The push for data-driven instruction can sometimes feel at odds with empowering educators to exercise their professional judgement. We read the story of one Kansas district that attempted to implement a new system for helping students. A push for data and numbers seemed to push out all the other sources of information, undermining their ability to help those students.
Later, we see a nation-wide bump in ADHD diagnoses for the youngest students who start school each year. This bump might be the result of a school age cut-off, rather than anything medical.
Finally, we get some book recommendations and context on Third Culture Kids in the Peer Review.
- First Segment – 01:58 – Making education more “scientific”
- Second Segment – 25:16 – ADHD diagnoses and school age cut-off
- Third Segment – 38:55 – Peer Review: Author and listener feedback on Third Culture Kids
Cover image by Good Eye Might.
Primary Citations
Ng, J. C., Stull, D. D., & Martinez, R. S. (2019). What if Only What Can Be Counted Will Count? A Critical Examination of Making Educational Practice “Scientific”. Teachers College Record, 121(2), n2.
Layton, T. J., Barnett, M. L., Hicks, T. R., & Jena, A. B. (2018). Attention deficit–hyperactivity disorder and month of school enrollment. New England Journal of Medicine, 379(22), 2122-2130.
Supplemental Citations
- MTSS Fact Sheet (KSDE 2019)
- Historical Perspective in Education Research (Albulescu 2016)
- Squeaky clean mice could be ruining research (Nature 2018)
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- Learn about Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (CDC)
- Development of ADHD symptoms in preschool children: Genetic and environmental contributions (Eilertsen 2019)
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- Talking about Global Migration: Implications for Language Teaching (Catalano 2016)
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- It Just Isn’t Working’: PISA Test Scores Cast Doubt on U.S. Education Efforts (New York Times)
- U.S. Students Gain Ground Against Global Peers. But That’s Not Saying Much (Ed Week)
Featured Beverage
We drink Dragon’s Milk White, a bourbon barrel-aged white stout from New Holland Brewing in Holland, MI.