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Hybrid Learning Podcast: Strategies and Resources for Teachers

Making Virtual Classrooms Human: Tips from Suzanne Phillips on the EduJedi Report

When classrooms shifted from shared physical spaces to remote settings, educators and students rapidly adopted video conferencing as the primary means of teaching and learning. Early on, many teachers reported screen fatigue, waning attention, and general disengagement. In this episode of the EduJedi Report, host LeiLani Cauthen speaks with Suzanne Phillips of Cisco Webex about practical, proven strategies that help virtual instruction feel more human, more engaging, and more effective.

Suzanne Phillips has spent considerable time learning from outstanding educators around the world and turning those lessons into accessible, classroom-ready resources. Her approach is grounded in the belief that virtual teaching does not have to be a cold, transactional experience. With thoughtful workflows, small design choices, and a few classroom-tested tricks, teachers can create lively, inclusive virtual learning environments that encourage student participation and reduce digital fatigue.

The interview explores concrete techniques and mindsets teachers can adopt right away. Instead of relying on long uninterrupted lectures, Suzanne and LeiLani discuss breaking lessons into bite-sized segments, using purposeful visuals, and planning interactive pauses where students reflect, collaborate, or respond. They emphasize the value of predictable routines and clear transitions—elements that reduce cognitive load and help students feel secure in the online classroom.

Another central theme is accessibility and equity in hybrid and remote learning. Suzanne stresses designing lessons that account for different home environments, device capabilities, and connectivity levels. Simple alternatives—like offering text summaries, asynchronous options, or low-bandwidth participation modes—can significantly widen access and keep more students engaged.

Teacher presence also plays a major role. Suzanne describes how small human touches—camera framing that centers the teacher, brief personal anecdotes, varied speaking pace, and intentional eye contact into the camera—can strengthen emotional connection. These techniques help students sense a teacher’s attentiveness and investment, which supports motivation and classroom community even when participants are physically apart.

Because screen fatigue remains a widespread concern, the conversation includes practical strategies to reduce its impact. Recommendations include shorter whole-group sessions, opportunities for offline or hands-on work between synchronous meetings, and frequent micro-breaks. Using polls, short breakout discussions, and collaborative documents keeps students interacting rather than passively watching, which also helps combat disengagement.

Suzanne and LeiLani also highlight the importance of professional learning communities for teachers. Sharing short videos, rehearsal sessions, and quick peer feedback helps educators refine virtual routines and spread what works. It’s no surprise that educator-focused video conferencing tips have resonated widely—collectively they’ve amassed over one million views since the pandemic began—underscoring the demand for practical, classroom-tested guidance.

Top Resources for Hybrid and Remote Teaching

Below are the key resources discussed in the episode. These pages offer teacher-centered guidance, training, and community support for hybrid learning and virtual classroom design:

https://www.webex.com/webexremoteedu.html

https://community.cisco.com/t5/webex-for-education/bd-p/disc-education

https://help.webex.com/landing/onlineclasses/upcomingClass/Education

Why These Practices Matter

Hybrid and virtual teaching demand more than technology alone; they require intentional instructional design, human connection, and ongoing reflection. When teachers apply simple workflows—clear opening routines, consistent engagement strategies, and flexible assessment options—they build resilient learning experiences that work across settings. By prioritizing inclusivity and interactivity, educators can reduce screen fatigue, boost student engagement, and create environments where learning thrives.

For teachers seeking quick, actionable ideas, Suzanne’s resources and the community spaces she helps curate make it easier to adopt techniques proven by peers. Whether you’re new to video-based instruction or refining a mature hybrid practice, small, purposeful changes can have big results for student learning and well-being.

Click Here to Listen to the Podcast

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How Technology Connects Cultures for Global Learning and Growth

Welcome back to our Teacher Feature Series, where we interview educators who teach online across borders. Today we introduce William Dyke, the Editing Team Leader for Course Products and the Teaching Operations Center at 51Talk/HAWO American Academy. Read about William’s path to 51Talk, his role producing and editing ESL curriculum for a rapidly growing edtech company in China, and what it’s like to design learning materials for online classrooms.

Tell us about yourself and your background.

I grew up on the Seacoast of New Hampshire and graduated cum laude with a Bachelor of Arts in English from the University of New Hampshire. My academic interests focused on education and labor markets, which I explored in my senior thesis. I also studied abroad for a semester in Budapest, Hungary, which deepened my interest in travel and cross-cultural work.

After beginning my career as a teacher, I moved into program management coordinating short-term study abroad programs that brought primary school students from China to the United States. That experience combined my interest in education and international exchange. I later joined 51Talk to bring together my analytical background and classroom experience to help create ESL course materials for online learners.

How long have you worked at 51Talk?

I joined 51Talk in July 2016, and I’ve spent the past several years learning more about curriculum design and digital education products. The role has been a valuable opportunity to explore how high-quality ESL materials can be produced and scaled for online delivery.

What does your role as Editing Team Leader, Course Products & Teaching Operations Center involve?

