Chalkbeat

Education news. In context.

Chalkbeat

In the Classroom

Snapshots of the teaching and learning that take place inside schools

Classroom Lessons

Detroit
June 20, 2018

They saw life inside Detroit classrooms — and now some of them want to teach

City Year Americorp members finished the school year with lessons that inspired them to become teachers and counselors
Chicago
June 20, 2018

Five award-winning teachers talk recharging over the summer

As Chicagoland students rejoice at the end of school, teachers also approach the summer with excitement – to be able to relax and…

First Person

New York
June 19, 2018

I fight for integrated schools in New York City. I’m also Asian-American. Mayor de Blasio, let’s talk.

Shino Tanikawa explains why she's concerned about the rollout of the mayor's plan to integrate New York City's specialized schools — and how the process can be salvaged.
Indiana
June 18, 2018

Bodily fluids and belly buttons: How this Indianapolis principal embraces lessons learned the hard (and gross) way

Rembert is the principal at Francis W. Parker School 56 in Indianapolis Public Schools.
Indiana
June 14, 2018

Known for ‘no excuses’ discipline, Tindley charter network loosens policies to reduce suspensions

After 14 years and some of the highest out-of-school suspension numbers in the state, the Tindley charter network is relaxing its controversial, unapologetically tough approach to discipline.
National
June 14, 2018

How I Teach: Meet Mandy, America’s teacher of the year

Welcome to the second issue of Chalkbeat’s “How I Teach” newsletter! Today, I’m excited about our interview with Mandy Manning, the 2018 National Teacher of…

How I Teach

National
June 13, 2018

How the 2018 national teacher of the year manages a classroom with 12 languages with a white board and a paper clip

Mandy Manning explains how she connects with immigrant and refugee students when they don't speak the same language and what she's going to do with her platform.

First Person

Tennessee
June 8, 2018

If teachers aren’t equipped to help trauma victims, students suffer. Learn from my story.

I thought that if I could find a different way to ask him to get back on task, maybe he would not become so aggressive.
Indiana
June 5, 2018

How this Indianapolis high school teacher won the trust of her most skeptical student

The teacher and her student participated in a recent story slam sponsored by Chalkbeat, Teachers Lounge Indy, WFYI Public Media, and the Indianapolis Public Library.

one year later

Detroit
May 30, 2018

A year after superintendent’s arrival, a skeptical Detroit teacher has become a believer — almost

A year ago, it was hard for teacher Rynell Sturkey to believe that life in her overcrowded, understaffed, poorly equipped classroom would ever improve. This past school year, however, Sturkey has been pleasantly surprised by improvements.

How I Teach

Detroit
May 29, 2018

This Detroit teacher helped her students make a movie about trash. It’s part of how they learn.

A student's question about a local incinerated led to a teaching unit and a short film made with help from a local artist.

‘It feels like losing a family’

Tennessee
May 24, 2018

This Memphis poetry team is the best in the state. But they will scatter as their school closes.

A student poetry team at GRAD Academy Memphis was named the best high school poetry team in Tennessee this month. But they will scatter to different schools after GRAD closes.

First Person

New York
May 17, 2018

As historians and New York City educators, here’s what we hope teachers hear in the city’s new anti-bias training

New York City Schools Chancellor Richard Carranza and Mayor Bill de Blasio just committed $23 million over the next four years to support…

First Person

National
May 8, 2018

In honor of Teacher Appreciation Week, 8 essays from educators who raised their voices this year

Teachers are often on the front lines of national conversations, kickstarting discussions that their students or communities need to have.
Indiana
May 4, 2018

Her motto was ‘There’s no crying in teaching’ … until she actually became a teacher

Allissa Impink, now a teacher at Cold Spring School in IPS, was one of eight educators and students who participated in a recent story slam at Central Library.

testing testing

Tennessee
May 2, 2018

Inside a Memphis school dealing with the fallout of TNReady problems

Student anxiety, last-minute schedule changes, and hour-long holds with customer service hotline were common.

