Studies show that deteriorating school facilities take their toll on students' and teachers' health and morale. Classrooms should be accessible to the outdoors; clustered around a commons; adaptable and flexible; and aesthetically pleasing. Architects say natural lighting and noise reduction are routine parts of their job. Research studies support…

Research affirms that preschoolers learn best when following their natural dispositions to explore, wonder, question, create, and play. Preschoolers attending early education programs should not be treated like smaller versions of older kids. They need a well-equipped classroom with an ambience that fosters their social and emotional development.…

In this article, the author stresses that teachers need to teach their students to think critically and to reason their way. One prerequisite for teaching critical thinking is a classroom climate of high expectations, teacher warmth and encouragement, and pleasant physical surroundings. Schools should see to it that students become progressively…

Suspension and expulsion should be a school's court of last resort. Before moving straight to suspension, school officials should provide discipline options such as counseling and alternative schools. Describes a rural New York school district where suspension and expulsion are rare. The goal is to keep every student in school so they can learn.…

Charlotte Danielson of the Educational Testing Service says that schools can do plenty to keep students engaged in learning. Students who are deeply engaged in learning are not simply spending "time on task," she says, but are intellectually involved with curriculum topics and mentally involved in what she calls "minds-on learning." Making that…