All Education Articles
  • Better late than never: Accepting late work without penalty

    Brian Stack Education

    The debate over whether to charge students a penalty for late work is not new to American education. For years, proponents have argued that a penalty is the best way to hold students accountable for meeting deadlines, a lifelong skill.

  • Flowers aren’t always red

    Debra Josephson Abrams Education

    From the moment almost 40 years ago when I heard Harry Chapin's "Flowers are Red," I’ve played it at window-rattling volume and sung it as loudly and defiantly as possible. It tells the story of a free-spirited child who draws flowers in a rainbow of colors, only to be admonished by a teacher.

  • Is the competition to get into top colleges too difficult?

    Bambi Majumdar Education

    In the midst of an early morning walk, I could hear the nearby high school band practicing. At first, I had nothing but admiration for these kids who woke up in that ungodly hour to practice. Then, I heard the seniors in the band being called out, along with the colleges each one got into, followed by a round of applause for each.

  • Excessive stress: 6 strategies for helping struggling learners

    Howard Margolis Education

    ​Excessive stress — unjustified, overwhelming and relentless demands adults thrust upon children — can devastate all children, especially struggling learners: "Stress is bad for children. It's associated with health problems, school failures and youth delinquency," ​Dennis W. Creedon writes. "High stress levels have been associated with ... asthma and depression ... Stress directly affects 'attention, memory, planning and behavior control.' When the mind is under emotional stress, it produces the peptide cortisol. ... Cortisol generally is a blessing because we don't become controlled by our past negative experiences. However, if cortisol is not kept in balance, learning can and will stop."

  • Friedrichs Supreme Court case may have big impact on teachers

    Ronnie Richard Education

    The Supreme Court heard oral arguments Jan. 11 in the controversial ​Friedrichs v. California Teachers Association, which could have a major impact on teacher wages and benefits. At the center of the case is yet another debate surrounding free speech and money — issues that have continued to pop up in the courts in recent years (Citizens United v. FEC, Burwell v. Hobby Lobby Stores, Inc.).

  • Which words matter most? Picking vocabulary for English learners

    Erick Herrmann Education

    Vocabulary is a hot topic in education. Teachers, parents, administrators and community members know words are important. Words help us to understand concepts, articulate our knowledge, express our feelings, ask questions and more.

  • Putting the ‘special’ in specially designed math instruction

    Savanna Flakes Education

    ​Some of our students with learning disabilities have trouble with abstract reasoning. As such, they may have difficulty verbalizing what they have learned or observed, difficulty making the connection with symbolic representations and/or understanding the math concept that is being explained or shown.

  • Integrative tests: Implementing in the ESL classroom

    Douglas Magrath Education

    In a recent article, I described why integrative testing is a better way of testing language competence than discrete-point testing. An integrative test draws on a variety of sources. Syntax, vocabulary, "schema," cultural awareness, reading skills, pronunciation and grammar are all factors the test maker and test taker need to keep in mind. The integrative test is generally considered to be a more reliable instrument for measuring language competence.

  • The benefits of coaching for college students with LD, ADHD

    Ruth Bomar Education

    ​​In a recent study at a large public university, researchers examined the benefits of coaching among undergraduate and graduate students with learning disabilities and/or ADHD. The students who agreed to participate in the research received two semesters of coaching. The researchers measured levels of self-determination, executive functioning and academic skills before and after the coaching intervention.

  • Harvard set to reimagine Teach for America model

    Brian Stack Education

    ​In 1989, Princeton University student Wendy Kopp understood our country's growing need to be able to compete in the global economy with a workforce that had evolving skills and knowledge. She also noted that our country was faced with a teacher shortage and droves of high-poverty urban and rural schools that for decades had been failing our children.