We all know the teacher (or maybe we are the teacher) who is known for committing to strict deadlines and unwavering due dates. The teacher who is dedicated to teaching students punctuality, responsibility, and accountability at all cost.
Hybrid and virtual teaching have changed the face of education. Teachers have had to quickly (more like INSTANTLY) learn to translate everything that we do to a digital learning space.
It was during the Civil Rights era in the 1960s that I graduated from Indiana University and began my first teaching assignment at IPS #21. My class of second graders, all Black, were anxiously waiting to get the school year started—and so was I! It didn’t hit me at first because this was not something the School of Education had included in my teacher preparation courses. However, as the school year proceeded, it became glaringly apparent that none of the textbooks reflected the students I was teaching!
One of the most commonly asked questions I get from districts, leaders, and especially teachers is as simple as it is complex: How do we get our students to improve their short answer response?
One of the most misunderstood words in our educational vocabulary is scaffolding. What does it mean to scaffold for a student? Does it mean I should give him or her less? Should I break it down for the student into tiny pieces? The answer to both of those questions is, NO!