Differentiated instruction has always been about providing every learner full opportunity to grow as much as possible academically, intellectually, and socially. A key principle of differentiation is "teaching up" (Tomlinson, 2021, 2022; Tomlinson & Javius, 2012). Teaching up is of particular importance at this moment in education…

Schools are facing a growing number of disaffected parents. To win them back, says one policy analyst, educators need to take their concerns to heart. After two-and-a-half pandemic years, writes policy analyst Robert Pondiscio, public schools are facing a growing number of disaffected parents--a trend reflected in declining enrollments. Pondiscio…

What does the development of a young person's political agency look like, and what role can schools play in this process? The authors profile Blackstone Academy, where administrators integrate social activism, community service, and other service-learning projects into the curriculum to help students develop leadership skills and confidence. The…

Consultant and speaker Baruti Kafele talks frankly about his challenges to be healthy mentally and physically when he was a school principal and gives advice for leaders who are struggling with the mental balancing act.

In recent years, educators have used the SAMR (Substitution, Augmentation, Modification, and Redefinition) model to describe the ideal trajectory of teachers as learners with new technology. The very same general pattern can be found in Judith Sandholtz's research from the Apple Classrooms of Tomorrow project in the 1980s and the five-phase model…

In this interview, David Kessler, former commissioner of the Food and Drug Administration, explains why so many people overeat. Changing lifestyles promote the constant availability of food and around-the-clock eating. In today's highly processed foods, food companies are able to dial in the exact amount of fat, sugar, and salt that will make…

This article discusses a case for teaching a kind of knowledge that is not in textbooks. The author calls on education leaders to take a crucial step toward getting students to use higher-order thinking skills by drawing a sharp line between firsthand and secondhand knowledge. The best way to do this is to focus attention directly on some part of…

Educational leaders must learn to identify influences and pressures and to deal with them with tact and skill while marshaling solid community support and understanding. (Author/IRT)

This article reviews Sherry Turkle's book, "The Second Self: Computers and the Human Spirit," which explores the subjective impact of the computer on children, adults, and our consciousness and culture in general. Two references are provided. (DCS)

The difficulties involved in trying to resolve differences between one's inherited culture and the majority culture are discussed. (CK)

Curriculum decisions should be made with awareness of the gains already made, commitment to assessment of the conditions that exist and the work undone, sensitivity to the emerging needs of the students and the community, and with thorough knowledge of how change best occurs in schools. (Author/IRT)