In case you didn’t know, the Social Studies standards are about to change. In the coming weeks, the Texas Education Agency should release proposed changes which will be followed by a several month comment and review period before final changes are adopted in the Spring. To check on progress of the proposed changes, check out http://www.tea.state.tx.us/index2.aspx?id=3643 for the latest information. We’ll also keep you updated here on the blog.
ThRead more
In this Austin American Statesman Article we read about University of Texas research that shows that the average tenure of a principal is less than five years. It is even shorter in low-income area schools! A few highlights of the research include that principals seem to stay longer in elementary schools and higher performing schools than secondary schools and lower performing schools.
One reason principal retention should be a concern is the research Read more
This post is inspired from a post from one of my favorite teacher blogs out there: http://bettyb.teacherlingo.com/archive/2009/09/25/how-necessary-is-homework.aspx. Betty is not much of a believer in giving homework to students. I have a hard time giving homework that is easy enough for students to do without much help from others but challenging enough to make it worth their time. I want to help build a strong work ethic in my students, but also want them to have time for faRead more
An El Paso 10 year old was recently ticketed after he disrupted his class. You can find details of the story at http://www.kfoxtv.com/education/21215165/detail.html. In the end, the ticket was dismissed after his mother challenged the citation in court. This story brings up an important issue about punishing parents for their child’s behavior. Punishments and consequences should ideally be designed to change behavior. Does anyone have experience with tickRead more