Category Archives: Uncategorized

By: Gloria Painter and Adam Haigler “I am so proud of what you students have been able to accomplish with this work and look forward to seeing how you use these projects to make an impact in our community.” This was what Jim Breedlove, the Board Chairman of Macon County Schools (NC) had to sayContinue reading “Using Schoolwide Design Sprints to Seed Student-Centered Culture”

Microschools are as old as America, originating as one-room schoolhouses across the country. As institutional education consolidated into larger buildings and larger systems, microschools persisted as homeschool cooperatives. Beginning three decades ago, virtual schools (both public and private) created new platforms for hybrid schools and learner cooperatives. However, nationally there is still a lack ofContinue reading “Big Push for Small Schools Grants”

By: Jason Krobatsch As we think about kids heading back to school, our minds are often filled with images of brown bag lunches tucked into oversized backpacks, individual desks neatly arranged in rows, and teachers setting the tone for how they’ll keep order in a room full of 25 (or more) kids. But in learner-centeredContinue reading “Not Your Typical Back-to-School Days at Learner-Centered Sites”

By: Lauren Wagner Updated: The Missouri State Board of Education voted unanimously Aug. 15 to approve ‘innovation waivers’ for the 20-school Success-Ready Students Network. A network of 20 Missouri school districts is asking the state to implement a more responsive assessment system in order to personalize student learning. The state Board of Education is consideringContinue reading “Why 20 Missouri School Districts Are Seeking New ‘Innovation Waivers’ to Rethink the Way They Test Students”

NAF academies are designed to be small, concentrated learning communities that fit within and strengthen high school systems. This allows NAF to become an integral element of a low-cost plan for higher achievement. NAF encourages open enrollment at its academies so that any student who is interested has the opportunity to participate. The adaptable structureContinue reading “Real World Experience with NAF Advisory Boards”

By: Scott McLeod As I visit innovative elementary and middle schools across the country, I have noticed that these schools devote significant amounts of time for students and educators to simply be together in community. These time blocks are not academic. This community time is for small groups within the school to check in, shareContinue reading “Deeper Learning Requires Deeper Relationships?”

By: Hassan Hassan Over much of the last decade, the education innovation community has worked to incorporate a greater focus on diversity, equity, and inclusion, including a talent base that is more representative of the children that our schools serve and increasing philanthropic funding to combat systemic racism and support learners of color. At 4.0,Continue reading “Balancing Design Thinking with Equity”

By: Kara Stern, Ph.D. When Horace Mann dreamed up the idea that eventually became the US public school system, the world was a different place. Fast forward to 1940. By then, the one-room schoolhouse had morphed into something we’d recognize today. And then things got…a little stuck. For example, I went to the same highContinue reading “Let’s Use ChatGPT to ‘Think Different’ About K-12 Schools”

The journey towards a brighter, more equitable future for every learner is taking center stage at Getting Smart’s first regional New Pathways Convening “Paving the Way for Pathways: Connecting Local Schools and Businesses” on October 19th and 20th at the Greater Tacoma Convention Center in Tacoma, WA. In collaboration with American Student Assistance (ASA), TacomaContinue reading “Paving the Way for Pathways: Connecting Local Schools and Businesses in Tacoma, WA”

By: Mike Posthumus In the evolving landscape of education, professional learning stands as a powerful catalyst to foster teacher or system resilience, effectiveness, and job satisfaction. But how can we make the profession more rewarding and impactful? Schools around the world are realizing that their flexible learning environments are improving conditions for educators’ well-being, helpingContinue reading “School Resilience and Educator Efficacy: The Power of Flexible Learning Environments”