As Editing Team Leader I manage a team of roughly ten proofreaders, copyeditors, and administrative staff. Our responsibilities include running the backend content management system, overseeing quality assurance for course materials, and copyediting all lesson content. We work closely with content development and graphic design teams to ensure materials are accurate, engaging, and ready for teachers and students. I report to the Vice President of Course Products and the Teaching Operations Center.

What do you enjoy most about your job?

There are many rewarding elements to the work, but my favorite part is collaborating with editors and writers to craft new stories for our reading and conversation lessons. We developed the CEJ (Communicative English for Juniors) world—characters like Timmy, Cindy, and Sam—that brings continuity and personality to our lessons. Seeing those characters come alive in lessons and hearing positive feedback from teachers and students is extremely satisfying.

Can you describe a typical workday?

I usually arrive at the office around 9:00 a.m. and start by reviewing my tasks and scheduled meetings for the day. I prioritize responsibilities, handle editing and QA work, and support my team where needed. A large part of my time is spent refining course quality and building systems that let my team operate efficiently without constant oversight. For example, we developed a feedback SOP so editors can provide consistent, actionable guidance to content creators and teachers without requiring micromanagement.

What do you like about living and working in China?

I’m a bit of a language enthusiast, and learning Mandarin has been one of the highlights of living here. Lately I’ve been focusing on improving my ability to read Chinese characters, which helps with workplace communication and deepens cultural understanding. I’ve also enjoyed making friends from China and around the world—adapting to a different cultural perspective can be challenging at times, but it’s an experience I value greatly.

Is online education the future?

The internet already enables companies like 51Talk to connect teachers and students across great distances, and it opens many opportunities for improving instruction. In the coming years we should focus on how technology can support personalized learning systems. Tools such as artificial intelligence have potential to help monitor progress and tailor instruction.

That said, I’m cautious about seeing technology as a cure-all. Strong teacher-student relationships and the development of critical thinking remain essential. Technology can augment and scale education, but it cannot replace the human elements that make learning meaningful.

What accomplishment are you most proud of?

I’m proud of the CEJ course materials we developed. I initially wrote for one of the earliest CEJ versions, and the project has expanded significantly. Now, many colleagues across curriculum and content are contributing to different parts of the course, which has become a core offering for our learners.

Where do you feel you have the most impact working with an international team?

Ultimately, our work benefits Chinese students. The most rewarding moments are watching a lesson you helped create being taught and seeing students engaged, smiling, and practicing their English. That immediate impact on learners is what motivates our team.

What cultural differences between the U.S. and China have stood out to you?

One broad difference I’ve observed is that American culture often emphasizes the individual, while traditional Chinese culture has placed more emphasis on the group. Historical experiences throughout the 20th century also influence how people in each country view education, authority, and social relationships, which affects classroom dynamics and expectations.

Which two books influenced you this year?

Peter Drucker’s The Effective Executive helped me refine decision-making and time-management in an information-rich environment. Nicholas Carr’s The Big Switch: Rewiring the World, from Edison to Google offered a thoughtful perspective on how major technological changes reshape society—helpful context for working in edtech.

Share something interesting about yourself.

I enjoy outdoor sports—lacrosse and soccer in school, and I’m a passionate snowboarder. I also write on my personal blog as a practice in clear thinking and to explore topics that interest me.

Any future plans?

My plan is simple: continue working with my team to produce outstanding courses that serve teachers, students, and parents.

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Princess Planet: Inclusive Styles by and for Every Princess

Israel Cook is the founder and lead author of Princess Planet. He launched this project a few years ago inspired by his daughter’s love of princess stories and his frustration with the lack of authentic, diverse representation in children’s entertainment. Seeing a gap in the marketplace, he chose to create a solution rather than wait for others to act, shaping a brand that centers inclusivity and positive representation for young readers.

“Any parent with a daughter can relate to the challenge of finding children’s content that reflects true cultural diversity,” says Israel Cook, CEO of Princess Planet. “I started Princess Planet so our daughters can see themselves, their friends, and their classmates as princesses.” This commitment to visibility and positive representation guides every Princess Planet project, from storytelling to product design.

Princess Planet is a children’s entertainment brand focused on providing culturally diverse content across books, toys, and apparel. The brand’s core mission is to ensure that children encounter inclusive, well-researched stories and characters in their everyday lives. To that end, Princess Planet recently released three new books—two story books and a coloring book—timed for the holiday season, with additional products and expansions planned for release soon.

The initial book collection introduces sixteen distinct characters from the Princess Planet universe. Each princess blends elements of imagination and realism, inhabiting a world that is both colorful and grounded in real-world geography and history. Stories emphasize curiosity, a love of learning, and respect for language and culture. The narratives are designed to be adventurous and accessible while teaching children about different places and traditions in an age-appropriate way.

Fun fact: Each character was created by women from around the world who contributed their voices, perspectives, and creative talents. These collaborations aim to empower readers, celebrate cultural pride, and foster cross-cultural understanding, inner confidence, and self-worth in young audiences.

