In Schools, On Schools
SPI's blog is named to emphasize that our best ideas come from observations in our own schools as well as at high-performing schools across the United States. We are proximate to the work going on in high-poverty schools that get results for students, and we are working to share these bright spots with others. Through generous sharing of best practices, our mission is to increase access to high-quality schools for all students, regardless of zip code.
Do most people only use 10% of their brain power? Are some people left-brained and others right-brained? Does playing Mozart’s music to infants boost their intelligence? Is the defining feature of dyslexia reversing letters? Do students learn best when teaching styles are matched to their learning styles? Are we in the middle of a massive epidemic of infantile autism? Contrary to popular opinion...no, no, no, no, no, and no.
Read MoreWhy are we getting the outcomes that we currently do? In my last post, I implored organizational leaders to slow down and take the time to deeply understand this question before moving ahead with solutions.
The only way to understand current outcomes is to step back and see the system - the people, the policies, the attitudes, and the physical environment - in which a problem resides.
Read MoreNot long ago, in late October, the National Assessment Governing Board released the results of the 2019 National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP). Generally speaking, the results were met with disappointment among those in the education sector, with the exception of a few laudable bright spots: D.C. and Mississippi. Approximately one month later, the Program for International Student Assessment (PISA) announced the results of their 2018 study, which evoked a similar word as the NAEP results: disappointing. American students, as compared to American students of yesteryear and present-day students around the world, have stagnated.
Read MoreMany years ago, I found myself trapped in an interesting cycle with my dental hygienist. A few times each year, I would stretch out on her chair and sit patiently as she picked at, polished, and flossed my teeth. While the overall health of my mouth held up under her close scrutiny, she always mentioned one habit I couldn’t seem to shake.
Read MoreDecember 31st, 1999 was not your average New Year’s Eve. While excitement about the turn of the century was palpable, uneasiness permeated as the second hand of everybody’s watch made its final revolution of the 20th Century. Y2K, the catchy acronym assigned to the collective nationwide fear that computer systems were doomed to fail at the stroke of midnight, was on the tip of everybody’s tongue.
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