106: Teaching in the AI World: A Time for John Dewey I’ve been as educator for a long time. In the 1980’s, the folks who taught me how to do the work connected me with John Dewey. I have continued to read his work over my career and wondered what he would have thought of Read More
Category: Schools
The Deceptive Simplicity of Percentages: Why Our Grading Systems Need a Revolution
For decades, percentages have been the cornerstone of academic assessment, a seemingly objective and straightforward way to quantify student performance. We assign a numerical score, average it out, and present it as a clear indicator of learning. Yet, beneath this veneer of simplicity lies a system riddled with flaws, one that actively hinders effective assessment, Read More
AI Generated: Data Security
What security measures are necessary to protect data? Data security involves protecting data from unauthorized access, modification, and disclosure. Key security measures include:
What Makes School Unusual for IT Professionals
There are many types of institutions that are labeled “school.” In the United States, the public institutions that enroll students in kindergarten through grade 12 come to mind. Students typically enroll in these schools after they have turned five years old and graduate just after they have turned 18. Much that happens in these schools is observed Read More
A Quick Take on DEI
Just as educators are understanding the need to update their practices to meet the needs of students whose brains and bodies have been affected by trauma, they are understanding the need to update their practices to increase the participation of populations that have been underrepresented or marginalized in schooling. Educational leaders are recognizing that some Read More
A Harsh Reality About IT and School Leaders
Information technology. All schools need it. All schools have it. All schools hire individuals with expertise in managing it to… well… manage it. In this post, I describe a reality that many recognize in their schools, but they are reluctant to admit it. This post calls out the inability of school leaders to provide effective Read More
A Secret About Curriculum and a Message for Students
Education is fundamentally an endeavor grounded in guesses. Well, that may be hyperbole, but our curriculum is a guess at what our students may need to know for their future. We really can’t know what they are going to do, how things are going to change, or what we missed that we should have taught. Read More
Elevator Pitch on Changing Nature of Education
Education really has changed in recent decades. My reasons for concluding this is true are many, varied, and too complicated to detail here. It is tempting to blame education for the changes in society that we observe, but that will gain us nothing and the blame is not deserved. All schools serve the learners who Read More
Elevator Pitch on Digital Equity
It is an unfortunate reality that there remains a digital divide in the United States; disadvantaged students have less access to technology tools, and even if they do have access to the tools, they are more likely to be used for efficient instruction of procedural and declarative knowledge rather than more effective or efficacious purposes. Read More
Elevator Pitch on John Dewey
John Dewey, the American philosopher is often credited with differentiating traditional from progressive education. In general, traditional education approaches the curriculum as a known collection of content, and teachers select a path through the content, ensuring students learn by rewarding expected answers and correcting inaccurate answers. Progressive education, on the other hand, is designed to Read More