Princess Planet recognizes that many cultures are either underrepresented or misrepresented in mainstream children’s media. To counter that trend, the brand develops books, toys, and apparel that celebrate cultural diversity without resorting to stereotypes. The goal is to produce beloved products that parents trust and children enjoy, offering inclusive role models and stories that reflect a broad range of experiences.

You can explore Princess Planet’s work and support the project by visiting the brand’s website at www.PrincessPlanet.com. The newly released books are available online through the Princess Planet author page on Amazon at www.amazon.com/author/princessplanet.

How you can help:

If this initiative resonates with you, there are several meaningful ways to support Princess Planet and help bring these inclusive stories to more children:

Spread the word: Share information about Princess Planet with friends, family, teachers, and community groups who care about diverse children’s media.
Purchase the books: Buying the picture books and coloring book directly supports the creators and helps the brand continue producing culturally rich content.
Support funding efforts: To meet production and e-commerce goals for the season, Princess Planet has an active fundraising campaign and has extended its timeline for last-minute support. Contributions help finalize product launches and expand offerings like clothing, accessories, and educational materials.
Follow and engage: Stay updated on product launches, educational content, and community initiatives by following Princess Planet’s social channels and official homepage.

Beyond books, Princess Planet is developing a broader range of products—software applications, instructional videos, accessories, dolls, and clothing—to expand the brand and provide more ways for children to connect with culturally diverse characters. The long-term vision is to create a multimedia ecosystem that encourages curiosity, empathy, and pride in children of all backgrounds.

By supporting Princess Planet, you help amplify authentic voices and ensure that more children can find heroes and role models who reflect the rich variety of cultures in our world. For more information, updates, and ways to get involved, visit the Princess Planet home page or find the books listed through the author page on Amazon.

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Back-to-School Tech Checklist: Tools to Boost Student Engagement

Op-Ed, By: Dr. Charles Miller, Professor at the University of Minnesota, Cofounder and Chief Design Officer of Vidku, and Cofounder of Flipgrid

As a new school year begins, educators face the ongoing challenge of engaging a fresh cohort of learners. Each classroom brings a unique mix of backgrounds, abilities, and learning preferences, and designing instruction that meets those diverse needs is one of the most important tasks teachers face.

Students learn in different ways: some respond strongly to visual or auditory material, while others learn best through hands-on, kinetic activities. When instructors can draw on a variety of approaches—visual, auditory, reading/writing, and kinesthetic—they have a better chance of reaching every learner. Providing teachers with the right tools and strategies increases the likelihood that all students will be active participants in their education rather than passive recipients.

Traditional, passive methods like lectures or showing videos are useful for introducing new concepts. However, active learning techniques—where students solve problems, discuss ideas, create artifacts, or teach peers—help learners deepen understanding and retain information longer. Research and widely cited frameworks such as the Learning Pyramid indicate that participatory methods can significantly improve retention compared with passive approaches. This makes a strong case for integrating technologies and practices that support interactive, student-centered learning.

To bring active learning into everyday practice, schools should equip teachers with technologies that encourage collaboration, creativity, and meaningful interaction. When technology enables every student to contribute—whether in person, in a blended classroom, or online—it helps close participation gaps and empowers diverse voices.

Interactive edtech can make classroom collaboration scalable and routine. The right tools create space for students to share ideas, reflect, and iterate on their learning. They can support formative assessment, peer feedback, and project-based learning, all of which reinforce higher-order thinking skills such as analysis, evaluation, and problem solving.

Checklist: Vetting EdTech for Active Learning

Use the following questions to evaluate whether a digital tool or platform will foster active learning and meaningful engagement in your classrooms. These criteria help decision-makers select solutions that align with instructional goals and support teachers in delivering quality learning experiences.

Does the technology encourage critical thinking and problem solving by supporting challenge-based or inquiry-driven tasks?
Can it accommodate a variety of learning styles so teachers can meet students where they are?
Does it bridge participation gaps and promote peer-to-peer collaboration, enabling students to share diverse perspectives?
Does it extend learning beyond the classroom, supporting exploration, research, and application in real-world contexts?
Is the interface intuitive for both instructors and students, minimizing the time needed to learn the tool so instruction remains the focus?
Does it provide ways to track student progress, engagement, and achievement so educators can make timely instructional adjustments?
Are there straightforward ways for students to give feedback on the course structure or their own learning progress, fostering a responsive classroom environment?

When evaluating solutions, consider how the tool integrates with existing workflows and whether it supports formative assessment practices—quick checks for understanding, peer review, or short reflective tasks. Tools that make student thinking visible allow teachers to tailor instruction more precisely and intervene earlier when learners struggle.

Equally important is professional learning. Even the best technology will fall short if educators are not supported in designing activities that leverage it effectively. Ongoing training, collaborative planning time, and opportunities to share successful strategies help teachers turn tools into sustained instructional improvements.

In classrooms from elementary through higher education, combining thoughtful pedagogy with carefully selected technology can enhance student motivation and deepen learning. When educators structure lessons around interaction, reflection, and application, and when they use platforms that amplify student voice and collaboration, they set the stage for a stronger school year.

