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My Experience with Sec. Cardona and Why He Must Continue His Legacy of Centering Students
March 01, 2021
Dr. Miguel Cardona has just been confirmed as President Biden’s Secretary of Education in the most diverse cabinet in United States history. I applaud President Biden for shining a spotlight on a nominee like Dr. Cardona who has accomplished groundbreaking work in his field. Few Americans know what he has done and what kind of person he is. However, I have a unique, firsthand perspective of Dr. Cardona’s commitment to young people—and a few calls to action for him as he assumes this important national role.
Type: Opinion
campaigns & initiatives: Youth Voice: Learning
Don’t Just Try to Copy-and-Paste In-Person Instruction to Online Learning
December 22, 2020
To promote meaningful learning during COVID-19, teachers should not try to replicate in-person instruction online. In my experience, the way to promote meaningful learning is to adapt instruction in a way that recognizes the unique circumstances that we’re in.
Type: Opinion
campaigns & initiatives: Youth Voice: Learning
Give Students a Safe Venue to Contribute to Decision-Making and to Talk About Their Struggles
December 22, 2020
To the students who may not have these adult leaders or mentors readily available to them, I encourage you to reach beyond your comfort zones and find a safe place to be able to make decisions.
Type: Opinion
campaigns & initiatives: Youth Voice: Learning
America’s Young People Need to Be Seen and Heard. 3 Lessons From 22 Open Letters From Youth
December 15, 2020
Having served on many advisory boards and holding various student government positions, I thought I was an expert in advocating on behalf of youth. But in reading the letters over the past five weeks, my eyes have been opened to the perspectives of youth from across the country. Youth from different age groups, backgrounds, and experiences that all share the desire to be a valued voice in decision-making. In this series, three powerful messages stand out to me.
Type: Opinion
campaigns & initiatives: Youth Voice: Learning
Incorporate Hands-On, Project-Based Learning to Keep Students Engaged Virtually
December 09, 2020
While COVID-19 has barred me from entering and learning in a school-building-based environment, I still have the resources to learn from home. And just because I’m at home learning in front of a screen doesn’t mean that I can’t have as rich of an educational experience as when I was going to school in-person.
Type: Opinion
campaigns & initiatives: Youth Voice: Learning
Here are 3 Simple Things Educators Can Do to Help Engage Students More During Remote Learning
December 09, 2020
I am a sophomore in high school and a foster youth. My experience in foster care and having to move to multiple schools has prepared me for situations where I need to adapt to rapid changes in my environment. But even so, I was unprepared for the completely new way of learning that is expected of me during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Type: Opinion
campaigns & initiatives: Youth Voice: Learning
Give Students an Organized Platform to Discuss Hard Subjects
December 09, 2020
Understanding the different motivations behind Black Lives Matter, initiatives to defund police, ending foreign wars and even developing more transparency in government should be important to every high school student today. It really is up to our generation to combat this toxic environment and encourage more students to engage in meaningful learning through civil discourse.
Type: Opinion
campaigns & initiatives: Youth Voice: Learning
Stop Pushing for In-Person School. Provide Every Student, Especially the Underprivileged and Indigenous, Equal Access to Resources for Remote Learning
December 09, 2020
The adjustment to online school is difficult for all students. I am an AP student with a 4.07 grade point average and at the beginning of the year, I was taking three classes across three different software platforms. The learning curve that came with it was aching...
Type: Opinion
campaigns & initiatives: Youth Voice: Learning
We’re Still Teaching Like We’re Training 19th Century Factory Workers. Think Beyond Classroom Walls to Nurture Innovators and Thinkers
December 09, 2020
This piece is part of “Dear Adult Leaders: #ListenToYouth,” a four-week series produced in collaboration with The 74 to elevate student voices in the national conversation as schools and districts navigate how to educate our country’s youth in a global pandemic. In this series, students write open letters to adult leaders and policymakers about their experiences and how, from their perspectives, the American education system should adapt.
Type: Opinion
campaigns & initiatives: Youth Voice: Learning
Give Students a Break Through COVID-19. Trade Letter Grades for Pass/Fail Scores
December 09, 2020
Students’ lives are far more complicated than a letter, and a pass/fail system allows teachers to recognize this and utilize a system that understands how different aspects of a student’s life can reduce their educational abilities, which makes them look like a poor student on paper. A pass/fail system minimizes these extraneous disparities and still properly educates students.
Type: Opinion
campaigns & initiatives: Youth Voice: Learning