Teaching Tolerance

On July 26, 1990, George Bush signed the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) into law. This act is the first civil rights act passed that specifically addresses the needs of those with disabilities and prohibits discrimination against disabled people in employment, public services, public accommodations, and telecommunications. Several years later, in 1975, Gerald Ford signed … read more »

The New Black Friday: Listen Up!

Do you know what the Friday after Thanksgiving is?! If you’re wondering how I’m going to tie Black Friday into a blog about education, don’t worry, I’m not going to go there! The National Day of Listening is an unofficial holiday celebrated on the Friday after Thanksgiving Day. It was launched in 2008 by StoryCorps, … read more »

What’s the Buzz: Project Based Learning

The science specialists in my old school division were all about Project Based Learning.  They went to special training and then gave workshops.  They wanted everyone to convert to this great way of inspiring students through authentic learning.  It was a real struggle for the specialists though.  We had low performing schools in a number … read more »

Media Messages Matter

We are inundated with media messages – be it in traditional print formats or digital texts, images, videos, or advertising. As adults, we have the experience and ability to interpret and often ignore the constant barrage of information that confronts us. However, our students do not have the expertise to handle all the extraneous information … read more »

The First Amendment and Digital Citizens

“Amendment I: Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the government for a redress of grievances.” In these few, brief written words, the First Amendment protects so … read more »