Providing the right mix of tools, training, and instructional design empowers teachers to create environments where students are not only receivers of information but active creators of knowledge. That shift—toward engagement, participation, and continuous feedback—helps students build the skills they need to succeed academically and to become lifelong learners.

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How to Assess Each Child’s Cognitive Strengths for Equity

By Betsy Hill and Roger Stark

Editor’s Note: This is part two in a five-part series

In the first article of this Achieving Equity series we argued that one of the greatest barriers to educational equity in the United States is students’ cognitive capacity—because cognitive skills determine how students access and benefit from learning experiences, no matter how those experiences are delivered. We highlighted the urgency of addressing this issue in light of COVID-19 learning losses and the well-documented effects of poverty on cognitive development. Since education and economic opportunity are deeply intertwined, improving educational equity requires attention to cognitive development.

To address this challenge, we proposed three essential steps:

Assess and understand each student’s cognitive strengths and weaknesses;
Remediate and strengthen weaker cognitive processes while building on existing strengths;
Design learning environments—technology, instruction, and curriculum—that follow scientific evidence rather than folklore.

This second article focuses on the first step: how to understand each student’s cognitive profile and why that understanding matters for teaching, learning, and equity.

Cognitive Skills That Underpin Learning

The phrase “cognitive skills” has gained wider recognition in education over the past decade. For clarity, it helps to describe specific types of cognitive abilities that form the foundation for academic learning. Important cognitive skill categories include attention, visual and auditory processing, sensory integration, memory, executive functions, logic and reasoning, and higher-order executive functions. Each category contains more specific abilities that influence classroom performance.

Cognitive Skill Category	Example Skills
Attention	Sustained attention; selective attention
Visual Processing	Visual form consistency; visual span; visualization
Auditory Processing	Auditory discrimination; auditory sequential processing
Sensory Integration	Auditory-visual integration; timing and rhythm
Memory	Auditory or visual short-term memory; long-term memory
Executive Functions	Working memory; inhibitory control; cognitive flexibility
Logic / Reasoning	Visual thinking; conceptual/abstract thinking; verbal reasoning
Higher Order Executive Functions	Planning; problem-solving; strategic thinking

Why a Cognitive Profile Matters: The Story of Bobby

When a student’s cognitive profile is unknown, educators and families can easily misinterpret the source of academic difficulty. Consider the case of “Bobby,” a 10-year-old who dreams of becoming an airline pilot. His math grades were strong, but reading comprehension was a persistent struggle. Bobby disliked reading and needed frequent prompting.

On a cognitive assessment Bobby’s spatial perception fell at the 91st percentile while his verbal reasoning was at the 3rd percentile. The rest of his cognitive scores were around average. Spatial perception refers to the ability to reason about objects in space—rotating, manipulating, and judging relationships among visual elements. Verbal reasoning involves inferring meaning from language, reading between the lines, and making predictions when information is presented verbally.

Without these assessment results, Bobby’s teacher might view him as unmotivated in English Language Arts because he struggled to interpret text or produce more than basic sentences, despite otherwise strong abilities. At home, Bobby’s parents reacted differently: his mother, an attorney with strong verbal reasoning, tried to explain texts verbally and became frustrated when that approach didn’t work. His father, who shared Bobby’s spatial strengths, used drawings and diagrams and had more success. Each parent relied on their natural strengths rather than aligning support to Bobby’s cognitive profile.

With targeted information, Bobby benefited from two interventions he might otherwise not have received. First, he was taught highly personalized strategies that leveraged his visual strengths—such as creating mind maps—to transform how he understood and remembered relationships among ideas in texts. This showed that true personalization is not only about what a student learns but how they learn best. Second, Bobby completed a 12-week cognitive training program that substantially improved his verbal reasoning score, moving him from the 3rd to the 46th percentile—shifting from a severe weakness to the middle of the expected range.

Research supports the view that cognitive skills explain a large portion of the variance in academic performance—more than many classroom and environmental factors. When learning struggles are misdiagnosed as purely instructional or motivational problems, students miss opportunities for targeted cognitive support that could change their trajectory.

Poverty, Executive Functions, and Classroom Impact

Bobby’s situation is an individual example, but in many settings the same underlying cognitive challenges affect whole groups of students. A substantial body of research shows that students growing up in poverty, on average, have less developed cognitive skills than their more advantaged peers. The most pronounced differences typically appear in executive functions—especially working memory and inhibitory control.

The data we have collected across a range of schools show that the percentage of students with clinically significant weakness in attention and/or working memory (defined as a performance at least one standard deviation below the mean) varies dramatically. In an affluent suburban district that percentage may be around 32 percent, whereas in several high-poverty urban charter schools more than 70 percent of students show significant executive function weaknesses.

When most students in a classroom have poorly developed executive functions, teachers understandably notice behavioral challenges. But executive functions are also essential to learning: inhibitory control prevents impulsive responses when decoding text; working memory holds information long enough to understand and integrate it with prior knowledge; both are crucial for reading comprehension, multi-step problem solving in mathematics, and sustained academic tasks.

