Teaching kids through mobile media

Most educators will tell you, teens have mobile phones, but they cannot make mobile apps. They access Web sites often, but few know how to use HTML code to design their own. In Baltimore, we can address this dearth of media literacy easily, to ensure the city will have its share of well-qualified workers for […]

Suspending judgment in favor of possibility

When I first met Ruth, she told me, “I was 16 and did a wrong thing and my parents put me out.” I never learned the wrong thing she did, but Ruth was now 27 and had been living in her car with her two children for almost six months. And she expected to be […]

Investing our resources in summer

Editor’s note: Brenda McLaughlin will be at OSI-Baltimore for the first forum in our Learning about Learning series, Expanding Learning Beyond the School Year, on Tuesday, June 7th. Friday, June 17 is the last day of school for students in Baltimore City.  Here in the suburbs of Philadelphia, my sons share the same last day. […]

Using what works in education

Baltimore City Schools have struggled for years to raise student achievement. There have been multiple strategies, any number of new textbooks and instructional approaches, and lots and lots of money invested in attempts to move students toward proficiency, particularly in math and reading. Though recently students have been achieving at higher levels, city students are […]

Bringing poetry to life to make confident readers

Last April, the 7th grade writing workshop I teach at Margaret Brent Elementary/Middle School studied an Edna St. Vincent Millay poem. Today, the group struts around the school, reciting lines from the poem: “We were very tired, we were very merry–, We had gone back and forth all night on the ferry.” Writers in Baltimore […]

Leadership of counting sheep

G. has consistently led his team members to complete projects on time. In the Festival Committee, he helped to organize his peers to accomplish the production of promotional videos and prepare for public speaking events. –Taken from a Verified Resume issued by Wide Angle Youth Media. “Give me 8 sheep and then we will have […]

Hard work pays off

Editor’s note: Last week, the Maryland State Senate approved the “Maryland DREAM Act,” a bill that will allow all qualifying Maryland high school graduates to pay an in-state college tuition rate regardless of immigration status. The legislation is now moving on to the Maryland House of Delegates. This week, we’re featuring three students who are […]

Fighting for in-state tuition

Editor’s note: Last week, the Maryland State Senate approved the “Maryland DREAM Act,” a bill that will allow all qualifying Maryland high school graduates to pay an in-state college tuition rate regardless of immigration status. The legislation is now moving on to the Maryland House of Delegates. This week, we’re featuring three students who are […]

Testifying before the State Senate

Editor’s note: Last week, the Maryland State Senate approved the “Maryland DREAM Act,” a bill that will allow all qualifying Maryland high school graduates to pay an in-state college tuition rate regardless of immigration status. The legislation is now moving on to the Maryland House of Delegates. This week, we’re featuring three students who are […]

Ensure that our schools teach democracy

In January, Governor O’Malley released a budget which cuts out Maryland’s high school government exam. While I am no fan of standardized tests, eliminating the government exam communicates one clear message: it is not important to teach democracy in schools. In a country where corporate contributions can limit the voice that the average citizen has […]