Does school design help or hinder adolescent learning?
Students can benefit from environments that foster belonging, safety, and meaningful relationships with both peers and adults
Adolescence is one of the most consequential periods of human development, yet the environments designed to support it often fail to reflect its complexity. Spanning ages 10 to 18, this stage is marked by rapid neurological, emotional, and social transformation.
Top Stories
The grade gap: Helping parents understand students’ academic progress
For as long as school has existed, so has the parental question: How are my kids doing? For nearly two centuries, educators have used some type of report card to communicate with families how their children are progressing in school.
The one literacy metric schools miss: Students’ love of reading
To ensure children build foundational reading skills in the early elementary years, educators have embraced the Science of Reading with its emphasis on phonics and phonemic awareness.
First graders need a chance to explain their math thinking
In first grade, educators shape the trajectories of how students feel about math. Long before they discover algebra or standardized tests, six- and seven-year-olds are forming beliefs about whether they are “math people,” if their ideas are worth sharing, and what their mistakes say about them as learners.
Don’t forget nature’s classroom
Outdoor education has been shown to improve academic outcomes across subjects, including science, reading, and math, while also strengthening motivation, well-being, and school engagement. Studies also link outdoor learning to increased attendance, improved behavior, and stronger relationships among students.
Digital detox: Reducing screen time creates space to build literacy skills
Walk into almost any elementary classroom today and you will likely hear the same concern from teachers across grade levels: Many students can swipe, tap, and navigate a screen with ease, but struggle to hold a pencil comfortably, form letters fluently or sustain writing for more than a few minutes without fatigue.
Teacher training needs more community and less compliance
Professional development is one of a school district’s most powerful strategies for improving student outcomes. Yet, educators often leave workshops feeling inspired in the moment, but take little action in the classroom. The problem isn’t that teachers don’t want to learn, but that professional development is treated as an event, rather than an ongoing process.
Summer reading for teaching and school improvement: Harnessing the Science of Learning
Every summer, I find myself in conversations with teachers and administrators trying to figure out why their current pedagogical practices are or aren’t working. So, once I came across Harnessing the Science of Learning by Nathaniel Swain, Ph.D., I haven’t been able to stop recommending it.
My son wasn’t dyslexic—he was never properly taught to read
When my son Hunter was in fifth grade, his teacher told me he was struggling with reading comprehension. I nodded politely and moved on.
EDUCATION RESOURCE CENTERS
Evaluations That Elevate: Moving Your District From Compliance to Growth
What if evaluation felt less like paperwork and more like progress? Observation cycles, rubric scoring, summative ratings, SLOs, and growth plans shouldn’t live in disconnected systems. Explore how one platform helps HR directors, superintendents, and instructional leaders bring it all together — for every employee, every role, every district.
Sponsored Content
Why interactive solutions are a smarter investment for schools
School IT leaders face a constant balancing act to deploy technology that enhances learning while keeping systems secure, manageable, and cost-effective.
Advancing digital equity through teacher leadership
Meaningful opportunities for teachers to build expertise and leadership beyond their classroom add to a sense of professionalism and fulfillment. In an age when the role of technology in education is rapidly changing, why not allow teachers to lead the way?
Why interactive solutions are a smarter investment for schools
School IT leaders face a constant balancing act to deploy technology that enhances learning while keeping systems secure, manageable, and cost-effective.
Wearable tech helps students overcome central vision challenges
Central vision loss–a condition that impairs the ability to see objects directly in front of the eyes–can have profound academic and social impacts on K-12 students.
