School of Practice

Like a lot of other educators, Nicholas Ferroni is trying to find his way back to a time before technology was the default classroom mode. He thinks he was a better teacher back then—and kids acted more like kids.

Last year, Nick published a viral Instagram post in which he pledged to go back to basics in his teaching, back to “more paper, more writing, more eye contact, more conversations.” In this episode, Nick tells us how he turned the clock back, what he thinks his students have gained from less tech time, and why he’s not giving up on classroom tech completely.

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Should Laptops Really Go the Way of Cell Phones?

Tech-Free January

What Happened When Our School Went Tech-Free for the Day?

7 Tech Routines for Balanced Usage

Before there’s curriculum or calendars or lesson plans, there’s the classroom space itself, stripped of last year’s posters and anchor charts. Where should teachers begin? We’ve got the answers.

In this back-to-school episode, editors Youki Terada and Steve Merrill review over 30 high-quality studies on classroom design and boil them down to five big takeaways, from how to use wall decoration to maximize student attention to why potted plants can alter student perceptions of the classroom—and the teacher, too!

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The Science of Classroom Design

Flexible Classrooms: Research Is Scarce but Promising

Designing the Ideal Classroom Space

The Impact of Classroom Design on Pupils’ Learning: Final Results of a Holistic, Multi-level Analysis 

The Sweet Spot for Classroom Decorations

Telling the Story of Learning In Displays of Student Work

Making the Most of Your Classroom Walls

How do you lay the foundation for real community in your classroom? Teachers know (and the research supports this) that when kids feel safe and connected in school, they’re better equipped to focus on learning. The start of a new school year is a crucial time for this type of work – and it goes beyond icebreakers. 

In this episode of School of Practice, we’ll hear from three educators who’ve developed powerful activities for building robust classroom cultures, including a strategy for co-creating classroom norms, an exercise that gets students discovering what they have in common, and a memorable 60-second trust-building activity. Together, these activities go beyond typical icebreakers – and set the stage for a classroom where students feel they belong.

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Building Classroom Community Through Daily Dedications (video)

A Daily Ritual That Builds Trust and Community Among Students

Establishing Connections in a New Classroom Community (video)

Fostering Belonging With Classroom Norms (video)

Research: Impact of School-Based Interventions for Building School Belonging in Adolescence: a Systematic Review

Research: Teacher–Student Relationships and Student Outcomes: A Systematic Second-Order Meta-Analytic Review.

Not Light, but Fire: How to Lead Meaningful Race Conversations in the Classroom

Child’s Play in Action

WMPG’s Blunt Youth Radio

Do you want to build a vibrant classroom community this year, but you’re not sure where to start?

Research shows it’s well worth the effort—and the first week of school is the perfect time to lay that foundation. When students feel a strong sense of belonging at school, they tend to be more motivated to learn and achieve higher academic outcomes.  

In this first back-to-school episode from School of Practice, teacher Marcus Luther shares a simple activity that helps him get to know his students from day one, and sets the tone for the year ahead. Then, he shares two easy strategies for keeping that feedback practice going, so you can continue to build belonging and engagement all year long.

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A First-Week Survey That Fits on an Index Card

Collecting and Using Student Feedback Throughout the Year

Monthly Pulse-Check Template: Ask Your Students How Class is Going

Creating a Cycle of Student Feedback

Making Schoolwide Use of Student Surveys

The Value of Soliciting Student Feedback

Improving Teaching with Expert Feedback – From Students

Research: Strengthening School Connectedness to Increase Student Success

Research: The relationships between school belonging and students’ motivational, social-emotional, behavioural, and academic outcomes in secondary education: a meta-analytic review

Teaching is hard (often draining) work, and educators’ instincts about what will bring relief are frequently wrong—just as they are for most people. 

That’s because our minds deceive us, says cognitive scientist and Yale professor Laurie Santos, one of the world’s leading researchers on well-being and happiness. “One of the most annoying features of the mind is the fact that we all have these intuitions about the kinds of things we should be doing to feel better. But the research shows that many of those intuitions are just incorrect.”

In this episode of School of Practice, Dr. Santos joins host Kristin Leong to debunk some of the most popular and persistent myths about happiness—more money *mostly* doesn’t buy more happiness, for example, and a values mismatch at work may be more consequential for burnout than you think—and shares a set of evidence-based tools teachers can begin to apply right away to reclaim a sense of balance. 

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The Research on Protecting Teacher Well-Being 

Coursera: The Science of Well-Being

The Happiness Lab with Dr. Laurie Santos

Yale’s Happiness Professor Says Anxiety Is Destroying Her Students

What a New Survey Says About Teachers’ Plans to Leave Their Jobs 

The Burnout Challenge

No, You Don’t Always Have to Confront Your Feelings Right Away

Ross Gay on Finding Everyday Delights

Research: Exploring the Ripple Effect of ‘Always On’ Digital Work Culture in Secondary Education Settings (2021)

Research: Time Confetti and the Broken Promise of Leisure (2020)

Research: Buying Time Promotes Happiness (2017)

Research: Self-Compassion: The Proven Power of Being Kind to Yourself (2015)

Research: High Income Improves Evaluation of Life but Not Emotional Well-Being (2010)

Research: Toward a Durable Happiness (2008)

Research: Achieving Sustainable Gains in Happiness: Change Your Actions, not Your Circumstances (2006)

Research: Counting Blessings versus Burdens: An Experimental Investigation of Gratitude and Subjective Well-Being in Daily Life (2003)