Here’s a note that every “Technology Instructor” should receive from their administrator: Dear Instructional Technology Specialists: Your job is to help the teachers…not implement the latest tech trend. Thank you for your attention to this matter. Principal The problem is that a school may not have an Instructional Technology Specialist.  They have a Technology Instructor…

This suggestion is not for your “run of the mill” administrative meeting where you’re explaining policies or implementing new directives.  This would be for those meetings where everyone’s input is important to generate new ideas, and to break down the silos between teachers, administration, and technology (which, interestingly, has gained a new importance in the…

Over the past few weeks, the articles on this site have had the constant theme of “Continuous Improvement ≠ Transformational Innovation.”  They looked at how we can “start all over again,” by teaching young children with strategies that wire their brains for success, rather than giving them more and more emphasis on the “basics” of…

Happy new year! I’m sure you’ll be heading back to the classroom on Monday, so let’s savor these last couple of days of the holiday break before we’re all back at it! Just as today’s brands are created by customer reaction rather than from a marketing team brainstorming session, new words make their way into…

To be clear, this doesn’t mean that there should be prayer in public schools.  Actually, if the local community wants prayer to be present “in” the public school, it should be allowed…but that’s another topic for another article. Regardless of prayer being permitted or not permitted in the school, the school and its students should…

One of my earliest childhood memories was snuggling up to my mom on the couch on Sunday mornings and she would read the comics to me.  It didn’t matter that I may not have understood the humor the cartoonist was presenting, because mom would explain what was going on in the pictures.  I still remember…

You may think the title of this article has the word “teaching” spelled incorrectly. That assumption would be incorrect. “Teching” was a termed coined in the early video game era, but some folks started to use it regarding the increasing utilization of technology. Today, most children “tech” for enjoyment…alright, young adults do too (and some…

When I was a teacher, all ten of us – one teacher for each home room (K-8), and yours truly who taught 7th and 8th grade science and health, 8th grade algebra, and instrumental music – had recess duty once every other week.  Kids played.  It was not structured.  It was not attuned to standards. …

A few years ago, I met a gentleman who told me he played in a band for 19 years, and made 3 records.  He loves music, and is grateful to his dad for “making” him learn a musical instrument – even though when he was young, he hated it…especially when his friends were outside playing…

I’m sure you’ve heard the argument that students in faith-based schools academically outperform public school students because of small class sizes. Let’s debunk that myth here and now by going back to 1965…over 50 years ago.  The 1st grade at St. Albert the Great School in Baldwin Boro (a suburb of Pittsburgh, PA) had approximately…