Author: TeachThought Staff
College planning often feels overwhelming for families. Parents juggle excitement about their child’s future with anxiety over the financial, emotional, and logistical challenges ahead. Many don’t know where to start, and as educators, we’re in a unique position to offer clarity and guidance. By helping parents understand the process early and in manageable steps, we can significantly change how families approach this important milestone. Here’s how teachers can provide practical support. Start the College Conversation Early For many families, college planning feels distant until the pressure is unavoidable. Encouraging early conversations can shift this mindset. Start by helping parents consider…
The massive T-Mobile data breach in 2023, which exposed 37 million customers’ data, was a stark reminder: cybersecurity isn’t just IT jargon—it’s a necessity in our digital world. Whether you check your bank balance on your phone, work remotely, or browse social media, your digital footprint is vulnerable to increasingly sophisticated attacks. Today’s Cyber Landscape Think of cybersecurity like home security—except the threats are invisible and constantly evolving. Hackers aren’t just mysterious figures in hoodies anymore; they’re often well-funded organizations using artificial intelligence and automated tools to probe for weaknesses. In January 2024 alone, cyber insurance provider Coalition reported a…
Harnessing Kairos: Balancing Structured Time and Learning Velocity in K-12 Classrooms Time in education is about more than minutes on the clock or adhering to rigid schedules. It’s about how students experience time cognitively and emotionally in the learning process. A deeper dive into these ideas reveals actionable ways to create meaningful learning experiences for students. Educational philosopher Shari Tishman describes this beautifully in her work, Slow Observation: The Art and Practice of Learning. She reminds us that observation and understanding happen through repeated encounters with ideas and experiences—’re-searching’ in the truest sense. Similarly, educators must question how ‘time’ and…
by TeachThought Staff In a world filled with noise, division, and endless demands on our attention, Wendell Berry’s poem The Peace of Wild Things offers a rare invitation: to step back and find solace in nature. ‘The Peace Of Wild Things,’ read slowly enough, can remind us of the deep, quiet refuge that exists in the natural world, beyond the reach of our everyday stress and anxieties. When human life feels overwhelming, he suggests that peace can be found not in more thinking or doing, but in a return to the simplicity and calm of the natural world around us.…
The Best Science Podcasts by TeachThought Staff Today, there is a wealth of content out there that’s both educational and entertaining, including some pretty amazing shows on scientific topics that are equally interesting to the layman and the professional. Whether you’re just getting into listening to science podcasts or are looking for a few new shows to add to your weekly collection, we’ve highlighted what we think are some of the best science podcasts out there right now. They’re informative, compelling, and even, at times, pretty darn funny, so make sure to check out one, two, or even all of…
by Grant Wiggins & The TeachThought Staff Admit it–you only read the list of the six levels of Bloom’s Taxonomy, not the whole book that explains each level and the rationale behind the Taxonomy. Not to worry, you are not alone: this is true for most educators. But that efficiency comes with a price. Many educators have a mistaken view of the Taxonomy and the levels in it, as the following errors suggest. And arguably the greatest weakness of the Common Core Standards is to avoid being extra-careful in their use of cognitive-focused verbs, along the lines of the rationale for the…
by TeachThought Staff The internet loves many things. It loves cats, for example. Memes, too. It loves videos, which means it loves YouTube. It loves recipes and Wikipedia and alarming misdiagnoses on WebMd and, among other things (and getting to the point here), quotes. This is partly due to the succinct nature of a quote matching the attention span of readers inundated with unending feeds of new content. The length of a quote often fits many of the more popular formats internet-wide, including Pinterest-friendly graphics, tweets, slideshows, and more. So then, the quotes about learning. Below, we’ve hand-picked 52 of…
by TeachThought Staff What is learned helplessness? Definition Learned helplessness is a psychological condition in which a person, after repeated failures or negative experiences, believes they have no control over situations’ outcomes and stops trying to improve or change them. Below is an example of Learned Helplessness in the classroom. Instructor: The biggest fear for an adolescent, written throughout this text, is not fitting in. Jesse, you talked about acceptance. Now, to understand how this happens, how it looks, and what it feels like, we’re going to do an activity. This is an on-your-own activity, and it’s not meant to…
This post was originally published in 2019 and updated in 2024 by Terrell Heick 1. In the article, headline, or social share, ‘who’ is saying ‘what’? That is, what specific author and publication are making what kind of claim about what topic or ideas? 2. Is what’s being stated or claimed fact or opinion? 3. Does this headline seem true? (This is especially critical for ‘fact-based’ headlines.) If so, by whose standards? Who would disagree with it and why? How can it be fact-checked? Is the author using ‘grey areas’ of ‘truth’ in a way that seems designed to cause…
Gamification is used in many fields and industries. It is meant to promote customer loyalty in business: ” Find a discount among our 5 latest emails to get 50% off dedicated server hosting.” It’s a little different in education. Gamification in education aims to provide a more interactive learning experience for students while providing evidence of their progress through rewards. Gamification plays a key role in modern education and offers many benefits besides just making the learning process fun. About Gamification Gamification is the process of making various activities more entertaining by making them into games. See also The Difference…