What a Blended Learning Classroom Really Looks Like: An Urban Teacher’s Reboot
This opinion piece was originally written for The Hechinger Report, June 2, 2016 Can we teach all students? In an increasingly diverse nation, I want you to consider the question. If you are not sure, it’s o.k. Now I want you to imagine a world where you would not have to do this —… Read More ›
#21STEDCHAT – Twitter Chat
We hope you can join #21stedchat (21st education chat) this Sunday, June 12, 8:00 PM EST to talk about student-centered learning. You can join the chat simply by following and using the hashtag #21stedchat. Revere High School history teacher Charles Willis (@flippedwillis) will be co-moderating the chat – tweeting questions with the hashtag and looking… Read More ›
College, Career, and Civic Readiness: The Case of the Missing ‘C’
This article by Stephen Hamilton, Dean of the High Tech High Graduate School of Education, discusses his observation of the neglect of the idea of “civic readiness” in conversations about preparing students to succeed. He asserts that if career readiness is often neglected, civic readiness is all but forgotten. He also asserts that civic readiness somehow seems… Read More ›
When Kids Lead Their Parent-Teacher Conferences
This article is on the student-led parent-teacher conferences at Pittsfield Middle High School.Student-led parent-teacher conferences happen twice a year and have replaced the old format of parent-teacher conferences at Pittsfield Middle High School, a rural New Hampshire campus that takes a “student-centered learning” approach to schooling. With this model, students are given more freedom to… Read More ›
Massachusetts Personalized Learning Network
This network believes that personalized learning is the key to achieving success and educational equity for all students in the Commonwealth. With the passage of the Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA), schools, districts, and states have the opportunity to rethink how to equip students with the knowledge, skills, and entrepreneurial spirit that will be necessary… Read More ›
The Benefits and Challenges of Student-Designed Learning
Science Leadership Academy students have many opportunities throughout their four years to choose how and what they investigate in their classes, and by senior year they are adept at choosing their own essay topics, meeting deadlines, staying focused while working online, and coming up with creative projects that matter to them personally. But when a… Read More ›
#RealTalk: Providence Students Raise Their Voices
Megan Harrington is a Communications Associate at the Nellie Mae Education Foundation. You can reach her on Twitter at @NellieMaeEdFdn. On a sunny Wednesday afternoon in April, over 100 high school students gathered at the Providence Career and Technical Academy cafeteria, talking with friends, setting up tables with sheets of paper and markers, and… Read More ›
An Open Letter from the Providence Youth Caucus
The Providence Youth Caucus (PYC) unites youth leaders from six of Providence’s strongest youth organizations, including Providence Student Union, New Urban Arts, RIUDL, H20, Young Voices, and Youth In Action. We have been working together for the past year, meeting with the Mayor, Superintendent, and district staff to push for changes in our schools, including… Read More ›
Developing a Sense of Agency
This post explores how giving students a sense of agency can transform the way you impact your classroom. Students’ desire to help solve meaningful problems is too often an untapped resource hidden by the assumption that the teacher needs always to be in control of the classroom. When educators shift the paradigm from controlling to empowering,… Read More ›
When Celebrating Learning Differences is at the Heart of School Culture
This article explores how Individualized Education Programs (IEPS), typically created for special education students, can be a used as a model for all students and make personalization on a large scale easier and more accessible to all students. When special education teachers create IEPs for students with learning differences, a variety of professionals come together with… Read More ›
Blended, Project-Based, and Social Emotional Learning at Thrive Public Schools
This article explores how Thrive Public Schools in San Diego is creating a student-centered learning environment for its students. Thrive, a 200 student K-8 school, has a makerspace where students build stuff and work out marble trajectories, and gives a glimpse into the future of learning—blended, personalized, and competency-based. The article includes tools, ideas for implementation… Read More ›
How do students learn best? — Reflections from Deeper Learning 2016
Last month, a few members of the Students at the Center Hub team attended the Deeper Learning 2016 conference at High Tech High (HTH), located in San Diego, CA. The conference was filled with engaging conversations with a variety of participants from the field of education, including teachers and school leaders. One of the most memorable… Read More ›