Accountability Practices During Independent Work Time
A 5th-grade teacher has just started small group instruction in the back of the classroom. He has set the expectation that the remainder of the class is to work in groups of 3-4 to collaboratively develop a solution to two math tasks. As he ushers those in his small group through work that is specific […]
Enhancing Student Engagement Through Individual Check-Ins: A Pathway to Student Ownership
When was the last time you met one-on-one with your students to discuss their academic progress? Could your students effectively articulate their strengths and areas for growth if questioned? If your responses lean towards infrequent or never, you might be overlooking a potent strategy for fostering student ownership of their learning journey. The National Institute […]
Leadership Confessions
Sometimes, the pressure for school leaders to know all the answers is overwhelming. Most of us have been taught that to be a good leader we have to lead from the front, never alongside and never behind those we serve. As a teacher, I would often tell my students, “I don’t know the answer to […]
The Power of Leader and Coach Alignment: A Step-by-Step Guide to Success
In schools across our country, instructional coaches work to ensure each of their teachers get the support they need to be successful for students. School leaders are uniquely positioned to provide structure and explicit coaching to these folks, to ensure coach effectiveness as well as their feedback alignment. The steps below support an intentional relationship […]
Critical Race Theory: There’s the Argument to Have, and How to Have the Argument
Recently, I joined a client’s (CT3) internal meeting to discuss Critical Race Theory (CRT). I was doing really well. Right until I started talking. First, some background on this group as context for why I wanted to be in this particular session. CT3 is an active anti-racism organization focused on transforming education, the team walks […]
It’s Black History Month. Sigh.
February is here, so the Black History Month ornaments are everywhere. Company statements on websites affirming their commitment to celebrating Black history. The Black History Month assignments where students have to select an inspiring Black person from “the list” and do “the report,” the best of which get read at “the program.” The endless name-checking […]
Still Living in “The Other America”
Seeking to write something poignant about him as we celebrate the King holiday always pales in comparison to Reverend Dr. Martin Luther King’s own eloquent words and clear-eyed analysis of the state of racial injustice in America. And though his words were written over fifty years ago, the fact that they are still relevant — […]
Critical Race Theory: The Argument to Have and How to Have It
Recently, I joined a client’s (CT3) internal meeting to discuss Critical Race Theory (CRT). I was doing really well. Right until I started talking. First, some background on this group as context for why I wanted to be in this particular session. CT3 is an active anti-racist organization focused on transforming education, the team walks towards […]
Juneteenth 2021
June 19, 2021 A year ago today, CT3 moved to honor Juneteenth as a holiday. We created space for our team members to engage in learning, collaboration, and action to acknowledge the oldest celebration that truly commemorates the end of slavery in our country. What a difference a year makes. Since March 2020, we have […]
The Verdict Is In
We heard the three guilty verdicts in the George Floyd murder case. Yesterday, April 21, all CT3 team members refrained from email, Zoom meetings, and work to reflect on the changes they could make (in their own actions and communities) to act against racism and actively commit to those changes. While it would have been […]
