A Principal's Reflections

JUNE 23, 2024

When asked to do the same thing at the same time in the same way, it is pretty much a fact that a few people will thrive, some will get by, and others will struggle. While this notion challenges the status quo and how things have been done traditionally in education, it is the truth. The question now becomes, what are we going to do about it?

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Tradition Humanities Education 497

A Principal's Reflections

DECEMBER 18, 2022

Unlike the days when there was no Internet, anyone can provide deeper context or supporting examples to supplement and piece of traditional written work. By evergreen I mean that the content withstands the test of time. If you want to see these posts, I have curated them on this Pinterest board.

Leadership 538

Leadership Educational Technology Tradition Cultures 538

A Principal's Reflections

DECEMBER 4, 2022

While no one can deny that some exciting changes have taken place in schools across the globe, the reality is that traditional schooling remains firmly in place. The question we should all be asking is why traditional schooling is still perpetuated in light of what we experienced and learned during the pandemic.

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Tradition Cultures Teaching Education 475

A Principal's Reflections

FEBRUARY 11, 2024

While the Internet drove the encyclopedia as we knew it to irrelevance, emerging technologies are having the same exact impact on traditional schooling. The time is now to evolve beyond traditional roles, fostering competencies that empower students to proactively navigate and shape the future.

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Tradition Critical Thinking High School Research 495

A Principal's Reflections

JUNE 9, 2024

Here is the synopsis: Not Just One Way Are you an educator stuck in the traditional teaching or leadership mold, yearning for a spark to reignite your passion? Where the rigid structures of traditional education give way to flexible, student-centered learning environments.

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Tradition Critical Thinking Cultures Leadership 420

A Principal's Reflections

DECEMBER 3, 2023

Physical Learning Spaces The traditional classroom setup, with rows of desks facing forward, may not be the most conducive environment for personalized learning. Beyond the traditional confines of classrooms, the outdoors provides a dynamic setting that stimulates curiosity, creativity, and a sense of exploration.

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Tradition Library Interactive Learning Research 463

A Principal's Reflections

OCTOBER 18, 2020

It is also vital to think about moving from traditional requirements such as the school calendar, seat time, and Carnegie Units (first rolled out in 1906, by the way) to competency models. Now, this is not to say that some “traditional” methods won’t still have value.

Pedagogy 546

Pedagogy K-12 Tradition Humanities 546

A Principal's Reflections

AUGUST 23, 2020

Tasks and assignments can be completed over a specific time period using strategies addressed in this post as well as more traditional options such as research papers or projects. They can also free up the teacher to work with those learners who need targeted instruction or extra help.

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Pedagogy Elementary School Tradition Teaching 545

Cult of Pedagogy

APRIL 13, 2025

The question itself highlighted the limitations of traditional grading, a system that has been shown to be problematic by so many people in education circles but still remains as the most common way schools manage and assess student learning. “They’re really respectful. They’re really curious.

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Artifacts Tradition Psychology Critical Thinking 179

A Principal's Reflections

OCTOBER 24, 2021

While an array of successful strategies associated with more traditional methodologies still have value today, we need to rethink how and when they are used. SEL There are reasons that these learners have not experienced success in traditional education settings.

Pedagogy 508

Pedagogy Project-Based Learning Leadership Tradition 508

A Principal's Reflections

OCTOBER 15, 2023

Traditional classroom-based education often constrains students with fixed schedules and locations. Not all students thrive in a traditional classroom setting. In the digital age, knowledge is constantly evolving, and traditional education models may need help to keep pace with these changes.

Global Perspectives 465

Global Perspectives Tradition Interactive Learning Critical Thinking 465

A Principal's Reflections

SEPTEMBER 13, 2020

Remote teachers also need time, which is why having them follow a traditional school day schedule doesn't make much sense, especially when asynchronous tasks can be employed, freeing up much needed minutes or even hours. Some set aside a half-day. Administrators can even cut any non-instructional duties to free up teachers.

Pedagogy 544

Pedagogy Cultures Tradition Leadership 544

A Principal's Reflections

MAY 15, 2022

Traditional does not always mean better, regardless of the fact that it might have worked for you or your stakeholders. In order to be our best selves—and best serve our students—what we embrace can and should evolve over time. Take a look at the chart below to see where there is an opportunity to think differently and grow.

