Schools Worth Visiting
The Getting Smart team visits hundreds of schools each year and is grateful for the opportunity to see high-quality teaching and learning in action. This series features stories of schools that share best practices, lessons learned and next-gen teaching practices that support high-quality, personalized, project-based learning for all students.
Leadership
Gen Z Students Need Schools That Match Their Dream Big Approach
By: Becky Wallerick. Generation Z is a motivated group used to daily technology use who need schools to meet their "Dream Big" approach to life. Here is how New Life Academy is helping these students tap into their dreams for success.
Leadership
Personalization and Real-World Learning at Big Picture Schools
By: Rosie Clayton. As part of my exploration of innovation ecosystems in education across the U.S., I had a chance to visit two Big Picture Learning schools and found these six aspects of the schools extremely impressive.
Leadership
Reengineering HigherEd: Student-Centered Learning at Olin College
By: Tom Vander Ark. Olin College was designed to be different. Here are nine things that stand out about Olin that other higher education institutions could consider implementing to innovate programs and graduates.
Leadership
A Great Early Start in Kansas City: Operation Breakthrough
Operation Breakthrough is a remarkable early learning program in Kansas City, Missouri, that helps at-risk children ages 6 weeks to 14 years learn how to be successful in school and life.
Leadership
Pennsylvania Charter Emphasizes Liberal Arts for Success
We recently had the opportunity to visit Renaissance Academy, a K-12 public charter school in Phoenixville, Pennsylvania, that focuses on liberal arts to prepare students for college.
Leadership
Human-Scale at Scale: Personalization, But to What End?
By: Tom Beresford. While touring learner-centered schools in the U.S., I had the opportunity to visit and witness two innovative models at Big Picture Learning and Summit Public Schools--both successful but with very different mindsets around their approach.
Leadership
PhotoBlog | Teton Science Schools & The Power of Place-Based Learning
I recently had the opportunity to visit Teton Science Schools, our partner in Getting Smart’s “Power of Place” campaign. Here are some initial thoughts from the many things I learned, as well as photos of that beautiful part of our country.
Leadership
Four Ways Students Learn from School Gardens
By: Liz Wimmer. I recently discovered that students actually eat more vegetables at school if they help grow them in the school garden, and that school gardens are powerful places that deepen student learning in these four ways.
Leadership
Cultivating Cross-Cultural Competence in Costa Rica
By: Abel McClennen. Learn more about La Paz Community School: a rural, ecologically and ethnically diverse PreK-12 school in Costa Rica where all cultures, ethnicities and socioeconomic levels are openly embraced and celebrated.
EdTech
Data is Great, but Action is Key
By: Dr. James E. McCoy. As a superintendent, I need to empower principals and teachers with technology to successfully execute our educational development plan while meeting all standards. Here is how my district plans to do both this school year.