Personalized classroom strategies—such as grouping students with similar cognitive needs, giving step-by-step instructions, and using external prompts—are important. Yet these accommodations are only part of a full solution. If we can build students’ underlying cognitive skills, we can expand their ability to learn independently and more effectively across subjects.

Coming in part three

The next installment in this series will explore the second element of the solution: how to remediate and strengthen both weaker cognitive processes and existing strengths so students gain more equitable access to learning.

About the authors

Betsy Hill is President of BrainWare Learning Company, which develops tools to build learning capacity through the practical application of neuroscience. An experienced educator, she has studied neuroscience and education with leading experts. She is a former chair of the board of trustees at Chicago State University and teaches strategic thinking in the MBA program at Lake Forest Graduate School of Management. She holds a Master of Arts in Teaching and an MBA from Northwestern University.

Roger Stark is Co-founder and CEO of BrainWare Learning Company. For more than a decade he has led efforts to bring comprehensive cognitive skills training and assessment within reach of many schools and families. He directed the development of BrainWare SAFARI, a widely researched online cognitive literacy training tool.

This article was originally published by The Learning Counsel, a research institute and news media hub focused on the shift in education to digital curriculum.

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Nationwide Public Education Referendum Explained

By Charles Sosnik

Across the United States, families are effectively casting a nationwide referendum on public education — and they’re doing it with their feet. Increasing numbers of parents are choosing alternatives to traditional public schools: homeschooling, unschooling, private institutions, charter schools, or in some cases, opting out of formal schooling altogether. This shift has received little sustained national media attention, yet its implications for education policy, community planning, and the future workforce are profound.

Today, roughly one in four school-aged children do not attend a traditional public school. Despite the dedication and progress of many educators, more than 25 percent of American families are seeking different learning options — and that share continues to grow. The trend raises a difficult question: do the public’s preferences still align with the public-school model?

The short answer may be: maybe not. The traditional model of schooling, developed in a different era, often prepares students for the world their parents knew rather than the world they will face. If education is to remain relevant, it must be reimagined to serve learners in a rapidly changing social and economic landscape.

Two major shifts must guide that reimagining. First, we should abandon thinking of education as a rigid institution that produces uniform outcomes. A one-size-fits-all, “cookie-cutter” approach clashes with a future that rewards creativity, entrepreneurship, and self-directed problem solving. Second, the hierarchical, authoritarian model of school — where rules and curricula flow top-down — needs to give way to a service-oriented model in which students are the customers of learning. Publicly funded schools must ensure every child can learn, yet we are still falling short: graduation rates, subject proficiency, and real-world preparedness all indicate significant gaps.

The movement away from traditional public schools is measurable. In the United States, approximately 4 million children are homeschooled or unschooled, 3.2 million attend charter schools, and 5.7 million are enrolled in private schools. Additional research indicates there may be as many as 6 million children not enrolled in either public or private schools; even if that figure overlaps with homeschoolers and unschoolers, the result is nearly 15 million children outside the conventional public-school system — more than a quarter of all school-aged youngsters. Some school districts have seen enrollment declines approaching 30 percent, with rural areas often hardest hit.

These shifting enrollments are changing education spending patterns. Consumers now spend more directly on learning materials than schools do. Recent figures show public schools spent roughly $10.5 billion on digital curriculum last year, while direct-to-consumer purchases of educational content reached about $18 billion — a 20 percent increase from the year before. Families are voting with their wallets for learning experiences they find more engaging, flexible, or relevant.

Author Leilani Cauthen has described this development as the “consumerization” of learning. Modern learners bring high expectations: they live with powerful media experiences and nearly limitless information at their fingertips, and they rightly expect educational experiences to be interactive, personalized, and engaging as other parts of their digital lives. The contrast between polished home media environments and large, traditional classrooms can be jarring; boredom drives some students away, just as workplace dissatisfaction drives some teachers to leave. For example, teacher retention is a growing concern: in South Carolina, one report found roughly 25 percent of new teachers left after their first year, and similar retention challenges appear elsewhere.

To help schools navigate the digital shift, Cauthen’s organization, the Learning Counsel, provides research, events, and resources aimed at rethinking curriculum for a digital-first future. Their model, described in the report Designed for Digital, suggests “reverse-engineering” schools to put students at the center and make digital tools integral to learning design. In this approach, software handles routine, personalized instruction and data-driven pathways while teachers focus on human strengths: connecting with learners, diagnosing misunderstandings, mentoring, and inspiring curiosity.

Reimagining the teacher’s role also allows the physical learning environment to become more flexible. Rather than burdening educators with endless administrative tasks, data entry, or lesson micromanagement, smarter systems can surface insights and handle repetitive functions so teachers can teach. That could mean new scheduling options, collaborative spaces, and roles that let educators emphasize their most human contributions to learning.

