Education
Oren’s First 100 Days of School
Or, The Children’s Crusade: A Duty-Dance with Death [Editor’s note: Oren Karp is a recent graduate of Brown University and a Fulbright Scholar teaching English in Kathmandu, Nepal. He posts an account of his life in Nepal every few weeks.] Okay, I’ll level with you: I have no idea how many days of school…
Read MoreThe Beatings Will Continue
“The beatings will continue until morale improves” is a rather familiar quip of unknown origin. Two recent news stories remind of just how apt the saying remains. The first was an astonishing New York Times report on the reinstitution of paddling as a disciplinary tool in a Missouri school district. Surprisingly, paddling children in school remains…
Read MoreAn Education in Racism
[Editor’s note: Our archives contain several years of excellent articles, most of which remain relevant and important to today’s young people and the adults who work with them. This one is a “Director’s Pick” that we are reposting this week.] My first friend and I—we were three—played with the same anatomically impossible Barbies. Except…
Read MoreA Moveable Festival
Or, The Only Jew In Kathmandu [Editor’s note: Oren Karp is a recent graduate of Brown University and a Fulbright Scholar teaching English in Kathmandu, Nepal. He posts an account of his life in Nepal every few weeks.] I’ve grown to love the rain here, the way it paints the trees a crisp, dark…
Read MoreCollege Admission – Failed Rite of Passage
[Editor’s note: Our archives contain several years of excellent articles, most of which remain relevant and important to today’s young people and the adults who work with them. This one is a “Director’s Pick” that we are reposting this week.] What are the psychological implications of college admission for both parent and child? The…
Read MoreWhen It Comes to School Culture, Words Aren’t Enough
Educators must take systematic steps to ensure that a school’s mission and values are reflected in students’ and teachers’ actual experiences. Schools have different cultures created by their beliefs, values, goals, and behavioral norms—cultures that are often described on a continuum from nurturing to toxic. An increase in cases of depression, instances of suicide, and…
Read MoreBy The Book
Or, When it Rains . . . [Editor’s note: Oren Karp is a recent graduate of Brown University and a Fulbright Scholar teaching English in Kathmandu, Nepal. He posts an account of his life in Nepal every few weeks.] One of my favorite things about learning a new language is seeing how the vocabulary, structures,…
Read MoreBENEFITS AND DANGERS OF TEEN TECHNOLOGY USE
[Editor’s note: This advice comes from Robbie’s Hope: “A movement. An uprising of teens to help other teens. We’ve made it our mission to stop the suicide epidemic that’s taking the lives of our friends.”] Benefits: There certainly are benefits of using technology for teens, such as: Staying in touch when not physically together. Video…
Read MoreSite Currently Under Construction
Or, Oren Needs a Friend [Editor’s note: Oren Karp is a recent graduate of Brown University and a Fulbright Scholar teaching English in Kathmandu, Nepal. He posts an account of his life in Nepal every few weeks.] At 9:55 am the bell rings (or, I should say, someone bangs on the metal plate) to…
Read MoreExtra School
In my experience as a teacher, I’ve collected memories that illustrate for me what needs to be improved in middle school education. My thesis? Schools filled with students from poorer families (low SES–socioeconomic status) need to do more to engage their students intellectually. One such illustrative memory is of a brilliant African-American economics major from…
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