How districts can build a shared AI structure
In the second week of January, a senior mathematics teacher with 22 years in the classroom raised a hand at the end of a staff meeting and asked…
IT
Beyond the ban: Rethinking cell phone policies in schools with smarter solutions
Across the country, educators, parents, and policymakers are struggling with a question that schools can no longer afford to avoid: What role should cell phones play in today’s…
Beyond Audit Season – A Checklist for Finance
For K–12 school districts, audit readiness isn’t built during audit season. It’s built one transaction at a time—through consistent, controlled, ... Read more
Finding the “low way”: Reclaiming creativity in schools
When my daughter was little, every time we climbed into the car, she’d look up and ask, “Are we going to take the low way?”
When it comes to absenteeism, the real work begins in summer
Every June, once the last bus leaves and the halls go quiet, I get the strong desire to take a deep breath and to allow the pressure of…
Apple’s MacBook Neo has entered the K-12 debate–are IT teams ready for it?
The MacBook Neo may narrow a pricing gap, but it also exposes a management gap. A lower-cost Mac may be enough to spark fresh interest. However, it alone…
Summer isn’t just a season, it’s a strategy
Summer is full of learning opportunities that many children miss. When back-to-school season begins, some kids are already starting behind. That's all due to a lack of access…
How comprehensive school safety planning protected our teachers and students
When people outside of education talk about comprehensive school safety planning, it can sometimes sound theoretical: a checklist of protocols or a compliance exercise.
We can’t punish our way out of the attendance crisis
In the Ithaca City School District, we have long understood that relationships are not peripheral to the work; they are the work. A culture of love is not…
This elementary school banned screens in the middle of the year. Will it solve their reading crisis?
Last month, Mesick Consolidated Schools banned digital devices in its elementary school of about 250 students. The decision wasn’t an agonizing one. The ban came at astonishing speed,…
Oracy is the missing link for multilingual learners
For multilingual learners, language is not just a subject to be learned--it is the very medium through which they access the curriculum.
ClassMate by World Book Recognized with Prestigious ISTE Seal
CHICAGO, May 5, 2026 — ClassMate by World Book, the leading platform of trusted content that helps build knowledge through ... Read more
When AI means something different in every classroom
In many schools, AI is being handled through individual teacher decisions rather than a shared structure. That makes sense in the short term. Teachers are responding in real…
What it takes to build teacher confidence in math: 4 lessons for district leaders
After 20 years teaching high school math, I thought I understood why students struggled. Then I sat in my first professional learning session focused on early math and…
The 4 keys to creating meaningful student-led inquiry
Does the thought of student-led inquiry make you nervous? For some teachers, handing over control of the classroom to their students sounds like an invitation for disaster.
From innovation to impact: Three ways school districts can build a sustainable AI framework
AI is here, and it’s moving fast. For schools, that speed is both an opportunity and a risk: The right tools can transform learning, but the wrong ones…
5 ways to make reading click for teens
Reading is competing for attention in a world built for scrolling. A recent University of Florida study found that the share of Americans who read for pleasure on…
When a teacher ditched screens, class got harder. That may be why it worked.
Seventh-grade math teacher Dylan Kane decided to conduct an experiment in his classes by going cold turkey on ed-tech.
Education in a connected world: Preparing students for global careers
The world of work is changing fast. Careers no longer sit neatly within a single industry, city, or even country; they span disciplines, time zones, technologies, and cultures.
The screen-time debate’s blind spot
Last fall, during a professional development session I was running with a group of teachers in São Paulo, a fifth-grade teacher raised her hand and asked a question…
What schools need to know about accessibility compliance as ADA deadline looms
Recent updates to the Americans with Disabilities Act means digital accessibility for public educational institutions can not be ignored. It will become a legal mandate.
It’s time to rewrite math standards for the future–and to stop expecting AI to do it for us
While nearly every industry is racing to integrate artificial intelligence, most schools are still teaching high school math the way it’s been done for decades--rooted in instructional material…
5 secrets to stronger high school connections
I’ve been a principal for 14 years, during which time I served as the leader of an alternative school, an early college, and a large middle school. Through…
The next wave of K-12 innovation: How educators are shaping the future of edtech
Every school year brings an influx of IT solutions designed to reinvent K-12 education. Schools are primed to jump on the latest technologies to address the issues most…
Why digital resilience is critical for U.S. K-12 schools
While prevention remains essential, 2025 has reinforced a hard lesson for district leaders: it’s not a question of if a cyber incident will occur, but how prepared a…
Boosting student engagement on World Math Day
If you’re feeling a bit sluggish (rightly so), most likely your students are. It may not feel like they are the prime audience for learning about multiplication, division,…
Data intelligence in education: Building the right foundation for better decisions
Data has become one of the most important strategic assets in education. Yet across institutions, publishers, and edtech companies, it often remains fragmented, inconsistently governed, and difficult to…
The layer every AI roundup is missing: Why methodology matters more than content
Last year, a third-grade teacher in São Paulo told me she had "finally found the perfect AI tool." It generated colorful worksheets in seconds. Vocabulary lists, reading comprehension…
A superintendent’s view: Engagement, not enforcement, is the answer to absenteeism
Chronic student absenteeism has reached troubling new heights in the post-pandemic K-12 landscape, with one in four students in many systems now missing significant class time.
The AI-resistant classroom is a myth: Designing assessments that assume AI is present
Artificial intelligence is no longer approaching the classroom--it is already embedded in it. Students are using generative tools to brainstorm, summarize, translate, draft, and revise.
Key tips to help district leaders use data to improve attendance
Chronic absenteeism has become one of the most pressing challenges facing K-12 education today. According to the American Enterprise Institute, chronic absenteeism rates are leveling out at 23.5…
As classrooms go digital, are educators ready?
Today, about 80 percent of K–12 students use computers or tablets at school--up from about 50 percent before the pandemic. Even as parents worry about too much “screen…
When it comes to student attendance, are districts measuring the wrong thing?
Across the country, schools are raising alarms about chronic absenteeism. News stories highlight rising numbers of missed days, legislators are demanding answers from districts, and educators are feeling…
In districts, reaching readiness, retention, and success
It's critical that schools create an environment where students thrive and teachers and staff feel supported and empowered.
Nearly half of high school students now use AI in college search
AI is transforming the way students discover, evaluate, and choose colleges, according to a national survey of more than 5,000 high school students conducted by education company EAB.
AI didn’t break homework: It exposed what was already broken
Who among us has never copied a homework answer in a hurry? Borrowed a friend’s paragraph? Accepted a parent’s “small correction” that eventually became a full rewrite?
Tips and tools to effectively differentiate learning for student engagement
As a paraprofessional for over 3 years and going on my 5th year as a certified special education resource teacher, I’ve learned that no two learners are ever…
What’s in and out in literacy instruction for 2026
The conversation around literacy instruction has reached a turning point. After decades of debate, we're finally seeing a broad consensus around evidence-based practices--but the challenge now is moving…
Mis-identifying “504-only” students
Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act, which prohibits discrimination against students and other individuals with disabilities, is far less visible than the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA)…
How early cognitive training leads to lifelong brain strength
As we continue to make strides in understanding the brain--its strengths and weaknesses, how it develops, and its incredible potential--one idea has continued to strike conversation: the profound…