Such a transformation is complex. Effective digital learning requires more than single-piece solutions; it relies on an ecosystem of apps and platforms that work together — personalized reading and math programs, science tools that interact with hands-on experiments and robotics, and analytics that provide actionable insights. Commercial offerings are numerous, and the challenge for districts and families is selecting and integrating tools that genuinely improve outcomes.

Change is difficult in part because we all carry mental models of school based on our own experiences. Policy-makers and the public alike tend to imagine “better” as an improved version of what already exists. Yet what today’s learners need is not simply a more efficient version of yesterday’s system but a more modern approach to education — one that blends human teaching with digital capabilities, preserves what works, and replaces what no longer does.

We do not need to abandon the existing public system entirely, nor should we resist its evolution. The future likely lies in a thoughtful middle path that preserves the public mission of equitable education while embracing design and technology that meet students where they are. Achieving that balance will require vision, bold leadership, hard choices, and collaboration between educators, technologists, families, and communities.

If school systems do not adapt, the exodus of families seeking alternatives could continue, leaving policy-makers scrambling to catch up. The public’s current voting behavior — largely expressed outside formal ballots — is a clear signal: education must evolve or risk losing the very people it serves.

About the Author

Charles Sosnik is an education journalist and editor based in Gastonia, North Carolina. He serves as an education fellow at the EP3 Foundation and writes regularly for influential education outlets, including The Learning Counsel, NSBA Journal, EdNews Daily, and edCircuit. Contact: charles@learningcounsel.com

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Congress Introduces Bill to Restore Pell Grant Eligibility

Pell Grant Restoration Act of 2015 Introduced to Protect Students

Today, a bipartisan group of Members of Congress, led by Senator Barbara Boxer (D-CA) and Representative Bobby Scott (D-VA), introduced the Pell Grant Restoration Act of 2015. They were joined by Senators Dick Durbin (D-IL), Elizabeth Warren (D-MA), Mazie Hirono (D-HI), Chris Murphy (D-CT) and Representatives Maxine Waters (CA-43) and Janice Hahn (CA-44).

With the collapse of Corinthian Colleges, Inc. amid widespread allegations of fraud, this legislation aims to protect students who lost access to education and financial aid through no fault of their own. Under current law, a student’s Pell Grant eligibility clock does not reset when a school closes or is found to have violated federal rules, leaving many students without enough grant eligibility to finish a program elsewhere. The Pell Grant Restoration Act would restore Pell Grant eligibility for students whose schools closed due to certain violations, allowing them to continue their education.

Why Restore Pell Grant Eligibility?

Pell Grants are a critical source of need-based federal aid that helps students pay for tuition and fees, books, and living expenses. When a school shuts down or is found to have engaged in deceptive or predatory practices, students suffer the financial and academic consequences. Restoring Pell eligibility gives these students a real opportunity to transfer, reenroll, or begin a new program without being penalized for the misconduct of their institution.

Support and Statements

U.S. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan praised the bill, noting that while defrauded students may receive some loan relief today, current law does not allow them to restore Pell Grant eligibility. Secretary Duncan commended Congressman Bobby Scott and Senator Boxer for their leadership in addressing this gap.

Senator Boxer emphasized the need to protect students from predatory for-profit colleges and ensure they are not punished for deceptive practices. She said the Pell Restoration Act would help students start over by restoring access to crucial financial aid.

Representative Bobby Scott highlighted that while time lost from interrupted studies cannot be recovered, restoring Pell eligibility would give students another chance to pursue a post-secondary education without losing key aid. He argued that higher education should not be a risky proposition for students and families.

Senator Durbin criticized the failure to intervene sooner to prevent federal Pell funding from being wasted on a failing system, stating it is fair to restore grant eligibility for students misled into attending poor programs. Senator Warren added that students cheated by predatory colleges should not lose Pell eligibility and that the legislation would allow them to hit the reset button and return to school.

Representative Maxine Waters drew attention to the demographics most harmed — including low-income students, veterans, and minority communities targeted by aggressive recruitment — and said the bill would help restore opportunities for a quality education and productive careers. Representative Janice Hahn noted this is both fair and sound policy, offering motivated students the chance to continue their education.

Senator Mazie Hirono described how thousands of students were left scrambling after Corinthian’s closure, and urged Congress to give those students another opportunity to use federal aid to complete their degrees. Senator Chris Murphy stressed the need to hold abusive colleges accountable while also restoring aid so affected students can continue their studies.

Legislative and Advocacy Support

The Pell Grant Restoration Act of 2015 counts 45 House cosponsors and 4 Senate cosponsors. House cosponsors include Rubén Hinojosa, Janice Hahn, Maxine Waters, Susan A. Davis, Raúl M. Grijalva, Joe Courtney, Marcia L. Fudge, Jared Polis, Gregorio Kilili Camacho Sablan, Frederica S. Wilson, Suzanne Bonamici, Mark Pocan, Mark Takano, Hakeem S. Jeffries, Katherine M. Clark, Alma S. Adams, Mark DeSaulnier, Karen Bass, Earl Blumenauer, G.K. Butterfield, Michael E. Capuano, Tony Cárdenas, Kathy Castor, Judy Chu, David N. Cicilline, Wm. Lacy Clay, Peter A. DeFazio, Keith Ellison, Chaka Fattah, Lois Frankel, Ruben Gallego, Luis V. Gutiérrez, Denny Heck, Marcy Kaptur, Robin L. Kelly, James R. Langevin, Jim McDermott, Gwen Moore, Patrick Murphy, Pedro R. Pierluisi, Charles B. Rangel, Cedric L. Richmond, Lucille Roybal-Allard, Tim Ryan, and Bennie G. Thompson.

