E|E Associate Tim McDonald will give the keynote address at the pre-conference kickoff for the annual Wisconsin-based Innovative Schools Network (ISN) conference on April 29 in Wisconsin Dells. Senior Associates Curt Johnson and Bob Wedl will join a virtual panel to discuss the Split Screen concept and its essential role as a policy tool.
Tim’s book Unsustainable has become a strategic resource for ISN. The ideas, developed by Education Evolving and applied through this...
Last week I was on a call with the leader of a teacher-powered school. She told us candidly about her struggles with “collective autonomy.” On the one hand, she said, she fully wants to let teachers call the shots at her school. On the other hand, she is still formally the principal in the eyes of the district (per state and district rules, many teacher-powered schools are still required to have principals, even though those leaders are usually elected by the full teacher group). It’s hard to let others be in control, she said, when if...
There is now a live question what priorities the U.S. Department of Education should use in its program of grants to the states for the start-up of new schools in the states' chartered sector of public education.
The Department put out a proposal for comment. Education Evolving's response was not to the specifics in the draft; was general with respect to the policy questions involved.
Essentially we...
Most commentary about learning methods comes from adults, and most of those are professional educators. What's missing is what the students think. So, to see how learning can be both effective and fun, check this short video of a TedX talk by a 10-year old, Cordell Steiner, telling what it was like being in Ananth Pai's 3rd-grade class in the White Bear Lake (MN) school district.
Just too late . . . just after my book arrived from the printer's . . . I came across Paul Kennedy's Engineers of Victory. I would love to have been able to include what he wrote about the critical role of innovation in winning World War II: It is so on-point with what I was trying to say about the need for innovation in education. I did pick up the story in a Commentary I wrote for Education Week, that appeared September 24. Here's an...
Ted Kolderie has a guest post this week in an Education Week blog: A Little 'Lateral Thinking' Will Answer the Teacher Quality/Accountability Question. He proposes a way out of chronic issues with teachers, unions, and accountability that have been boiling recently, in the wake of the Vergara case.
Kolderie stresses that the solution lies in re-defining the problem and re-thinking the traditional boss/worker...
This afternoon, at 2pm CT, Education Evolving will launch our new Teacher-Powered Schools Initiative at the Education Writers Association’s 67th National Seminar’s “Teachers Take Charge” panel discussion.
Today’s launch coincides with the release of our new national survey data that that reveal overwhelming public support and teacher interest in a professional partnership model of teacher leadership, or “teacher-powered schools.”
This new...
In our 21st-century global economy, shouldn’t we consider knowledge of world language and skills with digital tools when we define academic achievement? What about persistence and determination? Business communities demand problem-solving and collaboration skills; why are we not including them in our definition?
Take a look at this commentary that ran in the St. Paul Pioneer Press on March 11, by Education Evolving’s Senior Associate, Robert Wedl, and Hector Garcia,...
Save the date: March 20-21, 2014
Join Innovative Quality Schools in Saint Paul for an exciting conference designed for professional teachers.
Conference purposes include:
This conference is “hands on” with numerous sessions with teachers who are leading...
On Sunday, January 26th, Education Evolving's Curt Johnson will keynote an interactive event designed to introduce children and families to personalized learning.
Students will have a chance to experiment with adaptive educational games, much like those used by Mr. Pai in our A Split Screen Strategy video from last year.
From the event's webpage: Does your student fit the mold? Join other parents and educators to explore the possibility for all students...