WELL BEFORE the global pandemic caused a wave of school building closures and consequent learning losses, teachers complained there were too many standards for student learning. The problem was that, however well-intentioned and thoughtfully designed, state standards all su!er from the same faulty assumption: Students need only one year of learning. That assumption always has been questionable, but after students in 2020 lost at least six months of learning (and many would argue they lost more), teachers in 2021 are facing students who may be two years or more behind their current grade level. The idea of teaching and assessing three years of learning in a single year is preposterous. Fortunately, some practical solutions are available.

Dealing with Toxic Threats to Emotional Health

It’s the worst I’ve seen in more than 30 years,” said one superintendent

The subject of this column is “decision-based data-making.” This is not a misprint.

“I knew he was a special boyfriend,” explained my mother, “because he gave me an extravagant gift for my high school graduation.”

The politically correct blood sport among educational commentators these days is the jeremiad against the evils of academic standards and testing.

or a ten-year-old, Amartya is a thoughtful chap. One Monday morning at the Khan Lab School (KLS) in Mountain View, California, he explains that his maths is “pretty strong” but he needs to work on his writing.

Learn how academics and the arts support each other.

Leaders set priorities. With multiple demands on limited school resources and classroom time, an essential job of every school leader is allocating resources to produce the greatest student success.

Several weeks ago, I traveled to rural Zambia to dedicate a school that (1) my colleagues and I had built there.

As this issue of Educational Leadership makes clear, teacher leadership is a concept that extends far beyond a slogan and has become an integral part of education reform.

Metarubric for Assessing Creativity Rubrics are free resources that measure product, process, collaboration, practice and error. A complementary rubric provides indicators for the research base, multidisciplinary perspectives, clarity of guidelines, and source materials.

How do educators learn? The answer to this question will vary depending on how we define the word learn.

"I can't force them to study!" said the exasperated teacher. "I've heard the last group chant of 'All Children Can Learn' that I can stand.

Michael Gove, secretary of education in Great Britain, certainly has a flair for oratory.

Professional learning communities have a track record of helping teachers make sense of student performance data, but they can — and should — do more to support meaningful changes in teaching practice.

Imagine a gardener who sees row upon row of beautiful flowers in a nursery. He enthusiastically loads a cart to overflowing in anticipation of placing each new plant in a special place in his garden.

In a recent address to the California Board of Education, Professor E.D. Hirsch offered a number of insightful comments with regard to educational reform generally and performance assessment specifically.

When you are sorting through competing theories and multiple sources of data, take Einstein’s advice: Make everything ‘as simple as possible, but not simpler’

The criticisms of academic standards are well established. Some states have established standards that are too voluminous, too specific, not specific enough, and most of all, linked to the tests that critics love to hate.

To create the most positive classroom environment possible, education leaders must consider not only what happens inside the classroom, but also everything that affects students throughout the day. Extracurricular experiences are an important ingredient in this recipe.

Although all educators acknowledge the importance of literacy for student success, schools have a long way to go in implementing consistent, high-quality literacy programs.