Peter DeWitt is the founder and CEO of the Instructional Leadership Collective. A former public school teacher and principal, he now facilitates professional learning in the United States and abroad based on the content of many of his best-selling educational books. Former superintendent Michael Nelson is a frequent contributor to this opinion blog. He is the co-leader of ILC and a former superintendent who has been an educator for more than 40 years.
Education
Opinion
Differentiation: Attainable or Somewhere Over the Rainbow?
Saying "data" in conjunction with student learning often feels sterile and uncaring. However, data is much more than just numbers, and you can learn more about it in this blog.
Education
Opinion
Collaboration Isn't New, But It Doesn't Mean You're Doing It Right
Many teachers and leaders collaborate. It's not a new word. However, just because they do it doesn't mean they do it right. Here are some things to think about when it comes to collaboration.
Professional Development
Opinion
Are Some Teachers Uncoachable?
Deciding someone is uncoachable is very complicated. It involves thinking about how the coach approaches the teacher.
Education
Opinion
What Was the Greatest Rivalry In Sports? Why Does It Still Matter?
The movie Hidden Figures exposed us all to a piece of our own history where women played an integral part. A new book reminds us of an important moment in sports where women were center stage, and more students need to know about it.
Education
Opinion
Have School Leaders Become Too Enabled?
We ask students to be self-directed learners and take risks, but often leaders and teachers don't take those same type of risks and seem to want the answer before they really know the question to answer.
Education
Opinion
Makerspaces: A Tool That Can Transform Learning
Makerspaces bring students into a world where they can curate their own learning and yet many schools aren't on board with having them. Here are some reasons why schools should change that mindset.
Education
Opinion
Do the 'Grammar Police' Lack Communication Skills?
We all have them in our lives. They have spent years perfecting their craft on correcting the way they...and everyone else around them...talk. And they want to be able to use their grammar intelligence on anyone they can. We have bigger fish to fry.
Education
Opinion
District Leaders Should Get Out of Their Office!
District leaders have long had the reputation for sitting in their ivory towers and making all the rules. Here are a few ways one district leader is shattering that myth.
Education
Opinion
Standards-Based Grading Made My Kid Average
Standards-based grading is sending a message to some parents that their children are average. This comes as a shock to those parents who have always heard their children exceeded expectations with traditional grading. We are at a crossroads with grading, and we should be clear on what standards-based grading really means.
Education
Opinion
Why Can't Teachers Make Decisions on Their Own?
Too often leaders don't involve teachers in the decision making process and then get mad at them for always asking what it is that leaders want them to do when it comes to any decision at all. Research shows that when teachers are authentically involved, the solutions to problems get stronger.
Education
Opinion
What Are the Five Formative Success Skills Every Student Needs?
What are the formative five skills for success and why do they matter to students? Find out here.
School & District Management
Opinion
7 Traits of Highly Ineffective Leaders
Unfortunately there are leaders who have the 7 habits of highly ineffective leaders. Read here to see if you have any of them.
Education
Opinion
When Measuring School Climate, Context Is Key
As states finalize new school accountability plans under ESSA, measures of school climate have received increasing attention. Many states have included school climate as a "non-academic" indicator of school quality in their recently drafted plans. But what does that mean?
Education
Opinion
That Moment We Decide We Can't Teach a Student
There is a moment when we're teaching that a struggling student becomes the student we no longer think we can reach. It's different for all of us, and it depends on our self-efficacy (.63), the climate of the school in which we teach, and the accountability we face from our school leaders.