First Person
Classroom Technology
Opinion
The Powerful Computer in Your Pocket: Using Smartphones in the Classroom
Two teachers contend that smartphones, like computers, are useful tools for instruction that should be harnessed rather than feared.
Education
CTQ Collaboratory
Classroom Shock: What I Am Learning as a Teacher in Finland
As an American teacher in his first year working with 5th grade students in Finland, Tim Walker reflects on the lessons he would bring back to an American classroom.
Curriculum
CTQ Collaboratory
How Leonardo DiCaprio Is Helping Me Teach the Common Core
Showing film adaptations of texts can be more than just a reward for finishing the reading, says a language arts teacher. It can be a powerful tool for teaching critical analysis.
Teaching Profession
Q&A
A Conversation With a 'Bad' Teacher
John Owens, author of Confessions of a Bad Teacher, talks about his brief, unhappy career in education and what it says about school systems today.
Education
Opinion
A Teacher's Defense of Education Reform
Carl Finer, a middle school English teacher in Los Angeles, says that educators may be missing the opportunity to seize a transformational moment in education.
Teaching
Opinion
Teaching Secrets: Start With the Exit Ticket
An instructional coach discusses how exit cards can help teachers determine what students know and redirect their instruction accordingly.
Education
CTQ Collaboratory
Mindful Moments: Teaching Students Self-Awareness
Teacher Brett Bohstedt discusses a program he created to teach mindfulness to students using breathing, body awareness, and positivity.
Education
Opinion
Using Writing to Combat Bullying and Cliques
When a middle school class began to exclude certain students, teacher David Rockower used writing to help students express their feelings and come up with solutions to rebuild the classroom community.
Professional Development
Opinion
What Works in Writing Instruction
Educator Leslie Laud says that evidence-based practices for teaching writing, including the use of formative-assessment techniques, can dramatically improve students' skills.
Teaching Profession
CTQ Collaboratory
Developing Teacher Leadership for the Long Haul
Author, teacher, and former community organizer Larry Ferlazzo offers techniques for developing teachers' leadership potential, which he says is a key strategy for improving schools.
Education
CTQ Collaboratory
Breaking Out of Math-Class Monotony
Too much routine in math class can breed disengagement. Teacher Cossondra George offers seven ideas for teachers looking to break out of a math rut.
Teaching Profession
Opinion
How Mentoring a Student-Teacher Got Me Through the Five-Year Itch
Feeling burnout creeping in, a 5th year teacher decided to mentor a student-teacher in the hopes that it would rejuvenate her practice. She describes the many ways it worked.
Teaching Profession
CTQ Collaboratory
The Seven Verbs of Teacher Leadership
Wendi Pillars discusses what it means to be a teacher leader through the action words that define the role to her.
Teaching Profession
CTQ Collaboratory
Looping: An Investment in Students
A middle school teacher who looped with a class for three years in a row says the practice boosted student learning and changed her professional life for the better.