Teacher Voice

Teaching Profession Opinion Solar Panels Electrify Student Success
In Temecula, California, Blaine Boyer uses solar panels, painted guitars, and dragon lizards, to teach STEM, motivate students, and plant the seeds of adulthood in reluctant continuation school students.
Charles Taylor Kerchner, March 2, 2017
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9 min read
Federal Opinion David Cohen on Shifting the Perception of Public Education
National Board certified teacher Kristoffer Kohl talks with another teacher and author, David Cohen, about his new book and the implications of Betsy DeVos as U.S. education secretary.
Contributing Blogger, February 27, 2017
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8 min read
Accountability Opinion Three Lessons From a Teacher-Powered Schools Conference
At more than 100 schools, teachers have gained substantial autonomy over the learning program, working conditions, personnel, and other domains. Here's what I learned by spending a weekend with them.
Charles Taylor Kerchner, February 2, 2017
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5 min read
Teaching Profession Opinion Are Microcredentials the Next iPhone?
Teachers have been earning credits and credentials for generations, so the claim that new microcredentials will change professional development is likely to be met with some skepticism. But as Kristoffer Kohl writes they may be the next big thing.
Contributing Blogger, January 26, 2017
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5 min read
Teaching Profession Opinion Teacher Networks: Here, There, and Everywhere
Hierarchies are not going away anytime soon. But the Internet facilitates network forms of organizing, and they are growing and increasing in power and influence, Kristoffer Kohl and Charles Taylor Kerchner write.
Charles Taylor Kerchner, December 15, 2016
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3 min read
Teaching Profession Video Oklahoma Teacher of the Year: Why He Would Leave Job He Loves
Shawn Sheehan admits it: he is a math nerd. He loves math, and loves teaching it to 9th graders at Norman High School outside Oklahoma City. Sheehan is Oklahoma’s Teacher of the Year, and has spent the last year visiting schools all over the state. This top teacher says he saw schools struggling to make do; reduced budgets have led to overcrowded classrooms, teacher layoffs and in some districts, four day school weeks. So Sheehan has joined dozens of other educators running for the Oklahoma legislature, hoping to boost education funding in the state. He explains why he is willing to leave the job he loves.
October 11, 2016
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2:39
States Video If You Can't Beat 'Em, Join 'Em: Teachers Run for Office
This election season, a record number of Oklahoma teachers are running for state legislature positions. While current lawmakers argue education has received more than its fair share of dollars, the state's sharp budget cuts in per-pupil spending are the highest in the nation and have resulted in teacher layoffs, overcrowded classrooms, and, in some cases, a four-day school week. This "teacher caucus," which includes Oklahoma's Teacher of the Year, is looking to improve education more by legislating from inside the capitol rather than lobbying from outside. Education Week Correspondent Lisa Stark explores these issues in this report for the PBS NewsHour. This video aired on PBS NewsHour on October 4, 2016.
October 6, 2016
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8:07
School & District Management Opinion Can 'Deeper Learning' Drive Teacher Power?
Historically, the idea of teacher power has been associated with faculty running schools. A new report links teacher influence and providing deeper-learning experiences.
Charles Taylor Kerchner, June 13, 2016
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4 min read
Teaching Profession Opinion Why Teacher-Powered Schools Are Picking Up Momentum
Teachers in some schools are exercising substantial authority over curriculum, budgeting, and evaluation, writes, Barnett Berry. And their number is increasing.
Contributing Blogger, December 21, 2015
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5 min read
Teacher Preparation Opinion Certification, Genuine Teacher Leadership, and Power Struggles
When authentic, experienced teacher leaders step out of their boxes to speak about education issues, they always run the risk of stepping on the toes--or in the limelight--of someone above them in the pecking order. Simply expressing a widely shared viewpoint feels like subordination to some school leaders. When teachers have a national platform and thousands of readers or fans--when their voice and leadership are elevated--they become a threat.
Nancy Flanagan, November 3, 2015
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4 min read
Teaching Profession Opinion Mr. Broad, Charters Aren't the Only Answer for LAUSD
If I were Eli Broad, I would go into those schools and say to those teachers, "Let's work together to create a school that you would be proud to teach at and that students would love to attend."
Phylis Hoffman, October 6, 2015
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3 min read
School Choice & Charters Opinion Massive Charter School Expansion in Los Angeles
Right now UTLA has almost declared "war" on Eli Broad and I can't say that I blame them. Eli Broad and all the other philanthropists would do well to remember the origins of charter schools - to put teachers in charge of running schools.
Phylis Hoffman, September 21, 2015
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3 min read
Professional Development Opinion Ideas for Tackling the Teacher Shortage
A mid-western farmer's daughter raised me, and she had a proverb for everything. But my personal favorite, and one that she repeated to me time and time again when I became a teacher is, "You can catch more flies with honey than you can with vinegar." In other words we all respond better to praise than we do criticism. I think the same thing can be said when looking at a looming teacher shortage.
Phylis Hoffman, September 7, 2015
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3 min read
Classroom Technology Opinion The Dangerous and Harmful Influence of Teacher Bloggers
Most teachers who blog do so to share their well-honed opinions and experiences with being the object of policy, rather than partners in creation of the policies that shape their professional work. A lack of firsthand information from the front-line school workers--teachers and school leaders--is what has gotten us into the policy mess in which we're currently swimming.
Nancy Flanagan, September 3, 2015
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3 min read
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