Transformational Teaching
Al Boerema began the conversation by asking the panel members to reflect on the tension between the standards/accountability movement that has taken […]
Welcome Back
To everything there is a season, and a time to every purpose under heaven . . . —Ecclesiastes 3:1 Welcome back! Now […]
Giving 110 Percent and Other Lies, or Dreaming the Impossible Dream
Gord Winkle was nervous. When he got nervous, he tended to eat. Since he was quite spectacularly nervous, he was eating a […]
Professional Learning Communities
On June 3, 2012, Al Boerema introduced the issue for discussion: It is becoming clear that the development of professional learning communities […]
Sowing the Unknown
We will continue learning through living tonight and tomorrow and the day after, no matter what we do or where we go. […]
A Dangerous Teacher
Earth’s crammed with heaven, And every common bush afire with God; But only he who sees, takes off his shoes, The rest […]
Moles for Monrovia, Puppets for Panama City, Kringle for Christmas, or Service for Springfield?
Music teacher Carrie Wellema pushed through the door to the staff room and sighed. The final bell had just rung and she […]
Of Gourds, Volunteers, and Lifelong Learning
Last autumn, my well-ordered garden kept producing, even after most of the crop was declared “finished.” Despite my springtime efforts to create […]
Going Pro: Notes for New Teachers
You don’t need a calendar to know that school is in full swing—footballs are flying and Mother Nature is spinning her color […]