MindShift

02/19/2025

The program was designed to provide more generous terms than prior income-based repayment plans, with monthly payments dropping to as low as $0 for some borrowers.

The SAVE program was designed to provide more generous terms than past income-based repayment plans.

02/19/2025

Children learn many important skills in preschool that will build literacy skills, but none as critical as the following three: print awareness, phonological awareness and phonics.

Developmentally appropriate activities focused on foundational reading skills can help young children have fun while they learn.

02/19/2025

A viral Instagram post claimed the #1 cause of anxiety in children is parents rushing them. But there is currently no evidence that saying “hurry up” or rushing a child causes anxiety or any negative outcomes.

Telling a child to "hurry up" is not the same as having a "hurried child." Cara Goodwin debunks some misunderstandings and shares better ways to communicate with a child.

02/19/2025

Emphasizing a hopeful mindset over a cynical one is an empirically wiser parenting choice, argues Jamil Zaki, director of the Stanford Social Neuroscience Lab.

Kids are well primed to absorb their parents' emotions, which is why having adults practice hopefulness can help kids realize their best selves and develop an accurate worldview.

02/19/2025

The overarching goal of teaching writing is to create in each student the tendency to write–the belief that writing is valuable and that they are capable of writing.

For amateurs developing skills, the process is far more important than the product. This is true in science and is true for writing, too.

02/18/2025

The idea of parental favoritism might seem inherently subjective ... but researchers have developed ways to identify differences in the ways parents treat their children.

Gender, birth order and a child’s temperament can shape whether a child receives preferential treatment.

02/18/2025

California school districts are increasingly turning to early retirement incentives as a humane way to balance their budgets, but students could be the ones who lose.

School districts are offering teachers and other staff incentives to retire early. Declining enrollment will allow the district to eliminate some positions, but most will be replaced with less experienced teachers.

02/18/2025

"From left- and right-brain thinking to the notion that talent beats persistence, these common myths can hinder student learning."

7 Learning Myths Your Students Probably Believe

From left- and right-brain thinking to the notion that talent beats persistence, these common myths can hinder student learning. Here’s how teachers can help.

02/18/2025

If there’s a skill or knowledge that must be retained over time, then that content needs to be periodically revisited in meaningful ways.

Kids will forget things, but understanding how they best learn new information can help them retain it and build new knowledge.

02/18/2025

A new report details how effective leaders can make a huge difference in the lives of children.

Amid dismal data, educators from around the world gather in Brazil and say they can rise to the challenges.

02/18/2025

For this Black History Month, Myleik Teele wanted to emphasize the importance of Black resilience and joy. Teele is a mother of two in Atlanta and the founder of an online parenting community for Black moms.

A Black community leader on parenting during the rollback of diversity initiatives in the public and private sectors.

02/17/2025

Some early childhood experts worry that investment firms are primarily motivated by outsized profits, not providing quality experiences for young children.

Some early childhood experts have recently sounded the alarm about the growing footprint of private equity in the child care space. They worry that such investment firms are primarily motivated by outsized profits, not providing quality experiences for young children.

02/17/2025

"... The more we get into something we’re teaching, we feel like we’ve got to jazz it up more. We’ve got to give more bells and whistles because this is so complicated. But when we think about the brain, that’s the absolute opposite of what we should be doing. The more complex it is, the simpler, the more stripped-down instruction needs to be."

—Blake Harvard, AP psychology teacher

When we make certain choices, often without even realizing it, we can turn a teaching moment from one that should be clear into one that's confusing.

02/17/2025

Employing active and illustrative review, reorganization, and practice assessments can help students use their notes to study.

Teaching Students What to Do With the Notes They Take

Taking good notes is an important skill—and so is knowing how best to use them for learning.

02/17/2025

Tutoring shouldn't be abandoned, but approached iteratively, said Matthew Kraft, an associate professor of education and economics at Brown University.

Pre-COVID tutoring studies often were small. A new study with almost 7,000 students showed little to no impact from tutoring.

02/16/2025

"Spotlight reading" by Roy F. Smith is a quick, ungraded activity where students analyze short texts, improving critical thinking and writing skills.

Spotlight reading puts a magnifying glass to a sentence or poem and encourages students to analyze the small bit of text without worrying about a grade.

02/16/2025

The past year has seen growing momentum for district and statewide bans on cellphones in schools. But not everyone is enthusiastic about such policies.

02/16/2025

A new study finds that it really does matter whether you hear “thank you” as a parent.