Posts by Guest Author
Great Partnerships Are Like Gumbo, Not Fast Food
What does sustainable school improvement actually look like in a large, high-need district? In this piece, researchers and practitioners from East Baton Rouge Parish Schools share how a three-year research-practice partnership, built on shared values, rigorous evidence, and relational trust, moved the needle on math learning for more than 38,000 students. It is a model worth studying for any district leader tired of one-and-done professional development and ready to build something that lasts.
Prepare Your People, Protect Your People: Setting the Stage for Successful Change Management
In an era of rising resistance and restrictive legislation, asking educators to take risks without protecting them is not leadership, it is liability. Jennifer D. Klein, author of Taming the Turbulence in Educational Leadership, offers a clear-eyed framework for how school leaders can prepare their people with transformative professional learning, adapt systems to support innovation, and stand as a buffer when opposition arrives. This is the kind of piece that reminds education leaders why the soul of their work has always been human development, for adults as much as students.
Maritime | 253: Project-Based Learning at Port Scale
By: Deepti Reim The world of work is changing rapidly, requiring workers who can navigate evolving technologies, collaborate across disciplines, and adapt to increasingly complex operational systems. K-12 systems around the country are constantly trying to evolve alongside these changes, transforming Career and Technical Education (CTE) programs to better prepare students for life beyond the diploma. But while…
Some Student Data Should Never Become Digital
By: Charles Fadel, Center for Curriculum Redesign Adapted from “Cognitive Security Architecture for Student Learning Data” Schools have been capturing student data for decades, and eventually will also use new applications such as Intelligent Tutoring Systems (ITS) that can adapt to each student’s pace, performance, and learning needs.
The Tyranny of College Admissions: Why It’s So Challenging to Have Real Change in K-12 Education
College admissions requirements keep K-12 tied to grades and Carnegie units, slowing competency-based and skills-first learning.
What If School Offered More? The Case for Community Schools
Community schools boost student success by connecting learning with mental health, family support, and local community resources.
The Conditions That Make Durable Skills Real: How Schools and Systems Build for Agency, Identity, and Vision
How schools build durable skills through authentic work, reflection, relationships, and learner-centered design.
What AI-Enabled Education Actually Looks Like When It’s Working for Workforce Students
How AI can make workforce pathways visible through competency records, labor market alignment, and clearer student-to-job outcomes.
How System Leaders Can Intentionally Design to Build Math Identity
How system leaders can improve math achievement by designing instruction that builds math identity, reasoning, and confidence.
Addressing Symptoms but not Problems: How Fight, Flight, Freeze, and Fawn Shape the Modern Classroom
How fear of screen time and AI shapes school responses—and why education must address structural challenges, not just devices. and why education must address structural challenges, not just devices.