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Joanne Jacobs
Mar 18, 20242 min read
Old school: Strict and safe is making a comeback
"Super strict schools" are "increasingly popular" in England, writes Emma Bubola in the New York Times. She focuses on Michaela, an...
6 comments


Joanne Jacobs
Jan 24, 20242 min read
'No excuses' school guru passes on: Will excellence survive?
Linda Brown, who trained hundreds of charter leaders as leader of (Building Excellent Schools (ES), has died at the age of 81. Many of...
1 comment


Joanne Jacobs
Jan 24, 20243 min read
Teachers are fed up with student misbehavior, classroom chaos
The "new normal" of student behavior -- a toxic mix of disrespect, disruption, violence and apathy -- is driving teachers to despair,...
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Joanne Jacobs
Dec 7, 20232 min read
Portland will consider race, gender to 'support' disruptive students
Portland (OR) schools will design "support plans" for disruptive students that consider trauma, race, gender identity/presentation and...
17 comments


Joanne Jacobs
Oct 6, 20231 min read
None dare call it 'behaviour'
Students in Australia report "shocking levels of classroom disruption in international surveys," and schools face "a worsening teacher...
6 comments


Joanne Jacobs
Sep 25, 20232 min read
Schools spend $20 billion a year for equity training, but does it work?
Public schools spend billions on equity training, but have no idea what works, writes Katherine Reynolds Lewis in USA Today. "None of the...
6 comments


Joanne Jacobs
Sep 1, 20233 min read
Sympathy for the disruptor
A student walks into class 10 minutes late and yells, "What's up, bitches?" What's a teacher to do? To cope with a rising tide of student...
9 comments


Joanne Jacobs
Jul 31, 20232 min read
Houston school plan: No disruptive kids in class -- and no librarians
Teachers will earn more and have "apprentices" and aides to handle mundane chores. They'll use scripted curricula instead of spending...
6 comments


Joanne Jacobs
Jul 18, 20233 min read
Chaos: I tried to teach for America, and I failed
"Too many teachers mistake the generally sound advice to not provide a stand off with a student during class with "don't assert authority...
3 comments


Joanne Jacobs
Jul 18, 20232 min read
Denver principal fired after criticizing safety policies
In March, a Denver high school student shot and injured two deans who were searching him for weapons. The student, who had a prior...
1 comment


Joanne Jacobs
Jun 5, 20232 min read
Out-of-control students, overwhelmed teachers
Student misbehavior is driving teachers crazy -- and out of teaching write Leslie Bienen, a health policy consultant, and Christina...
7 comments


Joanne Jacobs
May 19, 20232 min read
Students don't learn more from a same-race teacher
Elementary students don't learn more from a teacher who matches them in race or ethnicity, concludes a new study. There is little...
5 comments


Joanne Jacobs
May 18, 20232 min read
School of bullies
Sometimes students misbehave -- not because their needs haven't been met or their teachers aren't sufficiently sensitive to their culture...
5 comments


Joanne Jacobs
May 18, 20232 min read
My students are 'broken kids I cannot fix'
Teachers on Reddit are sharing horror stories of their students' emotional, social and academic melt downs, screen addictions and apathy....
2 comments


Joanne Jacobs
May 12, 20232 min read
Cellphone bans spread: 'This has got to stop'
Schools across the country are banning cell phones in hopes of reducing distractions and refocusing students on academics, writes Donna...
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Joanne Jacobs
Apr 2, 20232 min read
'Restorative' backlash: Legislators propose tougher school discipline
Legislators are "moving to make it easier to kick disruptive students out of school" in response to "a pandemic-era surge in school gun...
21 comments


Joanne Jacobs
Mar 22, 20232 min read
Conservative teachers are quiet
Teachers who are on the political right "speak in whispers behind closed doors," says Daniel Buck in an interview with Rick Hess....
1 comment


Joanne Jacobs
Feb 22, 20233 min read
Ukrainian refugee girl flees unsafe San Francisco school
Yana and her mother fled Ukraine and found a new home with an aunt in San Francisco -- until the 13-year-old girl started Marina Middle...
8 comments


Joanne Jacobs
Feb 10, 20231 min read
Teachers are quitting because of classroom chaos
Soft discipline policies make teachers' jobs much harder, writes Daniel Buck, who's taught in a variety of schools. A friend quit after...
10 comments


Joanne Jacobs
Feb 10, 20232 min read
Teachers are angry about shooting, but not shocked
"A 6-year-old Virginia boy who shot and wounded his first-grade teacher constantly cursed at staff and teachers, tried to whip students...
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