How I Teach

Colorado
May 1, 2018

This award-winning Colorado educator teaches computer gaming (Shhh, it’s actually math)

A computer gaming teachers talks about what turned her into math-lover, why she builds forts with her students, and how off-task behavior is like a canary in a coal mine.

New tools

Detroit
April 25, 2018

Eight things to know about Detroit’s big math and reading curriculum shift

Here’s what we know about the new materials and what we’ll be watching for in the months ahead.

making plans

New York
April 25, 2018

Push to curb academic segregation on the Upper West Side generates a backlash — and support

“We are not offering all students equity and access across all the district,” said District 3 Superintendent Ilene Altschul. “We need to do something.”

discipline paradox

National
April 20, 2018

Do charter schools suspend students more? It depends on how you look at the data.

Charters have a higher overall suspension rate than traditional public schools. But when you break down suspensions by race, charters actually post slightly lower rates.

Homework

Detroit
April 17, 2018

The Detroit district’s first homework policy is in the works. See how much homework it recommends your child do every night.

Detroit students who are drowning in homework — or unable to complete it because of challenges at home — could soon find relief in a…

First Person

Detroit
April 16, 2018

Let’s solve the right problems for Detroit’s students with disabilities — not recycle old ones

I’ve spent 25 years both studying and actively trying to improve schools for students with disabilities. Segregated settings aren't the answer.

How I Teach

Tennessee
April 13, 2018

Why this Memphis history teacher seeks to create a ‘calming slice of Africa’ in his classroom

How do teachers captivate their students? Here, in a feature we call How I Teach, we ask great educators how they approach their jobs. You…

How I Teach

Colorado
April 4, 2018

This Colorado teacher admitted she didn’t know all the answers – and students responded

Here, in a feature we call How I Teach, we ask educators who’ve been recognized for their work how they approach their jobs. You can…

behind the music

New York
April 2, 2018

‘Connecting kids with who they are’: Why school diversity advocates are optimistic about Chancellor Richard Carranza

In New York City, advocates who have pushed for more diverse and inclusive schools are hopeful Carranza’s record will carry over.

School supplies

National
March 28, 2018

28,000 American teachers benefiting from cryptocurrency after company funds their DonorsChoose requests

The donation only temporarily offsets the many needs American teachers cite for their classrooms — and frequently fund out of their own pockets.

By the numbers

New York
March 27, 2018

More gifted programs join New York City’s school diversity efforts

Enrollment in the city's gifted programs is almost the reverse of the overall demographics in the school system.
Indiana
March 22, 2018

How an Indianapolis teacher is making fourth grade more like a video game

Amanda Moore uses adventures to entice students to practice math and reading skills.

thrown for a loop

National
March 21, 2018

Elementary school teachers sometimes follow a class of students from year to year. New research suggests that’s a good idea.

A new study shows that students improve more on tests in their second year with the same teacher and the benefits are largest for students of color.
Colorado
March 15, 2018

Crazy contraptions, Chemistry Cat, and climbing stories: How this Colorado science teacher connects with kids

A science teacher from northeastern Colorado talks about what she did when a mother began to criticism a student and why she loves Rube Goldberg contraptions.

behind the music

New York
March 14, 2018

‘We just wanted to help the movement’: Meet the NYC teacher whose students wrote a #NeverAgain anthem

We checked in with Kyle Fackrell, Lavelle Prep's longtime music teacher, to learn about the song, his students, and their ambitions.

Parents in school

Tennessee
March 13, 2018

English class for parents at one Memphis school fuels sense of community

Kate Bond Elementary offers a model for Shelby County Schools, where a growing immigrant population is compounding longtime challenges with parent involvement.

Repairing harm

Colorado
March 13, 2018

Inside one of three Denver schools serving as a national model for how to do discipline differently

Restorative justice is an approach to school discipline that focuses on repairing harm rather than doling out punishment.

intended consequences

National
March 13, 2018

When Chicago cut down on suspensions, students saw test scores and attendance rise, study finds

A modest drop in out-of-school suspensions for severe behavior actually led to small increases in test scores and attendance for all students in a school.

