We speak with Amanda Jones, a school librarian in Livingston Parish, Louisiana. Ms. Jones is the author of "That Librarian: The Fight Against Book Banning in America.” The book recounts how speaking out for race- and gender-related books in libraries led to her being targeted and threatened by book-banning extremists. She describes initial abandonment by friends and colleagues who were afraid to speak up. But nationwide, librarians and their constituents are fighting back. Ms. Jones includes...

The authors of a recent Chalkbeat analysis discuss the Department of education’s 2023 high school survey, which shows girls, especially girls of color, have much higher stress levels, and feel less supported, than boys. Michael Elsen-Rooney, an NYC public school reporter; Kae Petrin, a data and graphics reporter; and Liza Greenberg, a Bronx High School of Science senior, unpack the data, which the DOE has largely disregarded. The post NYC high school surveys: Disparities in student stress and...

We speak with Dr. Sam Finesurrey, assistant professor of history at Guttman Community College, and three 2024 graduates of School in the Square (S2), a charter middle school in Washington Heights, Manhattan. Dr. Finesurrey worked with 14 students on a research project studying S2 students' social emotional learning, including reactions to the pandemic and faculty turnover. Dr. Sam and the students talk about the process, what they found, and how the school modified policies in response to...

We speak with Dr. Sam Finesurrey, assistant professor of history at Guttman Community College, and three 2024 graduates of School in the Square (S2), a charter middle school in Washington Heights, Manhattan. Dr. Finesurrey worked with 14 students on a research project studying S2 students' social emotional learning, including reactions to the pandemic and faculty turnover. Dr. Sam and the students talk about the process, what they found, and how the school modified policies in response to...

We speak with Dr. Diana Turk, Chair of the Department of Teaching and Learning and Director of Teacher Education at NYU. Students in NYU’s unique teacher residency program work full-time in classrooms, for which they are paid, making it possible for students without a lot of money to attend. By design, the program attracts BIPOC students. Students receive support from NYU faculty, both on location in their schools and online. They attend classes in the evenings, virtually. The program is...

We speak with Danielle Bryant, Director of Equity at Capital Region Educational Service District 113. Ms Bryant helps to break down isolation of Black educators and supports Indigenous educators and schools on reservations. A District program facilitates paraeducators becoming certified teachers. The post Supporting Black and Indigenous educators: Creatively developing community in Washington state first appeared on Ethical Schools.

We speak with Adam Grumbach, social studies program coordinator of the New York Performance Standards Consortium, and Naseem Haamid, a law student who attended Fannie Lou Hamer High School. We discuss inquiry based learning, Performance Based Assessment Tests, Habits of Mind, and self-directed, interdisciplinary portfolios, as alternatives to standardized-test driven curricula. The post Going deep: Student-directed learning in Performance Standards Consortium schools first appeared on...

Ansharaye Hines and Mimi McKee of the Center for Black Educator Development discuss how the presence of highly qualified Black teachers supports students' educational success. The Center advocates for educational equity and provides multiple teaching pathways to encourage and support Black high school and university students to become teachers. The post Rebuilding the Black teacher pipeline: Advancing justice and academic outcomes first appeared on Ethical Schools.

We continue our conversation with Harry Feder of FairTest. This time, we discuss high stakes tests in K-12 schools. Harry explains how tests and the prep for them came to dominate education and the consequences for students, teachers, and schools of high or low scores. He also describes how the same companies dominate textbooks and testing, and suggests some alternatives to high-stakes tests. The post High stakes: Teaching to the tests in K-12 first appeared on Ethical Schools.

We speak with Harry Feder of FairTest, an organization that advocates for fair and open testing, about the reinstitution of standardized test requirements at some "Ivy Plus” colleges, and why it matters. We discuss how testing choices affect inclusion and exclusion in admissions and what most non-"Ivy Plus" schools do. In a follow-up interview with Harry Feder, we will discuss standardized tests in K-12 schools. The post SATs and the illusion of fairness first appeared on Ethical Schools.

Steve Evangelista, longtime NYC educator, and Anthony Celestine, director of the Office of Juvenile Justice Services at Calcasieu Parish, Louisiana, talk about  Calcasieu's Multi-Agency Resource Center. MARC, an assessment center that coordinates services for struggling families, has been extraordinarily successful in reducing young people's involvement with the juvenile justice system.  The post Early intervention: Model assessment center reduces youth arrests first appeared on Ethical Schools.

What boundaries should a school set on student speech, if any, in order to foster social-emotional learning, civil discourse, and friendship among students? How might they hold themselves and their students accountable for upholding school values, even when they are not reflected on the national political landscape? We invite you to watch the 3rd episode... The post What Would YOU do? Walling Out or Welcoming In? first appeared on Ethical Schools.

