So I was driving home the other day when I heard this NPR story about how fierce the competition is for Manhattanites to get their children into elite preschools. These preschools can cost parents between $20,000-$30,000 per year! Apparently, it is so competitive to get into some of these preschools that parents can become quite …Read More
Measuring Teacher Effectiveness?
Sep 3, 2010
We all want our children to be successful in school. There are many different factors that influence children’s success in education, and recently much of the attention in politics and in the media has turned to the influence of individual teachers on students’ success. Most of this attention centers around teacher effectiveness, and there is …Read More
Later School Start Times Leads to Better Academic Achievement
Jul 12, 2010
A recent article in the Scientific American reviewed research about effects of school start time on academic achievement. It probably comes as no surprise to parents of teens, that starting in adolescence, children have “delayed sleep phase” where they start sleep later and sleep later in the morning. In addition, for optimal functioning, teenagers should …Read More
Reading, Writing, Arithmetic and Compassion?
Dec 17, 2009
A recent article titled “More Compassion, Less Competition” by Richard Davidson presents the benefits of having a broader definition of education that focuses not only on academic growth but also overall emotional well being. Specifically, he argues that focusing heavily on competition and passing tests has resulted in teachers and students discriminating against those who …Read More