How I Teach

Tennessee
March 2, 2018

Kids learn better when they’re moving. Just ask this Memphis teacher and dance coach.

Every day, Alexia Young's third-graders jump up from their desks, dance around the classroom, and belt out a “reading chant."

How I Teach

Colorado
February 27, 2018

Meet the only speech-language pathologist in Colorado’s Teacher Cabinet

A school speech-language pathologist talks about the movie that inspired his career choice and how he connected with a student who, at first, barely looked at him.

student discipline

Tennessee
February 21, 2018

Looking for the ‘why’ behind student suspensions, Memphis schools turn to behavior specialists — again

For the first time since the city's 2013 school merger, behavior specialists are back in Memphis schools.

race in the classroom

New York
February 21, 2018

This test-prep passage about Robert E. Lee made a New York City teacher feel ‘angry and sick’

The incident highlights the concerns of advocates who say that even seemingly neutral materials like test-prep booklets can reflect baked-in biases.

How I Teach

Tennessee
February 16, 2018

This Memphis teacher went viral for holding ‘class’ on Facebook Live during a snow day

How do teachers captivate their students? Here, in a feature we call How I Teach, we ask great educators how they approach their jobs.

school rules

National
February 16, 2018

Arkansas passed a law banning suspensions for truancy. Then it was largely ignored.

Three years after the law passed, nearly 1,100 students were suspended for not showing up to school.

How I Teach

Colorado
February 7, 2018

Lessons from the school store: How this special education teacher sets up students for an independent future

A special education teachers talks about how the school store helps students prepare for the future and why there’s no stigma when lessons are repeated in her classroom.

curriculum conundrum

National
February 6, 2018

With new focus on curriculum, Gates Foundation wades into tricky territory

The Gates Foundation has a new plan intended to help public schools: improve the materials that teachers use to teach. But that may run into some challenges.

real-world math

Indiana
February 5, 2018

Forget frustrating equations. This Indiana high school teaches algebra you’ll actually use.

As soon as Caitlin Scull started her stopwatch, her classmate began texting. “You want it to be real,” their teacher, Eric Gurule, told Scull and…
Indiana
February 2, 2018

‘They made sure I didn’t give up’: How an Indianapolis high school raised graduation rates

Two years ago, one in three students wasn’t graduating at the high school, which enrolls nearly 2,000.

How I Teach

Tennessee
February 2, 2018

This teacher uses Booker T. Washington and W.E.B. DuBois to tie the past to the present for his students

How do teachers captivate their students? Here, in a feature we call How I Teach, we ask great educators how they approach their jobs.

How I Teach

Colorado
January 24, 2018

From the Caribbean to Colorado: One teacher’s journey into the family business

A Colorado high school teacher talks about why teachers need a thick skin and how she and a colleague created a program for first-generation college-bound students.

How I Teach

New York
January 22, 2018

In divisive political times, an East Harlem government teacher strives for nuance

Some teachers might prefer to avoid politics in the classroom. Not Steven Serling. As a government teacher at Park East High School in East Harlem,…

getting in

Detroit
January 18, 2018

Detroit district moves beyond test scores for admittance to elite high schools like Cass Tech and Renaissance

An admissions team will use a score card that gives students points in various categories including test scores, grades and essays.

How I Teach

Colorado
January 17, 2018

From bikes to blue hair: how one Denver kindergarten teacher shares his passion with students

A Denver kindergarten teacher, originally from Venezuela, talks about the teachers who inspired him, why he uses secret codes, and how he gets to know students.

First Person

National
January 17, 2018

This Betsy DeVos-inspired Twitter thread recounts the ups and downs (but mostly ups) of one school’s Common Core shift

A former New York City teacher says the standards prompted anything but a disaster at his school.
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