How human connection calms teacher burnout

The power of human connection is a transformative element that is deeply wired into our collective DNA. With so many teachers experiencing burnout, I can’t help but recognize a strong link between human connection and the challenges facing teachers today.

Teachers care immensely for their students and cherish the in-person connection that exists in the classroom. But the stresses of the job are taking them away from connecting with students more meaningfully. Teachers feel exhausted and underappreciated, causing them to consider leaving their jobs altogether. A recent National Education Association survey found that “55% of educators are thinking about leaving the profession earlier than they had planned.”

While the NEA survey identifies staffing shortages and emotional fatigue as contributing factors, it also mentions that educators are requesting more mental support for their students than is presently available.…Read More

A teacher’s tips for effective edtech integration

It’s clear that technology isn’t going anywhere and will become an integral part of students’ educational futures. Being able to effectively utilize technology in the classroom is no small task for the classroom teachers. Integrating technology into the classroom isn’t simply transferring a worksheet into a virtual format–rather, it involves using technology to enhance lessons and enable the students to showcase their content mastery in a variety of ways.

The National Center for Education Statistics said it well: “Integrating technology is what comes next after making the technology available and accessible. It is a goal-in-process, not an end state.”

The first thing that needs to be done in order to successfully integrate technology in the classroom has to be instructing/training teachers to do so. Having professional development sessions offered yearly and up to date with the ever-changing tech tools that schools are offered would be something that every teacher could benefit from. Students, as a result, will reap the benefits of their teachers’ pedagogical tech skills. Teachers should also start utilizing the International Society for Technology in Education standards in their lessons regularly as they help focus the lessons to build on students’ competencies with technology.…Read More

SmarterServices Integrates Calculator Application into SmarterProctoring to Eliminate Distractions, Create Equity, and Promote Academic Integrity

PITTSBURGH, PA – Student success is an utmost priority for SmarterServices, which has led to a recent partnership with ClassCalc to integrate features that eliminate student distraction, create equity, and promote academic integrity. 

ClassCalc is a calculator application that has been most recently integrated into all of the SmarterProctoring Virtual Proctoring modalities. SmarterProctoring provides a flexible and credible way to manage and administer proctored exams with support for face-to-face and online proctoring. It integrates with a variety of different LMS to offer safe and reliable testing experiences for students and teachers. 

With the optional ability to enable the ClassCalc feature in each online exam configuration, instructors and teachers are able to view students on their calculator devices during exams — eliminating distractions and promoting academic integrity by preventing students from looking up answers online. Students are also able to practice with the ClassCalc calculator before starting their assessment, so they are confident in using the application on exams. …Read More

The aftermath of COVID–and the way forward

This school year began with enthusiasm for educators and students who were able to return to in-person learning after 18 months of remote instruction. Even with masks and other health protocols, educators and students were happy to be back on campus. We have all learned so much during these COVID years—resilience, creativity, determination, emotional well being and the value of teachers.

However, recent months saw school closings begin again because of new virus variants sweeping the country. The plans that administrators and teachers had carefully made were revised again due to changing circumstances. So, where are we now? Schools are still being significantly impacted by absences of teachers and staff due to the virus. This is the most pressing issue for leaders. There are simply not enough people on onsite to teach, engage, or help students reconnect socially and emotionally. The pressure on staff is just tremendous as leaders try to stabilize their teams to provide uninterrupted instruction and services.

From the classroom to the lunch room to the bus drivers and beyond, schools all over the country are facing a shortage of skilled staff to teach students, provide related services, transport children with IEPs, and serve meals. The pressure on leaders is enormous, particularly as they continue to navigate change and attempt to stabilize their campus. The recovery period from several years of disrupted learning will be significant. It will take longer than a single school year. …Read More

How to create resilience in traumatized students

Positive experiences can be life-changing for a child. In a previous installment of this series, I shared how positive experiences with teachers throughout my childhood helped counteract some of the trauma I experienced early in life.

Research shows that adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) can have long-lasting effects, but there are things each of us can do to help the children in our lives deal with that trauma. Those are known as positive childhood experiences (PCEs). In this article, I’ll share what teachers can start doing today to make a lifelong positive impact.

7 Impactful Positive Childhood Experiences…Read More

3 major challenges teachers are juggling in the pandemic

Student behavior and social-emotional health remain the top challenge for teachers this year, according to a recent survey from the nonprofit Leanlab Education.

Leanlab surveyed more than 240 teachers in its report, Tell Us How You Really Feel: A Survey of Teacher Sentiment, to better understand the main challenges and successes teachers are facing almost two years into the pandemic.

“We’ve heard a lot about how teachers are feeling from an outside perspective,” said Katie Boody, CEO of Leanlab. “But we wanted to make sure the teacher’s perspective wasn’t lost and the challenges that they self-identify are the same ones that we’re putting resources towards addressing.”…Read More

9 new digital learning resources from TCEA

With the realization that COVID will stick with us, and with determination to live with it and resume aspects of pre-pandemic life, educators are once again eager to gather at edtech conferences and experience the latest and greatest solutions, digital learning resources, and professional learning opportunities.

In Dallas, TCEA began with keynotes and sessions from top edtech thought leaders and real-world practitioners.

Here’s a sampling of new digital learning tools and innovations from edtech solution providers.…Read More

Why competency-based education is challenging centuries of tradition

It’s been nearly four centuries since the first formal classrooms appeared in what would eventually become the United States. The earliest example of a public school was the Boston Latin School, founded in 1635, the first to relieve families of having to educate their kids at home in the “three R’s”—reading, writing, and arithmetic.

Despite massive changes in society and technology since colonial times, one thing hasn’t changed much: the way we teach, test, and pass our students along to the next level—or into their adult working lives.

Most students today still take the same lessons from the same teachers in the same format—and they must pass the same tests to graduate. Of course, higher education allows for variations in courses of study, but within each classroom or curriculum, the content, delivery, and assessment are fixed. Over the course of their 12-year education (plus two, four, or eight more in university), students ingest, memorize, and practice the materials presented, then take tests to receive a certificate to prove they “learned” it.…Read More

4 concepts that will shape education in 2022

2021 was a tough year for teachers and students, to say the least. Coming back to in-person learning and navigating the increased demands of learning loss and social emotional needs has taken its toll on everyone. 2021 has also brought major developments and an ongoing global pandemic that have changed the way we think about work and life.

These can provide some interesting insights for education going into 2022, where we need to acknowledge the challenges we still face, but also look for ways to infuse more joy and authenticity into learning.

1. Entering the Metaverse…Read More

5 elements of a strong math intervention program

Early studies are showing significant learning loss in math due to the pandemic. Because of this, teachers need to be prepared to identify and fix any gaps when all students return to in-person learning.

Over a decade ago, Vail School District overhauled our math curriculum and intervention plan and have continued to make updates as our students’ needs have evolved. In this article, I’ll share my top five “must haves” for any math intervention initiative.

Tip #1: Monitor progress throughout the year…Read More

Many educators say video is more effective than text-based content

A new survey predicts that video in education will continue to grow, as a majority of educators say they believe video content is more engaging and effective than text-based content.

The State of Video in Education 2022 report from Kaltura assesses the growth and evolution of video’s impact on education over the past year and providing insights into the coming year. This is Kaltura’s eighth annual report on video in education and the first since vaccination programs for COVID-19 enabled many teachers and students to resume in-person education.

As the use of video in education has grown greatly over the past two years, the study’s goal was to provide answers to pressing questions facing educators about the long term value of video in education, namely, what are the benefits of using video for learning beyond the pandemic and how is video transforming education over the long term?…Read More