and achievement gaps,” says Roberto Rodriguez, President Obama’s top education advisor for…

I Did Not Want to Read Tom Rademacher’s Book, But Then I Picked It Up and Couldn’t Stop

At the advanced age of 20, I thought I knew what I liked in literature. It turns out, I was wrong. I’m not as passionate…

Here’s What I Learned When I Sat Down for All the Standardized Tests My Students Take

Many people—not just students—cringe when they hear the word test because it triggers fear in some and anger in others. Educators know that tests are…

Sometimes You Have to Face Politics in the Classroom, Even in Kindergarten

In the current political climate, emotions in America are high. Regardless of a community’s prevailing politics, teachers see these emotions play out in classrooms. This…

The Hidden Costs of Our Tutoring Epidemic

There’s a tutoring epidemic. It goes beyond four-year-olds prepping to ace gifted and talented screenings, and teens cramming for the Specialized High School Admissions Test.…

Teachers, You Never Know What Students Are Going Through Outside The Classroom

This guest post is by an anonymous, Oakland-based educator. One time my mom tried to kill me. She chased me with a knife, cackling like…