Talking Out of School: Diverse Pathways
April 15, 2020
We gathered together with parents and teachers from around the nation, we broke bread, opened up, and we listened as they imagined an education system built for the future. The future vision they painted together was beautiful, wildly unconfined, and as diverse as the kids it would serve. We heard of changes to the physical space, with kids climbing trees, or working in a gourmet kitchen, or getting fresh air and ever-changing perspective. We heard ideas for course offerings as far-reaching as teaching with video games or as practical as lessons in balancing a checkbook. We heard of free teachers…
Empower Teachers to Impact Every Student
February 14, 2020
Quamasia was a middle-schooler at a large public school in central Brooklyn when her teacher, Louis Olander, met her. Their first encounter wasn’t ideal: Louis visited Quamasia’s classroom to pick up a bookshelf, and Quamasia catcalled Louis all the way out the door. The next time Louis saw her, she was in his “Special Ed” class, and she was much more subdued—Quamasia was embarrassed that she ended up in the class for kids with learning disabilities. The thing is, Quamasia didn’t really have a learning disability. So, what was she doing in Louis’s class? What Quamasia was, was loud. She…
