To encourage dialogue and reflection about our own paths of learning and growth over the past year, our question for the week is: When thinking back on 2023, what have you learned about yourself and how have you grown as a learner? Marking Progress (Week of 1/1/24) (This is an anonymous Google Form)
Blake's Guiding Lights
Our Students
Blake's Core Values: Respect, Responsibility, Resourcefulness, Reflection
Our Essential Question: How can we cultivate and curate the progression of student learning and growth?
Our Mission: Blake Middle School believes in a living mission statement, based on the concept that our community seeks and respects knowledge, integrity, character, wisdom, and the willingness to adapt to a continually evolving world.
The most important attitude that can be formed is that of desire to go on learning. - John Dewey
You cannot teach today the same way you did yesterday to prepare students for tomorrow. - John Dewey
Happy New Year! I come back to these words each new year (both in September for the beginning of school) and in January as they provide both solace and inspiration for what lies ahead…
- Share a success from the 2023 calendar year
- Share a hope you have for the 2024 calendar year
Some Year-End Lists and Reflections, Predictions
ALL 16 END-OF-YEAR & EDUCATION-RELATED BEST LISTS IN ONE PLACE!
by Larry Ferlazzo (@larryferlazzo)
This list is always my 'first stop' for reflections upon the year. Ferlazzo is a prolific writer, reader, archivist, and blogger of 'all things education' and this link has over 15 lists, from content-specific 'best of' to recommendations to predictions for 2024. I recommend bookmarking this site.
The Best Resources On Instruction In 2023 – Part Two | Larry Ferlazzo's Websites of the Day…
by Larry Ferlazzo (@larryferlazzo)
Educational Leadership's Top 10 of 2023
By Jessica Comola in ASCD
A look back at the magazine’s most popular articles from each issue over the last year…These articles aim to provide valuable perspectives and equip educators with actionable strategies to enhance their practice. Join us in reviewing ongoing challenges, celebrating school successes, and gaining inspiration for the educational journey ahead.
ASCD’s Most Popular Blog Posts of 2023
Compiled by Emma Hii in ASCD
2023 Social and Emotional Learning Year in Review - CASEL
Compiled by CASEL Staff
Reflecting on the past year, the word that springs to mind is impact. Despite continued challenges to education, politics, and our collective well-being, 2023 was most notable for the many educators, researchers, policy leaders, parents, and students who made a real impact on the lives of young people.
Innovations in research and implementation deepened the scope and effectiveness of SEL. The circle of SEL advocates expanded among all who care about the future of youth. And youth and education leaders accelerated SEL efforts and fueled commitment to face the challenges ahead.
2023 in Review, From Your Point of View | Edutopia
by Paige Tutt, Andrew Boryga, Sarah Gonser in Edutopia
This year, we’re trying something new. Normally, at the end of the year, we round up our most popular articles, videos, teacher blogs, and social media content and write an article highlighting the top performers.
In schools and classrooms, of course, the sum of a year is far greater than a top-10 list of best articles.
So to wrap up 2023, we’re taking a look at the big themes that emerged in your comments and conversations across our channels. We’re digging into the ideas and solutions that you—teachers, administrators, counselors, and other school staff—praised and critiqued. We’re reviewing where you told us to do better and examining the stories, blogs, quotes, and clips we published that you shared with colleagues thousands—and sometimes millions—of times over because they resonated with you and your school community.
Here are nine big themes and conversations that lit up our channels this year.
The Teaching Profession in 2023 (in Charts)
by Madeline Will in Education Week
Teaching in 2023 was not without its challenges—but there were also bright spots.vTeachers generally reported feeling happier and more satisfied at work after the turmoil of the last few years. But stress levels remained high, as teachers worked hard to catch students up academically while also attending to their social-emotional needs. Expanded access to artificial intelligence posed new challenges—and opportunities—or educators this year. Also, political tensions and debates about race, sexual orientation, and gender identity have continued to infiltrate school communities, with community members and provocateurs challenging more books than ever in classroom and school libraries.
