EdPolicy
College Now: Scott Mendelsberg’s Great New Book on College Prep
In many high schools, the shuffle of a discipline-based, big-catalog master schedule can lead to lack of sustained relationships and increased risks for students to fall through the cracks. Important outcomes get little attention with the lack of an advisory spine. In his new book College Now, Scott Mendelsberg takes on these problems of aims and architecture; of inequitably distributed resources and expectations; and the political dysfunction of urban school districts.
Forming an Entrepreneurial Mindset in K-12 Students
By: Ryan S. Olson. Perhaps the most important question of our time is, Are we forming young people who will thrive in these times? Parents must address this. So must educators, who significantly form children. But educators fail students if they foster only technical skills and textbook knowledge
Fostering Next Gen Learning: a Q&A with iNACOL’s Susan Patrick
Tom recently discussed next-gen learning with Susan Patrick of iNACOL. Here's a Q&A from their discussion...
The Numbers Add Up at #NCSC14
With record high temperatures in sunny Las Vegas, over 4,500 charter school advocates happily lined the air conditioned halls at Mandalay Bay Convention Center this week. Here’s a recap...
Why Public Schools Struggle to Innovate
By, Michael B. Horn. It’s not because they are public per se. Private schools struggle with certain kinds of innovation, too. Embracing new forms of blended learning or offering a lower-priced education have been difficult for independent schools, for example.
Cage-Busting for Smart Cities
Creating a great education system isn’t just a matter of practice, because rules, regulations, contracts, and cultures can stymie even the most committed educator. But it can’t just be a matter of policy, because what really matters is what educators do in schools—and policies can make people do things but they can’t make them do them well (see school turnarounds, teacher evaluation, et al.).
New Horizon Report Insists Teachers Use Tech
Aside from being great content for your next Twitter chat, this year’s iteration of the NMC Horizon Report is a must-read for 21st century educators and education policy makers alike. Following is a summary of major points.
EdTech 10: Staying Connected
This week has been all about connectivity. As students head home for the summer and teachers plan for the next school year, the education world is preparing to find new ways to keep us all connected. For more on what connectivity matters check out this blog and see the top stories of the week.
Aspen Report Validates and Accelerates Shift to Connected Learning
Last summer the Aspen Institute launched a task force commissioned to better understand the potential of connected learning. After a year of research and outreach, today the Aspen Institute Task Force on Learning and Internet released a new report that describes a vision for an approach to teaching and learning that places the student at the center.
Building a National Innovation Partnership
In order to affect positive change in education we must stand on the shoulders of giants. Education is multi-faceted, multi-layered, and often under-resourced; it can benefit from coordinated, strategic and engaged partnerships that span from the classroom to the White House.