As I work with school leadership teams and PLC’s establishing plans to reach student learning goals, we often explore what student behaviors are needed for students to learn or master a standard. More and more I believe that identifying the necessary learning skills connected to a desired outcome may be the most challenging part of […]

I was recently asked to facilitate a high school staff who had been working in PLCs that were department centered around curriculum and assessment. I was given a request to create an opportunity for them to focus on individual student success. The staff was regrouped for the day into teams of about six who were […]

Last week I had the opportunity to return to the Pride Academy in East Orange, NJ and spend time with staff as they prepared for the start of a new school year. Last year the Pride Academy received an Effective Practice Incentive Community (EPIC) Silver Gains Award for Driving Dramatic Student Achievement Gains. I’ve worked […]

As I waited in a principal’s office as she was called to one of several mini crisis, I looked through her office library for some reading material. I found a copy of The Complete Guide to Service Learningby Cathryn Berger Kaye. Flipping through the pages I came across a list that caught my attention:  K-12 […]

I have just started reading, Thinking, Fast and Slow, by Daniel Kahneman.   I have had it recommended to me by several folks. The author explores two brain systems….One which is fast, intuitive, and emotional and the second which is slower, and more deliberate and logical.  As I read I find myself connecting his reports of […]

After listening to an ASCD podcast featuring an interview with A.Wade Boykin and Pedro Noguera, the authors of Creating the Opportunity to Learn: Moving from Research to Practice to Close the Achievement Gap, I am thinking that this question about engagement  should be added to coaching conversations and PLC explorations of teaching and learning. The authors […]