student achievement
No Teacher Should Be an Island
I didn’t quite understand what it meant to be an “island” until I started teaching eight years ago. For years, I was the only United States history teacher at my small, inner-city Houston campus...
Parents
None of These Politicians Who Are Running for Office Are For Real Talking About Education
Outrage: You Want Our Vote, We Demand Your Plan I was at a community meeting the other night and an eighth-grader stood up and said, “If we’re all one district then why is my community seeing so many...
Diversity
Forget About the Pipeline, School Discipline Is Already a Prison for Many Students
As I walked past the principal’s office, I could see that Jonah was sitting outside again, his small legs shaking nervously, his head hung low. His eyes met mine as I passed by to pick up my mail....
Diversity
I'm an Education Advocate and That's Why I Can't (and Won't) Sit Out the Immigration Fight
It can be tempting for education advocates to see immigration as a related, but not overlapping, issue. For folks accustomed to thinking about school funding formulae and the wonky priorities in...
Teaching
If School Rules Aren’t Building a Sense of Community, Let’s Be Brave Enough to Rewrite Them
When I was in elementary school, my parents told me that I should ask my teacher for permission to leave the room when I had to go to the bathroom. But they also told me that if my teacher did not...
Teaching
If You Really Want to Make America Great Again, Stop Ignoring Social Studies
It’s funny how a student can make you pause and think hard about something you teach. Recently, I didn’t just pause, I got smacked upside the head like an unexpected foul ball at baseball game. How?...
