The Edge of Education

Phineas Gage is famous because he had an accident at work one day. As a railroad foreman in 1848, one of his jobs was to […]

Scientists are beginning to uncover some powerful benefits of reading fiction. Reduced stress, deeper sleep and less memory loss but also recent neuroscientists have also discovered language found in fiction gives our brains a unique work out—giving those who read it, a distinct advantage over those who don’t.

On my desk sits a rectangular, pewter paperweight.  Inscribed on it is a quote generally attributed to Robert Schuller, an American pastor and motivational speaker: […]

There’s a lot of noise out there. No doubt you’ve heard it by now.  The advice.  The questions.  The expectations.  The clichés about graduating, moving […]

“Are you counting down?” Teachers hear this a lot this time of year.  For the record, I’m not.  I don’t.  Yes, I know the end […]

I once asked someone who had worked incredibly hard, and reached a measure of success, how he did it.  What motivated him day after day […]

“It’s making a difference in the world that prevents me from ever giving up.”—Deborah Meier. At the turn of the twentieth century, at the height […]

“Students today depend on paper too much. They don’t know how to write on a slate without getting chalk dust all over themselves. They can’t […]

I fancy myself a bit of a writer.  It started way back in high school when I wrote for the school paper.  I wrote short […]

Perhaps you have heard it said that schools should be run more like businesses–that public schools are soft, undisciplined, ineffective and would do well to […]