Now that the school year is underway, I want to provide some support for parents who are seeking to build better relationships with their children’s teachers. We know that school districts are still struggling with family engagement. School district leaders invest in family engagement primarily if not solely through Title I Part A. These federal…
It’s Hispanic Heritiage & Awareness Month ! As I acknowledge, educate, and embrace this culture, I want public schools to do more. I want public schools to stop doing what we do best when it comes to cultural awareness months which is celebrate with foods and dance. I want us to actually teach, embrace, and…
The role of Assistant Principals is rewarding, but it’s a hard road. Trust me; I know. As a former school administrator who handled discipline, the job is beneficial to parents and students when the school and district have adopted a restorative justice driven behavior and discipline model. Unfortunately, many of public school districts don’t invest…
Welcome to the EduVerse with ProfessorJBA. Here’s what I want to say to parents and parent/family advocates. Your voices matter, and we need you. Advocacy isn’t easy work, so thank you for everything you’re doing on behalf of children. As an advocate for families and children, I know the barriers parent advocates face. One common…
The new trend in our society has been around improving self care awareness and providing resources. Life coaches have become essential parts of our every day lives. For teachers, many times, instructional coaches also become life coaches. Parents need to know that many issues with lessons, curriculum, and instruction can be worked out with the…
If you say flexible learning models to the average person, they are going to ask, “What does that even mean?” To be honest, there are educators who aren’t well versed and familiar with what flexible learning models are and what they could potentially grow to be. I believe, flexible learning models are an intricate part…
I recently spoke with middle and high school students about year round options. As a veteran teacher, I believe it’s important to have the voices of students in conversations when we rethink the way we do school, especially with calendar development. One student leader, 8th grade student Jacori Houston of the Students for Equity group…
As a special education teacher, I refer to students who have been identified and labeled by the American educational system as students in need of special education services as exceptional learners. To be quite honest, I believe all students are exceptional learners and benefit from the art of co-teaching, but that’s another article and conversation…
Over this summer, many teachers have been spending a lot of time with family, loved ones and most importantly pondering on if they want to return to the classroom this school year. Teachers are simply tired of returning to schools and school districts that aren’t leading by example. We often hear of pay increases, poor…
Summer vacation is needed for students, staff, and teachers. Period. In fact, I believe that summer vacation should be longer. I wish school would start after Labor Day and end in June right before Father’s Day. If you’re a teacher or non annual employee within the school system, you know how important a break…