The term “personalized learning” has become a bit of a buzzword in North Carolina – a fashionable way to possibly veil an educational reform under the guise of something altruistic. In its literal and denotative form, “personalized learning” is a rather noble concept. It would allow students to receive tailored-made lessons that match their learning … Continue reading “Face-to-Face Instruction” & “Personalized Learning” Actually Mean We Should Invest In More Faces And People To Serve In Our Schools – Not Software

The GOP-led NC legislature’s 2013 decision to end graduate degree pay bumps for new teachers entering the teaching profession was not only misguided, but another wave in the assault on public education that continues here in the Old North State. And the very person who has influenced more policy on public education since 2013, Sen. … Continue reading No, Sen. Berger, Graduate Degrees Do Matter & NC Should Restore Graduate Degree Pay

Below is a map provided by EdNC.org that plots the most recent school performance grades across North Carolina before the pandemic started. Next is a map of the economic well-being of each NC county as reported be the North Carolina Department of Commerce in 2019. The LIGHTER the shade of blue, the more economic “distress.” This is how it … Continue reading Go Ahead And Eliminate School Performance Grades; They Only Map Poverty, Health Care Access, And Food Deserts – Not School Effectiveness

Mark Johnson gave us a lot of iPads and talk about "personalized learning." Catherine Truitt is pushing for Plan A and spending money on standardized tests to measure "learning loss." Here's a list of things that really should be done before this state begins to "fully" reopen schools again. Lead with Leandro. Put a nurse … Continue reading Before Anything Invest In People And #LeadWithLeandro

Balanced literacy or the science of reading? According to the new State Superintendent, NC should start focusing more on the science of reading approach. Teaching reading is hard especially when talking about the English language, the largest language in the world that does not always abide by a single set of rules and laws or … Continue reading Why Is NC Paying For The “Science Of Reading” When It Took Away The Very Things To Make It Work?

52 weeks. 12 months. In March, the state quickly shut down school buildings in the state due to a few known cases of a virus. That alone probably saved lives and staved off transmission. Then we had to enter the world of remote instruction literally overnight. No real preparation for it. No professional development. Literally … Continue reading Week 52

This is a poll worth looking at from NPR/IPSOS.

Following education journalists, academics who study public education, and other mavens in the policy world on social media is one of the better ways to stay current with research and news. That's why I follow Kris Nordstrom on Twitter. He "liked" this today. It is referencing a data study from the University of Southern California … Continue reading Parent Preferences For How Children Attend School By Income Level

This is the argument - numbers in a data table. To State Superintendent Catherine Truitt, it has been a "lost year of learning." Dismiss the irony that a person who was a chancellor of an online college that had really no "in-person learning" itself said the above. Dismiss the fact that that data table leaves … Continue reading “Learning Loss” Is Nothing Compared To “Leadership Loss” – A Reply To Our State Superintendent’s Comments On The “Lost Year Of Learning”

This is an important read from North Carolina Health News. Here are some of the highlights as reported by Hannah Critchfield: "North Carolina currently lacks data for deaths by suicide in young people in 2020. The state doesn’t have a comprehensive electronic death registry – meaning it has a slower system for reporting deaths than … Continue reading Is NC Seeing An Increase In Youth Suicide Due To The Pandemic?