The 10 Most Significant Education Studies of 2023
by Youki Terada and Stephen Merrill in Edutopia
For those of us hoping for a quiet, back-to-normal kind of year, the research coming out of 2023 might disappoint. A rising tide of teenage mental health issues sent researchers scurrying for answers, and the sudden ascendance of AI posed a new threat to codes of academic conduct and caused some educators to forecast the end of teaching as we know it (we’re here to dispel that myth).
There was plenty of good news in the mix—and fascinating news, too. Neuroscientists continued to push the envelope on mapping the human brain, using cutting-edge technology to get a sneak peek at the “brain synchrony” between students and teachers as they learn about complex topics, and a comprehensive review of social and emotional learning confirmed, once again, that there’s no substitute for caring, welcoming school environments.
Finally, we did our due diligence and unearthed classroom strategies that can make a big difference for students, from the use of math picture books to a better, more humane way to incorporate tests and games of knowledge into your classroom activities.
What Teachers Were Reading This Year: Top 10 Stories
by Stacey Decker in Education Week
What was top of mind for teachers in 2023? A scan of the most popular stories among teachers on edweek.org reveals a few major topics.
Teachers were interested in ways to improve math and reading instruction, while also navigating professional struggles. Stories on burnout, stress, and disrespect made the list of top stories this year. Rounding out the list is a roundup of the buzzwords teachers hate the most.
(The ranking of the list is based on a combination of how many people read the story, how much time they spent reading it, and the engagement it generated on social media.)
Through EdWeek’s Lens: Our Top Photos of the Year
by Jaclyn Borowski in Education Week
In 2023, Education Week photographers crossed the country visiting classrooms and working with educators doing noteworthy work in the field.
If there’s a trend amongst the images from the last year, it’s connection. Teachers connecting with students, school leaders connecting with teachers, students connecting with themselves and their environments.
Pictured here is an inside look at some of the connections and relationships that are the foundation of K-12 education.
100 Best Education Blogs in 2024 for Educators and Teachers
The best Education blogs from thousands of blogs on the web and ranked by traffic, social media followers, domain authority & freshness.
2023 in Review
by Josh Brake
My favorite essays from this year
My 2023 (and 2022) Failing Report
by AJ Juliani (@ajjuliani)
Today I’m continuing my annual tradition (I missed 2017 and 2022, typical fail) where I share my failings, and what I’ve learned from them, publicly on this blog. I’m hoping this can do a tiny part to change a culture of education that still denounces risk-taking and help to shape it into one that supports and celebrates it as my students did during that 20% Project.
Some ‘Big Picture’ Posts
Growth Mindset Theory: What's the Actual Evidence?
by Scott Barry Kaufman
…the latest evidence clearly shows that simply holding a growth mindset isn’t as impactful as it has been made out to be, and that context matters a lot.
In my view, it’s much better to have a growth motivation than a growth mindset. (In fact, we focus on growth motivation rather than growth mindset in self-actualization coaching). Sure, you can use your growth mindset to achieve a goal like getting into a more prestigious college than your friend Johnny or becoming a breakdancing chef, but were those even the right goals for you? And were they even worthy goals?
I have argued elsewhere that it’s time for a personal growth mindset. The psychologist Carol Ryff argues that the person with a high drive for personal growth “has a feeling of continued development, sees self as growing and expanding, is open to new experiences, has a sense of realizing his or her potential, sees improvement in self and behavior over time, [and] is changing in ways that reflect more self-knowledge and effectiveness."
In my view, each one of us has our own unique set of potentialities, and our current standardized testing climate is squelching all children from becoming who they really could be because of our school’s obsessive focus on intelligence
A personal growth mindset theory has deep implications not just for school but for every single human on this planet and their own sacred self-actualization journey. Let me be clear: Dr. Dweck is a legend in the field of psychology and her growth mindset theory has been incredibly influential in education. I just see so many more possibilities. Not just for education, but for all of us.
The Sky is Falling, or is it?
by Tom Whitby
Comfort zones have always been the greatest obstacles to change in our education system. Educators are programmed to do things a certain way and through the years they grow comfortable with what they do, and how they do it. For a long time there has been little pressure for major changes.
