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To strengthen IEPs, stop blaming, start solving
Howard Margolis EducationWhen parents, students and school personnel disagree about the specifics of individualized education programs (IEPs), they often fall into the trap of angrily blaming one another. Bitterly, parents may accuse teachers, IEP team members and school administrators of not caring a wit about their child, caring only about dollars. School personnel may respond in kind, scornfully staring, rushing through proposed IEPs and presenting them with little if any further discussion, on a take-it-or-leave-it basis. Though all parties think they're right, they're usually wrong.
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What should kids with special needs be doing over the summer?
Susan Winebrenner Education"The summer!" you exclaim. "I'm still living in winter!" Yes, you may be stuck in winter on the calendar, but for both gifted kids and kids with learning difficulties, some summer opportunities close their application process by the end of March. I actually found some informational workshops at sites listed below that are advertising the dates of spring workshops that help you get the information you seek.
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Study: Education can change behaviors that lead to ocean pollution
Scott E. Rupp Waste Management & EnvironmentalAny beach in the world can tell you a devastating story, showing just how much of an effect humankind has had on the world and the environment. Strewn with plastic bottles, light bulbs, flip-flops, scraps of fishing net and timber, the scene is the same because of the nomadic trash.
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States renewing efforts to tackle teacher shortages
Bambi Majumdar EducationLike many other states, New York is suffering from teacher shortages. What was a case of a few districts facing a shortage has blown up into a major issue, as bad as the looming national crisis.
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Understanding dialects helps ESL instructors
Douglas Magrath EducationAs I've written previously, knowledge of basic linguistic principles should include dialects — both L1 and L2. Learners at the higher levels need to know that they will encounter different dialects as they interact with native speakers.
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Student protests: How should schools respond?
Ryan Clark EducationToday, students from Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Florida, will return to class, two weeks after the mass shooting that left 17 students and teachers dead. The horrific incident sparked nationwide protests as students across the country held sit-ins and walkouts over the issue of gun control.
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Supreme Court hears pivotal union arguments
Seth Sandronsky EducationThe fate of classroom teachers and other public-sector union workers remain uncertain after the Supreme Court heard oral arguments Monday in the Janus v. American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees (AFSCME) Council 31 case. Mark Janus, a child-support specialist employed by the State of Illinois, claims the current union law violates his First Amendment rights, and the ruling could have wide-ranging effects on the status of unions in the United States.
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Trauma-informed education: Teaching the whole child
Savanna Flakes EducationThe National Institute of Mental Health defines trauma as "the experience of an event by a child that is emotionally painful or distressful, which often results in lasting mental and physical effects." The term adverse childhood experience (ACE) refers to a range of events that a child can experience that lead to stress and can result in trauma and chronic stress responses.
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How do we bring back imagination in our schools?
Brian Stack EducationMy wife Erica and I made a startling revelation one recent Saturday afternoon about our five children and a decline in their ability to engage in imaginary play. We often have what we refer to in our house as "no technology Saturdays" in our attempt to get our children away from the screens that seem to dominate their weekdays — particularly as a result of their schoolwork.
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New school security measures include bulletproof backpacks
Michelle R. Matisons EducationIn the wake of the Valentine's Day massacre that killed 17 students and staff at Parkland, Florida's Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School, some say the public is growing numb to school shootings. But some parents are taking bold steps to ensure the safety of their children, including the purchase of bulletproof backpacks.
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