Senate cosponsors are Dick Durbin (D-IL), Elizabeth Warren (D-MA), Mazie Hirono (D-HI), and Chris Murphy (D-CT).

The bill is supported by a broad coalition of organizations, including labor unions, veterans’ groups, consumer advocates, educators, and public interest groups. Supporting organizations named include AFL-CIO, Air Force Sergeants Association, American Federation of Teachers, Association of the United States Navy, Center for Law and Social Policy, Consumer Action, Consumer Union, The Education Trust, Equal Justice Works, Housing and Economic Rights Advocates, NAACP, National Association for College Admission Counseling, National Association of Consumer Advocates, National Education Association, National Women Veterans, Public Counsel, Service Employees International Union, Student Debt Crisis, The Institute for College Access & Success, U.S. Public Interest Research Groups, Veterans for Common Sense, Veterans Education Success, VetJobs.com, VetsFirst, and Young Invincibles.

Resources

A fact sheet and the full bill text were released at the time of introduction for lawmakers, advocates, and affected students to review:

Pell Restoration Act of 2015 — Fact Sheet

Pell Restoration Act of 2015 — Bill Text

The Pell Grant Restoration Act of 2015 seeks to ensure that students harmed by institutional misconduct or sudden school closures have a viable path to complete their education through restored federal aid. By resetting Pell eligibility in qualifying cases, the bill aims to protect taxpayers, hold bad actors accountable, and most importantly, give students who were misled or abandoned a real chance to continue toward a degree or credential.

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Cintas Kicks Off Nationwide Janitor of the Year Contest

Cintas Recognizes Excellence Among School and University Janitors

Often the first to arrive and the last to leave, school janitors work behind the scenes year-round to create clean, safe and welcoming learning environments. Cintas Corporation (NASDAQ: CTAS) is accepting nominations for its annual Janitor of the Year contest to honor outstanding janitorial professionals serving U.S. schools and universities. Nominations are being accepted online through March 1.

Janitors and custodial staff play a vital role in daily school operations. Their work supports student health and safety, fosters a positive atmosphere for learning, and contributes to overall campus pride. The Cintas Janitor of the Year contest shines a spotlight on those who consistently go above and beyond to keep classrooms, corridors and facilities safe, hygienic and inviting.

Prize and recognition

The contest recognizes both individual dedication and the broader impact on school communities. The winning janitor will receive a $5,000 cash award, and their school will receive $5,000 in products and services provided by Cintas and Rubbermaid. In addition, nine other top finalists will each receive a $500 cash award. Winners and finalists gain public recognition for their service and an opportunity to highlight the importance of custodial work in education.

Last year’s contest drew strong community engagement: after nearly 100,000 votes were tabulated, Sherry Albright of Trine University in Angola, Ind. was crowned the 2015 Janitor of the Year. Her campus celebrated with a parade featuring a marching band, police cars, cheerleaders, a housekeeping drill cart line and an ice cream social that brought the community together to honor her contributions.

Who is eligible and how to nominate

The Janitor of the Year contest is open to custodial staff at elementary, middle, high schools and universities who have been employed at their school for at least two years. Nominations should be concise and compelling: submissions must be 500 words or less explaining why the nominee deserves the award. Nomination submissions must be completed by the March 1 deadline.

When nominating, focus on specific examples that demonstrate the nominee’s dedication, innovation, impact on student and staff well‑being, and any ways they have improved facility safety or cleanliness. Clear, genuine anecdotes and testimonials from students, teachers or administrators strengthen a nomination and help the selection committee and public voters understand the custodial professional’s contributions.

Selection process and public voting

Cintas will select the top 10 finalists from the pool of nominees and announce them on March 15. Once finalists are announced, the public will be invited to vote for their favorite janitor. The nominee who receives the most votes will be named Janitor of the Year. Public voting will be open through April 15, giving communities time to rally support for their nominees.

Partner perspective

Rubbermaid Commercial Products, a premier sponsor for the contest, supports this recognition program as part of its commitment to improving conditions for custodial staff. Neil Eibeler, President of Rubbermaid Commercial Products, said, “Rubbermaid Commercial Products is proud to partner with Cintas to showcase the Janitor of the Year. We understand how important their hard work is to our communities and we are committed to providing solutions that make their jobs easier and safer.”

Why this matters

Recognizing janitors raises awareness of the essential role they play in K‑12 and higher education settings. Celebrations like the Janitor of the Year contest highlight the professionalism, pride and skill that custodial teams bring to their work. Public recognition can boost morale, build community appreciation and inspire investments in better tools, training and support for facility teams.

