Because the population of today's schools is so multicultural, teachers may find a variety of religious beliefs represented in their classrooms, from Islam, Judaism, and Christianity to Jehovah's Witnesses, Hinduism, atheism, and many others. All of which makes the season of December a little tricky to navigate, even when one is teaching "the…

After the oft-repeated three Rs (reduce, reuse, recycle) comes the lesser-known but equally important fourth R: rot. In this case, rot means compost. Classrooms, schools, and school districts can use a number of methods to establish a compost program. The finished product is a valuable soil amendment that adds fertility to local farmland, school…

Transporting students with special needs can be a costly proposition. However, school business officials can help mitigate those costs by focusing on four specific areas: relationships, information sharing, safety, and time lines. Although these areas may seem a bit far removed from the numbers we love to crunch, they do affect your…

Consistency in the title, problem, purpose, and research question improve the logic and transparency of research. When these components of research are aligned research design and planning are more coherent and research reports are more readable. This article reviews the process for checking for and improving consistency. Numerous examples of…

One of the toughest battles a music teacher can fight is the battle to stay organized. Getting organized--and staying that way--is no easy task for a busy music educator. However, for the sake of music teachers' success in the classroom, and for their sanity, organization is crucial. The author has spoken with several educators about how they keep…

Drawing on the author's experience as director of a long-lived school-university partnership, this essay describes how one such organization can "do it right" and enhance the development of teacher leadership in schools. It also provides a cautionary tale about how that same organization can "do it wrong" and achieve the…

Teachers may be apprehensive about commissioning, and frequently directors do not see it as realistic for their programs. It took the author a while to commission a piece, even though he is often on the composer side. The author asserts that there's already plenty of high-quality literature out there to keep teachers busy, but a bigger factor is…

As governing boards have become more sophisticated and polished in their oversight of colleges and universities, they have also become more intentional in the way they organize themselves to meet their missions. Some boards have evolved entirely new structures. Even within the parameters of fairly traditional constructs, many boards have made…

A field trip for preschool children can be a rewarding experience, but if not properly planned and executed it can be a legal nightmare for teachers and owners. This article will take teachers through a hypothetical outing. If one spots mistakes before the authors highlight them, great, and if not, one will learn some fine points during this…

Early childhood professionals can build partnerships with families that allow them together to guide the learning and development of the children whose lives they share. In this article, the author shares a system of indicators in professional practice that might be helpful in building partnerships with families that enable the full effectiveness…

The New Mexico Public Schools Facilities Authority (NM-PSFA) is a relatively small state agency (50 staff members) that manages the allocation of funding for public school facilities in the state while assisting school districts and state-chartered charter schools in facility planning, construction, and maintenance. Like the majority of other…

Response to Intervention (RtI) has gained increased attention with the reauthorization of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Improvement Act. Since RtI was introduced at the policy level as a mechanism for use in the learning disability identification process, much of the implementation work has focused on this application. School-based…

This is the second brief in a series, "Building a Post-Care Service System in Child Welfare: Lessons Learned from the Frontlines of Implementation Science in Catawba County." This brief describes how implementation science principles informed technical assistance strategies used in Catawba County to support the full and effective use of…

Studies of high-performing schools, where all students learn more than similar students in other schools, show common design elements. These elements are comprehensive, affecting the whole school, and include: (1) Clear mission guiding daily activities; (2) High, unyielding expectations that all students will learn; (3) Frequent monitoring of…

This book provides a valuable balance between what one must know and what one must do to turn around low-performing schools. The 3-E framework simplifies this complex process by focusing resources on the environment, the executive, and the execution of the turnaround plan. Central to each of these components is a spotlight on the values supporting…