The need to stay relevant as an educator relies on the need for professional development. The quality and success of Professional Development in education depends on its leadership. Teachers often are self-motivated to seek PD on their own. This self-motivation has become part of the PD model. The introduction of ChatGPT however will affect almost every educator on every level. This is an industry-wide need.
Generative AI is not going away. Students can get access in many ways. The success of Chat GPT can be seen by how many tech platforms and applications are spending fortunes to include it in their products. There is no going back, or waiting for it to go away. It is not the pendulum in education reform we have all gotten used to. It is now with us and it will grow exponentially. The smart way to deal with it is to learn how best to incorporate it into teaching and learning. Embrace the change no matter how many comfort zones need to be shattered. Educators who are irrelevant will not serve their students well. The sky hasn’t fallen, but it may have awakened us to needed change. If we are to better educate our kids, we need first to better educate their educators.
Failure Is Hard But Not As Hard As Learning From It. Here’s How.
by Margie Warrell in Forbes
But the biggest barrier to milking every drop of learning failure holds is not its complexity, it’s us. It’s our reticence to look at our failures honestly and identify the causes. And then, to share our learning. Failing to learn from failure essentially is failing twice.
This is why those who ‘fail well’ aren’t driven by ego, but curiosity. Rather than glossing over or pointing fingers, they put failure under a microscope to examine it closely, looking at how they may have contributed to it, even inadvertently through their inaction. As I’ve discovered myself, sometimes our lack of courage to speak up and intervene in a timely way perpetuates a problem and magnifies the fallout.
Failure can be confronting and chip at our sense of identity. If we haven’t invested in the ‘inner work’ of dealing with our innermost insecurities and fears, we’re more vulnerable to them. Rather than relating to failure as an opportunity to grow, we err to blame or shame, pointing fingers outward or over-personalizing and internalizing ourselves as a failure. Shame and blame are two dysfunctional sides of the same coin.
In a world of rapid change, accelerating your learning rate buildings meaningful advantage....to enjoy more success, risk more failure but never let a failure go to waste.
Leverage Intrinsic Motivation to Teach Effectively in a World Permeated by AI
by Josh Brake
To say that there has been consternation in the world of education since ChatGPT burst onto the scene with great fanfare at the end of October of last year is an understatement. Since being released, AI tools like ChatGPT have quickly become the most talked about topic among the educators I know, with opinions running the gamut from terror and concern to excitement and curiosity.
While there are legitimate reasons behind both reactions, the more I think about it, the more I am convinced that the right response to AI is to double down on pedagogical practices that we know help students to learn: building strong relationships of trust between students and teachers, designing course material with clear learning objectives, engaging students in active learning, and emphasizing the underlying cognitive skills that we hope our students will master through our courses.
Anytime a new technology bursts on the scene it is likely to disrupt the status quo. We’ve certainly been seeing this happen with AI and tools like ChatGPT, BingAI Chat, and the recent release of GPT-4. It’s unlikely to stop anytime soon. New tools will certainly create disruption and force us to adapt. However, these tools are here to stay and our time is best spent on learning how to teach ourselves and our students to use them with wisdom rather than trying to avoid or ban them.
While the best pedagogical practices vary across different disciplines, instructors, and students, I think Daniel Pink’s Motivation 3.0 framework is a helpful foundation for building curriculum that is robust to the disruption of AI. Leaning into the three pillars of autonomy, mastery, and purpose gives us a good shot to successfully navigate the challenges of teaching and learning in a world permeated with artificial intelligence and helping our colleagues and students to do the same.
An Open Letter to Teachers Everywhere
by Rhonda Thomason in Learning for Justice
I want a revolution of hope. I want educators to seize a golden opportunity to rethink the nature and purpose of public education.
Imagine an educational system in which educators invoke standards of compassion, empathy, action and reason as they question the deep regularities that suppress achievement. Imagine the power of educators valuing dissent and affirming what students can achieve rather than magnifying what they can’t.
