Innovation

back-to-school-concept-stockpack-adobe-stock.jpg
Back to school concept
Back to school concept

K-12 Redesign: School Calendar

The United States continues to place subpar among developed nations for K-12 student performance. Not surprisingly, U.S. students receive fewer education hours over the course of a year than those they lag behind. A revamping of the K-12 school calendar is in order. Read More ›
concept-of-choice-with-crossroads-spliting-in-two-ways-stockpack-adobe-stock.jpg
Concept of choice with crossroads spliting in two ways
Licensed from Adobe Stock

New Education Resource for Mississippi Parents

Empower Mississippi, a nonprofit educational advocacy group, along with other in-state partners, has created a helpful new tool called the Mississippi School Finder. The website “offers users a complete picture of public, private, and alternative education options available in their communities.” Read More ›
Tacks On Calendar

Consider Year Round School

The Coronavirus has upended nearly every aspect of our lives—forcing thousands of businesses to close (many permanently), shuttered most schools until next fall, and skyrocketed unemployment. Add to this the social and emotional cost. I can only wonder how the children and families who were already experiencing hard times are now handling this. While this crisis presents a near-term national challenge unlike any other, we need to also think about the future beyond the virus. This leads to an educational concept we should consider: year-round school. While current educational schedules may meet the needs of some, it’s clear that some children need to more hours per day and more days per year in class in order to achieve even today’s Read More ›

Diamanten im Brillantschliff vor schwarzem Hintergrund mit Reflextionen
Diamanten im Brillantschliff vor schwarzem Hintergrund mit Reflextionen
Licensed from Adobe Stock

Gem Prep Charter Schools Shine in Idaho

Amidst the educational difficulties the coronavirus has spurred, one Idaho charter network has thrived. Gem Prep, a K-12 free public charter school with four on-campus locations and an online school in Idaho, is using the opportunity to adapt and fine-tune their educational model.  Gem Prep schools have only one high school at this point—the online school. The physical schools are K–8. However, Gem is planning to add a new grade each year moving forward to make all of them K–12. With the arrival of Coronavirus, Gem was prepared to shift to full-time online.  Gem’s approach is to provide educators the specific training they need to teach effectively online. Laurie Wolfe, the network’s Chief Academic Officer, comments that “we [have] trained Read More ›

Group of paper plane in one direction and with one individual pointing in the different way. Business concept for new ideas creativity and innovative solution.
Group of paper plane in one direction and with one individual pointing in the different way. Business concept for new ideas creativity and innovative solution.
Licensed from Adobe Stock

Is Reform Achievable?

Dale Chu, senior visiting fellow of the Fordham Institute (an education reform think tank) writes, “the dour forecast [on big education reform ideas] is good reason for reformers to fight even harder in the 2020s and to search for a new path forward.” Given Chu’s conclusion, new transformative measures are required to propel our educational system to new heights. Simply put, what we are doing is not working. That is not to say that some pieces of reform haven’t been successful, such as the charter school movement and the accessibility of more choice in education. However, continuing down the path we are on will provide us another dreary decade. What America needs is one state to step up and lead Read More ›

follow the leader
Licensed from Adobe Stock

We Will Tell You How to be Innovative

A recent EducationWeek article, provocatively titled “These Shop Teachers Told Their Students to Form a Union,” focuses on Aviation High School in Long Island, New York, where students were encouraged to create a classroom much like the workplace of a union. Teachers José Vaz and Antonio Pepenella mention that students have more control over their education. This includes students electing officers (including foremen and a union representative) who are in charge of enforcing the class contract and ensuring student rights are protected and mediating conflicts between their classmates. Although a novel concept, which allows children out of their seats and away from the Pythagorean theorem, the approach is actually anti-innovation in that it builds a follow-the-leader mentality. At the core Read More ›