Student Learning

Sometimes Learning is Painful, A Quote from da Vinci

“Learning never exhausts the mind.” – Leonardo da Vinci It’s true. Just like an hour of play, learning doesn’t wear us down. It invigorates, it energizes, and...

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Pitfalls of Asynchronous Learning

Just so we’re on the same page, virtual learning environments and micro schools are the future of learning. That said, we currently face several pitfalls of...

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Learning and the Arrogance of Academics

We say that learning can happen anywhere at any time. But we educators build systems that require certification. That is, you haven’t officially learned until someone...

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Goal-Setting with Students

We know goal-setting is linked to higher achievement in students. Yet many schools I talk to have no structures in place to facilitate systemic goal-setting among...

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How Do Great Schools Capitalize This Time of Year

Great schools know that their “good” counterparts fail to capitalize on the end of the school year. Good schools push toward the end of the year....

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Why RTI Fails for Reading

Let’s start with a clarification on this title. Response to intervention (RTI) doesn’t always fail, actually, it usually succeeds. But when it fails, this is why:...

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Why Systems Matter for Reading

In last week’s post, Reading in 2035, we explored the idea that the future of reading instruction is certainly uncertain. That’s the thing about instructional strategies,...

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High Expectations and Excuses

Everywhere we read, books have chapters devoted to the importance of high expectations for student learning, but what if we’ve overused or misconstrued this important concept...

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Start Split Testing Now!

Your data will never be the same. No more guessing. No more misjudgments. No more competitive culture that undermines the collaborative culture you’re trying to build....

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RTF Better than RTI

Response to Failure is more important than Response to Intervention. That’s what grit is about. That’s what builds successful businesses. That’s what creates innovation. That’s what...

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Impact, Not Just Performance

Passing rates will not and can not tell you your impact on learning. There’s simply more to it than that, and impact may just be the...

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What Motivates Your Students?

Picture a cartoon character standing under a cloud, hands raised, yelling, “All mine! It’s all mine!” as gold coins fall from the low hanging cloud. Picture...

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