Tradition 536

Tradition Teaching Education 536

A Principal's Reflections

OCTOBER 29, 2023

In today's fast-paced world, traditional one-size-fits-all educational approaches need to be updated. Unlike traditional delayed feedback, which can lead to confusion and frustration, real-time feedback allows students to correct mistakes, clarify doubts, and adjust their approach instantly.

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Tradition History Education 453

A Principal's Reflections

DECEMBER 27, 2020

Personalized learning quickly became a focus area based on impressive outcomes from some of the schools I had been working within in an on-going and job-embedded fashion. It is always an honor to share the incredible work of educators in the field. Everything changed in March, not just for me, but the entire world.

Pedagogy 528

Pedagogy Leadership Tradition Cultures 528

A Principal's Reflections

JANUARY 22, 2023

Up until this point, my thinking was relatively traditional and as such, so was the culture of my school. I remember vividly as a young principal when I started to drink the “edtech” Kool-Aid many years ago. It represented a true turning point in how I thought about change in education.

EdTech 518

EdTech Cultures Leadership Tradition 518

A Principal's Reflections

AUGUST 22, 2021

Now I am not saying these gestures aren’t effective, but if you can go with a more traditional option the act of kindness can be amplified. The note David wrote would not have had the same impact or value if it had been in the form of an email or text. In our busy lives, we often overlook the little things.

Tradition 546

Tradition Humanities 546

A Principal's Reflections

OCTOBER 3, 2021

The traditional goal of any education system is to prepare students for either college or careers. Over the years, I would say that while this view still holds value, the context has changed dramatically. The world has radically evolved as a result of constantly advancing technology and the COVID-19 pandemic.

Leadership 521

Leadership Tradition Education 521

A Principal's Reflections

JULY 18, 2021

What you will see are traditional elements of effective instruction at the front and back end. We need to get past the perception that this is just an "elementary" strategy. To assist in setting up station rotation, I have created a pedagogical framework, which you can view below.

Elementary School 546

Elementary School Tradition High School Education 546

A Principal's Reflections

APRIL 16, 2023

Flexible Use of Time In many cases, digital tools provide an asynchronous response and inquiry platform, which is impossible in traditional brick-and-mortar classrooms. Whether written or video-based, online discussions offer diverse perspectives, collaborative opportunities, and time for contemplation and planning before responding.

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Artifacts Pedagogy Tradition Teaching 526

Sapiens

NOVEMBER 12, 2024

Farmers planted grains to make traditional dishes such as starchy, mild fufu and thick, warm tuo zaafi , and households stored surplus tubers in their wattle-and-daub homes to nourish them throughout the year. Logan, now a professor at Northwestern University, started working at Banda as a graduate student in 2007.

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Oral History Archaeology Heritage History 141

A Principal's Reflections

JUNE 3, 2018

As a supplement to traditional discussion strategies technology can serve as a catalyst to increase engagement by getting more learners actively involved during lessons. Our results indicate that peer discussion enhances understanding, even when none of the students in a discussion group originally knows the right answer.

Pedagogy 415

Pedagogy Tradition Research Humanities 415

Sapiens

FEBRUARY 26, 2025

I (Mariam) grew up in a Pakistani diaspora family, where I observed roti-making as an organizing tradition of my home culture, but one that remained a gender-exclusive space for girls, mothers, and aunties. We both started our lifelong studies of roti at a young ageboth as a frequent eater and observer of the food. where I teach.

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Cultures History Tradition Archiving 129

The Hechinger Report

NOVEMBER 11, 2024

A cornerstone of this effort has been what is called “corequisite support,” which is designed to address the shortcomings of traditional remediation. More than 20 states have adopted corequisite support to supplement or replace traditional approaches to remediation. Subscribe to our free biweekly Higher Education newsletter.

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Tradition Research High School Education 116

A Principal's Reflections

AUGUST 8, 2021

Below I have taken the traditional RTI pyramid of supports and added how personalized learning strategies could be implemented to ensure better learners are getting what they need. Successful personalization hinges on the use of high-agency strategies such as voice, choice, path, pace, and place throughout a lesson or unit of study.