We speak with Megan M. Conklin, who designs and implements professional development for substitutes in Washington state. Substitutes often don’t receive the support and compensation they deserve. Ms. Conklin's union-backed program teaches subs classroom survival skills and advocates for equity among school staff members. The post Elevating undervalued professionals: Support for substitute teachers first appeared on Ethical Schools.

We speak with Dr. Andrea Siegel and Michelle Vitale of Hudson County Community College about the ways they bring art into students’ everyday lives. They’ve assembled a multi-ethnic art collection which is displayed on rotation in the galleries and hallways. Living with art is new to many of the students, who are often the first generation in their families to go to college. Our guests tell their own stories about their parents’ reactions to their choosing to become artists. The post...

Drs. Katherine Norris and  Kathryn Wiley, colleagues at Howard University’s School of Education, speak about obstacles to recruiting and retaining teachers and increasing diversity. Money matters, but even more, so does ending discrimination. “Racial battle fatigue” is pervasive among Black teachers. The post Solving teacher shortages: It’s not just pay (Encore) first appeared on Ethical Schools.

We speak with Jamie Woodhouse, UK educator and thought leader on sentientism. An ethical worldview informed by evidence, reason, and compassion, sentientism prioritizes the well-being of humans and animals other than human. We discuss strategies for introducing sentientism in the classroom, the questions students ask, and ways teachers can incorporate sentientism in the curriculum. The post What’s real and who/what matters: Sentientism in schools first appeared on Ethical Schools.

We speak with the New Jersey School of Conservation’s Kerry Kirk Pflugh and Tanya Sulikowski, and Garwood, NJ middle school teacher, K.C. Bree about the SOC and about New Jersey's first-in-the-nation mandate for climate change education in every grade. The SOC, a newly-reopened 75-year-old center for experiential learning and fieldwork, provides professional development as well as interdisciplinary programming for students including applied science, math, humanities, and arts in an idyllic...

We speak with Dr. Peter Hughes, superintendent of New Jersey's Cresskill School District, an affluent New York City suburb with large Korean and Israeli communities, about respecting disparate cultures while centering individual students’ interests, talents, and needs. We discuss effective means of communicating with bicultural parents and inclusive strategic planning. How can schools prepare students for joyful futures where they also serve others and are impactful on the world around...

We speak with Dave Crenshaw, founder and coach of Team Dreamers NY in Washington Heights; Blanca Battino, retired principal of PS 128; and Dr. Robert Fullilove, professor and associate dean at Columbia University's Mailman School of Public Health. Team Dreamers is a life-changing out-of-school-time program. Deeply embedded in the community, it builds leadership and mutual support among students. Dr. Fullilove’s public health interns serve as mentors and role models while they learn from the...

We speak with Lee Schere, Director of Teaching and Learning at the Office of K-16 Initiatives of CUNY about the Debating U.S. History Program, an inquiry-based curriculum and teacher learning program. Students learn that history is not one set of agreed-upon events and interpretations. Though designed for NYC schools, the curriculum is available free to teachers everywhere. The post Inquiry and interpretation: Learning US history from primary sources (Encore) first appeared on Ethical Schools.

We speak with Chris Lehmann, founding principal of Science Leadership Academy, inquiry-driven and project-based schools in Philadelphia. The academic model centers inquiry, research, collaboration, presentation, and reflection. Students take English, science, and history as a cohort, allowing for interdisciplinary understanding. Systems and structures ensure there is time for teachers to build relationships with students, and create the basis for the schools to survive beyond the...

We speak with Hedy N. Chang of Attendance Works, who describes the long-term impact on student success of chronic absence in all grades. Framing chronic absence as a truancy issue can increase alienation from school. Distinctions between excused and unexcused absences can unfairly penalize low-income students and students of color. Chronic absence rates may hit 40% this year. Ms. Chang discusses relationship-based strategies for mitigating absenteeism.

We speak with Denver English teacher and speech/debate coach Anna Steed about the benefits of speech and debate competition. Students acquire critical communication skills and self-confidence; students of color and low-income students can become more comfortable in majority-white, middle-class environments similar to those they may encounter in college. For many students who have challenging home lives, speech and debate opens up worlds of possibility.

We speak with Jackie Broder, director of the Mamakating Environmental Education Center in New York’s Catskill Mountains. The Center abuts the Basha Kill wetland, a vital self-contained ecosystem. It helps students, families, and community members to connect with the area's distinct biodiversity and rich history and to develop an emotional connection with nature.