Blog
21 blog posts in 2015
May the Force be with You- - The Ultimate Organizational Strategies for School Success (Part I)
Dear Colleagues,After months of build-up, the new Star Wars movie was released a few days ago. . . not surprisingly, to record audiences.On the one hand, it is amazing that this film series- - which b...
Read Full ArticleRich District, Poor District: Common Sense Practices to Maximize Resources and Improve Student Outcomes
It’s Not Always about the Money, HoneyDear Colleagues,I hope that your December has gone well so far. . . and that you are looking forward to a wonderful holiday season.The sun is now rising in the Ea...
Read Full ArticleNew U.S. Department of Education Report: Students in RtI Tier II Interventions are Losing Ground
What the Report Says. . . Why RtI is Not Working. . . Recommendations for Improving the RtI ProcessDear Colleagues,This past week, a new federal report, Evaluation of Response to Intervention Practice...
Read Full ArticleHow do Teachers Influence Students’ Classroom Self-Management? Research to Practice Recommendations
New Research Report: Positive Classroom Climates and Relationships Most Influence Student MotivationDear Colleagues,As a parent and a presenter, there are times that I joke (??!!) about adolescence be...
Read Full ArticleIs Your Strategic Plan Focused on Outcomes… or Just a Direction?
There are “Many Roads to Rome”—but You Need an Address and a GPS to Get ThereDear Colleagues,As the saying goes, “There are many roads to Rome.” And that is true.But after traveling in Italy this summ...
Read Full ArticleWhen Kids Can’t Read: Policy and Practice Mistakes that Make it Worse
Reading Proficiency, Unprepared Students, Untrained Teachers, and Ill-Advised Responses: A National Dilemma and New National ReportDear Colleagues,Since the early 1990s (and even before), our schools...
Read Full ArticleThe Beginning of the New School Year Starts in April
[This Blog was originally published by SmartBlog on Education on April 30, 2015]Cherry blossoms. . . . baseball season. . . . high stakes assessments. As schools complete our nation’s annual rite of t...
Read Full ArticleNew NEA Policy Brief on School Discipline Highlights Project ACHIEVE as Effective Model
NEA Brief Describes Project ACHIEVE’s Successful School Discipline, Classroom Management, and Student Self-Management ApproachesDear Colleague,As the new school year begins for many of us, the importa...
Read Full ArticleDonald Trump, Negative Campaigns, and Social Skills: Modeling Intolerance for our Students?
Why the Education Community Needs to Seize this Teachable MomentThe campaign season that will elect our next President has clearly begun, and we have been hurled- - like it or not- - into a teachable...
Read Full ArticleThe Seven Sure Solutions to School Success: How Many Do You Need?
Looking to the Future by Reviewing the PastDear Colleagues,There are times when all of us need to pause, consider, reconsider, and regroup. This especially important given the speed of our personal an...
Read Full ArticleThe Unfulfilled Promise of Education: Students’ Social, Emotional, and Behavioral Skills
Why the “Soft Skills” are the Hard Skills, and Why they are Essential for Students’ Academic Success- - What Outcomes should be Targeted?Dear Colleagues,For all of the rhetoric about ensuring that stu...
Read Full ArticleSchool Disproportionality and the Charleston Murders: Systemic Change vs. State Statutes
Why New State Discipline Statutes will NOT Solve the Minority/Special Education Disproportionality Problem in Our Schools. . . Connections with Ferguson, Baltimore, and now Charleston, SCDear Colleagu...
Read Full ArticleSchool Improvement? The Questions your Department of Education Needs to Know
A New Federal Report Confirms that State Departments of Education are Trying, but Not Succeeding. . .Twelve Essential School Improvement Questions Needed to Jump-Start the ProcessDear Colleague,OK. ....
Read Full ArticleParents and Students in Jail: How are Schools Helping?
How do Schools Support Students with Parents in Jail and Students who, Themselves, are Incarcerated?Dear Colleague,Prison. . .Jail. . .Juvenile Correction. . . Detention Facilities. . . Schools.There...
Read Full ArticleExtending the School Day? Is it Due to Ineffectiveness, Disengagement, or Enrichment?
Are Schools Extending the School Day (and Year) to Compensate for Ineffective Teaching and Student Disengagement, or to Enhance Elective, Enrichment, or Extracurricular Opportunities?Dear Colleague,As...
Read Full ArticleThe NEW ESEA Draft: Tell Congress that Capital Letters Make a Difference-- An Open Letter to Congress
How the U.S. Department of Education has Consciously Confused its Positive Behavioral Interventions and Supports (PBIS) Framework with ESEA’s “positive behavioral supports” LanguageDear Colleagues,Pro...
Read Full ArticleMarch Madness: How Effective Schools are Like Successful Basketball Teams
How to apply the Characteristics of a Successful Basketball Program to the Design and Process of an Effective SchoolWith many sports enthusiasts spending this and next week continuing their participat...
Read Full ArticleRestorative Practices and Reducing Suspensions: The Numbers Just Don’t Add Up
A New Center for Civil Rights Remedies Report Concludes (again) that Schools are NOT Closing the Minority and Exceptional Student Discipline GapReports say that the Chicago Public Schools’ Restorative...
Read Full ArticleBe a Hero to Your District’s Administrators: How to Stop Your Best Teachers from Leaving your School, District, and their Profession
Breaking the Vicious Cycle of Recruiting, Training, and then Losing Your Best TeachersDear Colleagues,Having spent another week consulting in a very rural area of the country (and driving to work in 1...
Read Full ArticleYour State's Guide to RTI Just Doesn't Make Sense
What your Department of Education isn't Sharing about its Multi-tiered/Response-to-Intervention ProceduresDear Colleagues,When you work as a national consultant, it is expected that your districts or...
Read Full ArticleCorrecting the Flaws: The Feds’ Thinking on Academic Proficiency and Results Driven Accountability
Connecting and Correcting the Flaws in (ESEA's) High Stakes Proficiency Assessments of Students' Academic Achievement and (OSEP's) the New Special Education Results Driven Accountability SystemDear Co...
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