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Pedagogy Middle School Leadership Tradition 545

TeachThought

SEPTEMBER 4, 2024

15 Alternatives To Report Cards In The K-12 Classroom by TeachThought Staff Like lunchboxes (or brown paper sacks), field trips, and textbooks, report cards are iconic–symbols of traditional classrooms and traditional approaches to education. In its name, the purpose of a ‘report card’ is plain enough: to report on progress.

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Critical Thinking K-12 Tradition Teaching 306

A Principal's Reflections

JUNE 13, 2021

A shift to remote learning and social distancing forced schools to revert back to more traditional arrangements, but new opportunities came in the form of virtual environments consisting of vibrant bitmoji classrooms, breakout rooms, purposeful use of technology, and the effective use of learning management systems.

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Tutoring Pedagogy Library Cultures 536

Anthropology.net

NOVEMBER 7, 2024

The vibrant shades offered by ochre became instrumental in creating artwork that spanned the boundaries of the Stone Age, preserving a tradition that endures in many modern cultures worldwide. The enduring tradition of ochre use in Eswatini and beyond showcases the remarkable consistency in human expression across time.

Humanities 98

Humanities Archaeology Cultures Tradition 98

A Principal's Reflections

DECEMBER 12, 2021

Portfolios Traditional assessments never tell the whole story and can mask what students actually know or can do. When content is taught in isolation, a common outcome is students' lack of engagement, becoming either compliant or complacent. This inhibits potential.

Lesson Plan 521

Lesson Plan Professional Development Tradition Education 521

Anthropology.net

DECEMBER 1, 2024

A new biocultural database, developed by researchers at the Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences (SLU), reveals the profound connections between Borneo’s rich plant life and the survival, traditions, and identity of its people. Marks on this trunk reveal traces of wooden plugs used in traditional honey harvesting.

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Cultures Heritage Tradition Economics 98

A Principal's Reflections

AUGUST 11, 2024

This approach shifts away from the traditional one-size-fits-all model, allowing students to learn at their own rhythm and delve deeper into concepts that pique their interest. In today’s rapidly evolving educational landscape, traditional one-size-fits-all approaches often leave many students behind, leading to disengagement and frustration.

K-12 374

K-12 Tradition Educational Technology Teaching 374

A Principal's Reflections

JULY 4, 2021

Most of the class might be considered economically disadvantaged, but still, many would celebrate the holiday with turkey and other traditional goodies of the season. The first-grade teacher gave her class a fun assignment—to draw a picture of something for which they were thankful. And they were. But Douglas made a different kind of picture.

Cultures 518

Cultures Economics Tradition Teaching 518

A Principal's Reflections

NOVEMBER 29, 2020

Early on, I used more traditional strategies since this was a new arena for me. It is nearly impossible to create a culture of learning if there are elements of boredom, inactivity, and lack of relevance. This is a lesson I learned most recently as a presenter and workshop facilitator.

Leadership 545

Leadership Tradition Cultures High School 545

TeachThought

NOVEMBER 21, 2024

It’s not very scalable in a classroom with one teacher and 34 students, which is where the Socrative Seminar comes in–a ‘built-for-the-classroom structure to bring learning-through-questioning’ into traditional educational spaces.

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Critical Thinking Teaching Government Psychology 317

A Principal's Reflections

FEBRUARY 2, 2020

To be honest, these groups are not in my traditional wheelhouse, but I saw it as a learning opportunity to branch out and expand my level of knowledge. Recently the district asked me to be a part of their professional development day, which consisted of seven different learning strands specific to the needs and interests of their teachers.

EdTech 542

EdTech K-12 Pedagogy Professional Development 542

A Principal's Reflections

JANUARY 16, 2022

Curious leaders inspire while also breaking down traditional barriers when it comes to transforming culture. It’s not always about being right or wrong but instead seeking out ways to make the best decisions for the people you serve.

Leadership 505

Leadership Tradition Humanities Cultures 505

A Principal's Reflections

DECEMBER 31, 2023

From exploring the nuances of a post-COVID world to offering fresh perspectives on traditional teaching methodologies, each post has been a testament to my commitment to advancing educational discourse.

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Leadership Tradition Teaching Education 399