As an educator, I often skated on the edge of revolution and compliance. While compliance may secure careers and livelihoods, it can leave teachers depleted, students tested rather than taught and marginalized rather than empowered. Compliance feeds mediocrity. Boldness is a catalyst for grassroots revolution—a revolution that serves our students as they enter the challenges of a wonderful and sometimes cruel world.
May we become educators who seek out students’ experiences, interests and talents as a means of engagement, and may our passion empower those who have little power. Authentic caring is a powerful force, and it always is worth the cost.
Sampling of Responses from Last Week’s ‘Question of the Week’: What are the most important values in your life? How do they connect to your learning?
- Being level-headed when making decisions. I work hard to do a lot of research (including "opposing sources") while learning.
- Valuing and investing the present. Loving and learning.
- Integrity is an important value in my life. In my teaching and learning I am always seeking alignment with meaning and value for myself and my students.
- I think that the most important things to have in life besides critical needs like oxygen, water, and food, are fun and knowledge. These connect to learning because when you learn, you gain knowledge and fun and excitement keeps you engaged.
- My friends and family plus my dog.
- Family relationships are very important to me.
- My parents and family members are always there for me no matter what the situation is. If I'm struggling with friendships and I don't know how to handle it, they give me advice. They support me by helping me with homework when I need it. They love me when I'm happy and when I'm sad. And even when I'm mad. They understand me more than anyone else does. I am so thankful.
- Important values of life are being happy with your friends and family, this connects to your learning because they can support you!
My Annual Shares
5 Media Resolutions Every Family Should Make in 2019
by Caroline Knorr in Common Sense Media
Written and posted four years ago, Knorr’s advice for how families can try and make sense of the benefits and challenges that we all encounter and embrace with the media are worthy of reflection. Common Sense Media is a phenomenal resource and these resolutions hold meaning for educators and families alike - as we do each year, Katie and I will be reflecting upon them for our own household.
What do you remember from 2018? Did you share pics of your kid on Facebook? Did you sneak a peek at their texts with their friends? Did you yell at them to get off their devices? Did you watch a movie that made you both laugh (or cry)? Did they send you a text that filled your heart and reminded you of why you had kids in the first place? So much of our daily lives revolves around media and tech that we barely notice it anymore. But we should. Why? Because these moments are the stuff of life. And the way we use technology really matters.
The start of a new year is a perfect time to reflect on the role you want media and tech to play in your family's lives. After all, media and tech are just the enablers. Learning, connecting, growing -- even setting a positive example for your kids -- are where the real magic happens.
Help your kids become more aware of their own online time and help them take control of their use, too. You don't have to shut everything down. But really focus on what you're doing, when you're doing it, and why. The way you use media and tech has a huge influence on your kids, and you can be a great role model for using them mindfully.
To My 13-Year-Old, An iPhone Contract From Your Mom, With Love and To My 13-Year-Old, An iPhone Contract From Your Mom, With Love
by Janell Burley Hoffman in The Huffington Post
I share these posts each year and find that they resonate each time I come back to them. #18 is wonderful - 'You will mess up. I will take away your phone. We will sit down and talk about it. We will start over again. You and I, we are always learning. I am on your team. We are in this together.' As with many posts that hold meaning, we could substitute many 'gifts/possessions' for the 'iPhone' and the essence will ring true.
Every calendar year brings with it the anticipation of 'fresh' experiences - hope, concerns, obstacles, successes and other sentiments and actualities. It remains crucial to identify, recognize, and welcome them (a challenging task, especially when speaking from a personal standpoint!) with purpose, dedication, and optimism – all the while acknowledging that resolution may not always be immediate. Instead, our determination thrives and manifests in the shared commitment to evolve, educate, and grow together – a fundamental aspect of our mission and the core of our endeavors.
Each and every school day will bring tens of thousands of reasons to celebrate in schools across the country. - Bill Ivey
And the day came when the risk to remain tight in a bud was more painful than the risk it took to blossom. - Anais Nin
Many eyes go through the meadow, but few see the flowers. - Ralph Waldo Emerson
What if we realized the best way to ensure an effective educational system is not by standardizing our curricula and tests but by standardizing the opportunities available to all students? - Ibram X. Kendi
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Take care.
Nat