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Improving in-person and remote instruction: Critical elements
Howard Margolis EducationRemote teaching alone cannot easily and fully create and sustain many of the critical elements needed to meaningfully advance struggling learners’ academic, social, and emotional progress. These elements include listening and acting with empathy; helping parents successfully address COVID-19’s anxiety producing obstacles and dangers; understanding how to help struggling learners achieve their IEP or section 504 goals; and helping them take well-earned credit for their efforts and accomplishments.
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Will the pandemic make us better educators?
Brian Stack EducationI try to be an eternal optimist, even when times are tough. I’m the person looking for the silver lining in every bad story. Some days it drives my wife crazy because she tells me I don’t have to find a lesson in every situation. The pandemic has offered all of us a series of lessons, whether we like it or not. I’ve been struggling lately to be the instructional leader that I want to be for my New Hampshire high school staff. They look to me for advice as they navigate the tricky waters of teaching in a pandemic, and yet I cannot offer them first-hand advice from experience, because I’ve never been in this situation before.
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Has the pandemic changed the nature of K-12 cybersecurity?
Bambi Majumdar Education2020 has been the year of remote learning, which means more digitalization. It also means new security challenges for K-12 students. Thousands of users are using cloud-based applications such as Microsoft Teams, Google Meet, Google Classroom, and Zoom. The high volume of users and greater network demands lead to regular technical issues that teachers and schools have to overcome. But these are issues that, albeit annoying, can be handled. More sinister is the fact that it has created a new way for cybercriminals to strike.
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Picking up after an unsuccessful college experience
Dan McManmon EducationFailing in college as a teen or young adult with learning differences is a stressful time for the entire family. Parents have already invested countless hours obtaining a diagnose and related services, attending and advocating at IEP meetings, securing accommodations, creating transition plans, planning social time, dealing with legal matters, and much more. The student may experience failure internally and become depressed or anxious about their future. When things don't go as planned at the college level, it's a good time to step back and look at the alternatives.
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4 COVID-19-related changes that could outlast the pandemic
Amanda Ghosh Business Management, Services & Risk ManagementCOVID-19 is changing the landscape of daily life. While some changes are minor and easy to adopt, changes like working from home create significant shifts in our social lives. Masks, virtual learning, ghost restaurants, and increased use of hand sanitizer are just a few of the pandemic-related changes that could stick around after the health crisis ends.
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Why post-COVID-19 U.S. education will be even less like it used to be than…
Patrick Gleeson EducationWhen COVID-19 first became a national conversation topic, a flurry of articles in major U.S. publications followed proposing what, post-COVID-19, would remain the same and what would be different. There seems to be an assumption that these issues have largely been resolved; while we may not like every change, we at least have a pretty good idea of what post-COVID U.S. education will look like. A previous experience with the interaction of a school system and a disaster this century, Hurricane Katrina, should warn us that we're probably underestimating how extensive and profound those changes are likely to be.
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Principals: Don’t forget to take care of yourself!
Brian Stack EducationEven on an average day, the challenges a principal can face can seem daunting. Add a global pandemic into the mix and one piece of bad news can be enough to make principals feel helpless, lost, or ready to throw in the towel. As we celebrate National Principals Month, we need to remember to take care of ourselves so that we don’t fall victim to the challenges that will prey on our weaknesses. As a fellow principal, I feel your pain and I offer you these tips to help you keep your focus, momentum, and most importantly, your sanity through all of this.
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Struggling learners’ difficulties have intensified: Here’s…
Howard Margolis EducationIn this chaotic, volatile, and frightening era of COVID-19, struggling learners’ difficulties have intensified. Wherever remote learning has replaced some or all in-person instruction, many struggling learners have found it extremely difficult to focus, to understand, and to apply what teachers are trying to teach. What’s the answer, the answer that will vanquish these problems? There’s no one answer. There’s no one-size-fits-all solution. But for some struggling learners, the suggestions in this article can help. They can help learners, they can help teachers, and just as important, they can help parents.
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Will rapid COVID-19 tests help K-12 schools?
Bambi Majumdar EducationShortly before he was diagnosed with COVID-19, President Trump announced that the federal government would begin distributing millions of rapid coronavirus tests. The goal is to use them to urge faster reopening of K-12 schools. As virus cases continue to pile up, some school districts have announced staggered and hybrid learning modules for fall 2020 and beyond.
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How to pursue a degree as an adult
Alyssa Abel EducationEducation isn’t easy, no matter how old you are — and going to school as an adult comes with its own set of challenges. Whether you're considering a bachelor's degree, or you want to expand your knowledge even more with a go at graduate education, you might be wondering where to begin. Luckily, there are plenty of people just like you and many programs built to accommodate situations like yours. Here's some advice that will serve you particularly well if you're seeking tips for going back to school as an adult.
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