Opinion Blog

Finding Common Ground

With Peter DeWitt & Michael Nelson

A former K-5 public school principal turned author, presenter, and leadership coach, Peter DeWitt provides insights and advice for education leaders. Former superintendent Michael Nelson is a frequent contributor. Read more from this blog.


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.

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School & District Management Opinion 4 Obstacles to Consider When Flipping Leadership
Flipping leadership is a philosophy and a practice, but there are 4 things leaders should know before they do it.
Peter DeWitt, December 7, 2014
5 min read
Education Opinion The Curriculum Wars: What Should All Children Learn?
What should all students be expected to learn? The Common Core set out to level the playing field, but in many states different schools are doing different things. Level playing field...or more of the same?
Peter DeWitt, December 4, 2014
2 min read
Education Opinion Is It Time to Get Rid of Grades?
There is a No Grades movement building across the US. What is it all about?
Peter DeWitt, December 2, 2014
4 min read
Education Opinion Do Schools Really Need Principals?
Do we really need principals...because some schools are moving forward without them.
Peter DeWitt, November 30, 2014
4 min read
Education Opinion Fostering Literacy In One Fell Stroke...
Literacy Coach Lisa Dolan, today's guest blogger, learned a lot more about the power of literacy when her 7 year old son suffered a stroke.
Lisa Dolan, November 28, 2014
2 min read
Education Opinion Is It Time to Disconnect?
Educators are running in numerous different directions, doing more with less. With that comes an opportunity cost. It's time to disconnect.
Peter DeWitt, November 25, 2014
3 min read
Education Opinion Monologue Or Dialogue: How Do You Lead?
Ignoring the voices of the people we work with, especially the ones who do not agree with us, means we are missing out on better ideas because of the collective power of the group.
Peter DeWitt, November 23, 2014
4 min read
Education Opinion Implementing Best Practice Overnight Is Not Best Practice
Many leaders get excited about the implementation of something new, but often forget to bring their school stakeholders along with them. Try these tips before implementation.
Ross Cooper, November 20, 2014
5 min read
Education Opinion Some Bonds Must Be Forged
Sometimes our greatest bonds with students happen with our toughest to reach students. Today's guest blog by Jon Harper explains why.
Jon Harper, November 18, 2014
5 min read
Education Opinion 1 Reason to Give the Growth Mindset a Chance
Too many of our students leave us thinking we didn't care, and having a growth mindset can help change that.
Peter DeWitt, November 16, 2014
5 min read
Education Opinion 2 Reasons Why Teachers Have It Tougher Than You Think
Teachers help students through some very tough times, and yet many people outside of the profession believe teachers have it easy. They have it tougher than you may think, and here are two reasons why.
Peter DeWitt, November 13, 2014
4 min read
Education Opinion 3 Reasons You Need Twitter More Than It Needs You!
I know. Every teacher on Twitter is pushing it on to you. Here are 3 reasons you need Twitter more than it needs you.
Peter DeWitt, November 11, 2014
3 min read
Education Opinion 4 Obstacles to Implementation
Implementation is often a dirty word, but it doesn't have to be. There are 4 obstacles to a good implementation.
Peter DeWitt, November 9, 2014
3 min read
Education Opinion 5 Reasons We Need Instructional Coaches
Instructional coaches can have a huge impact on student learning, and here are five reasons why.
Peter DeWitt, November 6, 2014
4 min read