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4 steps to empower yourself to accomplish your goals
Rob and Steve Shallenberger Business Management, Services & Risk ManagementPeople who have a sense of direction and purpose feel empowered. Yet only 10% of people have written professional and personal goals. Imagine how great it would feel to take all your good intentions and make them a reality. In other words, to get laser-focused on the things that matter most — and have the motivation to actually do them! To set your own roles and goals, follow these four steps.
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How to approach first-time in-person learning for early education students
Ginger Abbot EducationReturning to school after COVID-19 and virtual learning is a big step for educators, parents, and students. Teachers, as you prepare to head back to in-person instruction in the fall, you might be wondering how to approach first-time in-person learning for early education students. If you’re a kindergarten or first-grade teacher, this will be a challenge since most of your students likely have only been in school virtually and during the pandemic. There are a few ways to navigate this transition for early elementary students, though.
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What does the research say about COVID-19 safety protocols in schools?
Brian Stack EducationI noticed the other day as I walked the halls of my high school that no one follows all the one-way floor stickers we placed all over the building last summer — no one. The funny thing is, no one has been following them at the Demoulas Market Basket grocery store I shop at either. Maybe that’s why the grocery store got rid of them last week. I just told my head custodian to do the same this summer when they do their annual deep clean and waxing of our school floors. The floor stickers may be one example of a safety protocol that we won’t need this fall, but we know that COVID won’t be gone. The question is, what protocols will we need?
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Balancing compassion and performance in a pandemic world
Courtney Lynch Business Management, Services & Risk ManagementWhen I served in the Marines, we had a saying: Mission first, people always. Everything about leading Marines came down to achieving results in times of challenge, chaos, and uncertainty while taking care of your people. Now, as an executive coach, as I’ve helped my clients navigate pandemic times, often I’ve been guiding them in demonstrating service-based leadership. Leading with service is about acting selflessly on behalf of others to ensure their success. It’s about the simple actions you take to support others so they can thrive. The great news for leaders is that service can be demonstrated in the simplest ways.
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Infographic: How to set work boundaries to avoid burnout
Pia De Los Reyes Mental HealthcareWith remote work being the new professional normal, it can be especially challenging to stay productive and separate job stress from our personal lives. When stress is high and maintained over a period of time, it can lead to burnout or a type of work-related stress that can have a myriad of negative effects on your health and productivity. Those experiencing burnout can suffer from fatigue and mental exhaustion, and it can also lower work performance and cause job dissatisfaction. Over time, burnout can increase your vulnerability to disease and even potentially cost you lost income because of unpaid sick leave or a missed promotion.
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More pieces to the STEM diversity puzzle
Sheilamary Koch EducationMonths back, the University of California, Berkeley's College of Engineering posted a newly created assistant dean of equity and inclusion position to impact the climate and culture of the college and help it carry out its stated mission of educating an inclusive group of leaders. It wasn’t so surprising that a major university was seeking to be more inclusive in a demographically skewed course of study. Women are 47% of the overall workforce yet occupy only 15% of engineering jobs while Blacks make up 11% of the nation’s workforce but hold 5% of engineering jobs, according to a Pew Research analysis of federal employment and education data. While one in four students is Hispanic and this group represents 17% of the workforce, only 8% hold science, technology, mathematics and engineering (STEM) positions.
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Celebrate the end of the school year with fun closing activities
Savanna Flakes EducationYou made it! We all made it! What a year! Though my articles usually provide instructional strategies to support diverse learners, as this school year wraps up, it is only fitting that everyone stop and play the song "Celebrate" by Earth, Wind, and Fire. Please take a special moment to celebrate yourself, students, and our community of families. This school year was no ordinary year, full of unprecedented events and more. Before the school year wraps up, provide yourself and students opportunities to celebrate, appreciate the great times, and close with optimism.
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Encouraging mental health awareness in the classroom
Ginger Abbot EducationEducators teach students about more than math and science. They also establish spaces where kids develop their social skills and learn more about themselves. It's a critical place for introducing topics surrounding mental health, but that might be tricky to integrate into lesson plans. If you're wondering how to encourage mental health awareness in the classroom, try these tips.
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What should I do? I think my child struggles with reading.
Howard Margolis and Gary G. Brannigan EducationAs students start returning to school, many will face the Herculean task of becoming proficient readers. Some will be first-graders, some fourth-graders, and so on. And many of them, as their parents and guardians suspect, will face enormous struggles. If you're one of these parents or guardians who suspect that your child will struggle with reading, now is the time for action. Action alone, however, will not be enough. It's critical that you know what to request and what to avoid. This article focuses on one aspect of what's critical: Getting a comprehensive reading evaluation.
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How to help students with reading and L2 acquisition
Douglas Magrath EducationReading needs to be a part of any language course and is an important part of L2 acquisition. The more students have access to interesting reading material outside of the textbooks, the faster L2 acquisition will take place. Group work is especially helpful. In the case of online learning, students may feel isolated, but with the internet they can work together in small groups. Additionally, vocabulary is key to reading. A good way to help learners is to connect the new words to words they already know.
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