Can a non-charter public school in California, with near-the-bottom public funding per student, truly transform learning? As you know I have been closely following Design 39 Campus in Poway Unified, where the guiding principles are: Nurture creative confidence Practice design thinking Encourage inquiry Connect globally Use technology Promote courage Instill a growth mindset Well, here [...]
Could your faculty (with maybe a bit of input from students) prototype an experiential learning unit in 14 minutes that meets the following specs?: Student ownership of the project Multidisciplinary content Observation Reflection Synthesis Action that impacts others Outside the classroom but within walking distance That is one of the fast activities we ran through [...]
As individuals and as schools, do we want to be successful or significant? Great or leading? What are common elements of the disruptions and mutations facing both K-12 and higher education? I was honored to share the stage with Dr. John Fry, president of Drexel University at the annual meeting of trustees and heads of [...]
Perhaps the most powerful driver of traditional, standards-focused education in America is the sense that we have fallen behind many countries in student performance. In our sound-bite world, the nexus of this concern are the results of international exams of math, reading, and writing. As I have written in the past, educators for whom I have [...]
How might teachers and students learn and engage in the revolution supporting global gender equality? How about this first step: what if classes around the country watched this short video of Emma (Hermione Granger) Watson addressing the UN; followed with a discussion; and gave the boys in the class (with enthusiastic support from the girls) an [...]
If your school is not accessing the FREE products and services of CK-12 Foundation, you are throwing away precious dollars and leaving leading-edge learning tools on the shelf. I gave a brief overview of CK-12 in #EdJourney after an interview with founder Neeru Khosla. Here is a quick video overview: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jbN-fPQnBeQ In addition to fully [...]
Can you afford 30 minutes every few weeks to chat with someone from another country on subjects of mutual interest? Can you NOT afford to take the time? Can you say your school has a "global" focus if you collectively don't? After a fast and full day at #fuse14 yesterday, teacher/innovator/leader Meghan Cureton from Mount [...]
Do you wish your professional development budget was larger? Great interactions, learning, and personal growth do not have to always include getting on an airplane. Here is another simple, great chance to expand your comfort and knowledge base with both design thinking and online collegial connections: There are more than 200 weekly Twitter chats hosted [...]
From my International Desk, which this afternoon is my window seat at home: I know, the time difference makes it really hard...but our kids are learning 24/7 anyway, so why not do this? Here are some girls at a school in Kandahar, Afghanistan, learning English via Skype to the U.S. It is not an exaggeration that [...]
“Grit” has become a staple of school leadership discussion, due in large part to Angela Duckworth’s best selling book. I just helped a school compose a remarkable vision statement, and grit is mentioned as an essential outcome for their students. Have we swallowed this argument whole a bit too quickly? Does it resonate with us, [...]