About Cintas Corporation:

Headquartered in Cincinnati, Cintas Corporation provides specialized services to businesses across North America. Cintas designs, manufactures and implements uniform programs, and offers entrance mats, restroom cleaning and supplies, tile and carpet cleaning, promotional products, first aid and safety services, and fire protection products and services. Cintas is publicly traded on the Nasdaq Global Select Market under the symbol CTAS and is a component of the Standard & Poor’s 500 Index.

About Rubbermaid Commercial Products:

Rubbermaid Commercial Products (RCP), headquartered in Huntersville, North Carolina, manufactures solution-based products for commercial and institutional markets worldwide. Since 1968, RCP has developed technologies and systems for food services, sanitary maintenance, waste handling, material transport, away-from-home washrooms and safety products. RCP is part of Newell Rubbermaid’s portfolio and continues to innovate for the custodial and facilities market.

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How to Integrate Social-Emotional Learning with EdTech

By Tamara Fyke

In today’s world, educating the whole child requires attention to social-emotional learning (SEL) while also recognizing that technology is an essential, ever-present part of education. The important question for educators and families is this: how can SEL and educational technology (EdTech) work together to support students’ growth, resilience, and success?

To answer that, we need to look toward the future our children will inhabit. Technology now touches nearly every part of daily life—from online shopping and digital communications to workplace tools and creative platforms. Students must learn far more than how to watch videos or manage social media; they need practical, transferable skills such as information literacy, typing proficiency, and basic coding. As technology continues to shape careers and communities, the highest value lies not just in knowing the mechanics of tools, but in using them with purpose: ethically, thoughtfully, and for human benefit.

Ethics and morals—distinctions often summarized as the principles guiding group conduct versus personal judgments of right and wrong—are central to how we teach digital behavior. Across political and religious lines, many of us can agree on a core principle: act with care and consideration for yourself and others. Technology can make interactions feel distant and impersonal, which risks desensitizing users to real human impact. Popular culture has long reflected this concern in narratives that explore the tension between people and machines, suggesting that convenience must never displace our moral responsibilities.

As educators and community leaders, we are called to foreground human dignity in the face of technological change. Two core ideas should guide instruction and policy:

Technology is a tool designed to serve human needs; people are not subservient to machines.
There are real people behind and affected by every screen: individuals with rights, feelings, ideas, and agency.

With those principles in mind, SEL and EdTech can be intentionally integrated to reinforce students’ personal and social development. EdTech offers practical ways to develop the five core competencies identified by CASEL: self-awareness, self-management, responsible decision-making, relationship skills, and social awareness. When used thoughtfully, digital tools can move beyond rote practice and become platforms for meaningful growth.

For example, adaptive learning platforms and formative assessment tools give educators timely snapshots of students’ abilities, enabling tailored instruction that supports self-awareness. When students see clear evidence of their learning progress, they gain insight into strengths and areas to develop. Similarly, explicit instruction in digital citizenship—how to communicate respectfully online, protect privacy, and evaluate sources—builds social awareness and responsible decision-making.

EdTech can also foster self-management and relationship skills. Project-based digital activities such as coding challenges, multimedia storytelling, or collaborative media productions require planning, persistence, and teamwork. These projects demand problem-solving, meeting deadlines, negotiating roles, and giving and receiving feedback—skills employers value and that prepare students for real-world collaboration. The critical factor is intentionality: explicitly naming the SEL competencies students are practicing, reflecting on those skills, and connecting them to personal goals and community responsibility.

Three strategies for using technology to support social-emotional skill development

Have the conversations. Use a common language for SEL and make explicit links between those competencies and the EdTech tools and projects students use. Discuss what skills are involved in each activity and why they matter for life inside and outside school.
Make it human. Intentionally highlight the people on the other side of the screen: the creators of technology, the users, and those impacted by digital actions. Encourage empathy, perspective-taking, and ethical reflection about how designs and interactions affect others.
Adopt a makerspace mentality. Empower students to create with digital tools and express their voices. Move beyond slideshows to offer diverse, engaging project formats—comics, short films, music, photo galleries, prototypes or business models—so students can explore identity, purpose, and collaboration through meaningful creation.

When SEL and EdTech are intentionally paired, technology becomes more than a delivery mechanism: it becomes a context for practicing empathy, ethical decision-making, collaboration, and self-regulation. The goal is to prepare students not only to use digital tools efficiently, but to use them wisely—to contribute positively to communities, exercise compassion, and solve problems with both skill and integrity.

About the Author

Tamara Fyke is an educator and creative entrepreneur dedicated to supporting children, families, and urban communities. She is the creator and brand manager of Love In A Big World, a social-emotional learning curriculum for K–8 educators that blends research-based strategies with practical resources to help students become emotionally healthy, socially competent problem-solvers who find purpose and make positive contributions to their communities.

Tamara edited the book Building People: Social & Emotional Learning for Kids, Schools & Communities, which gathers diverse perspectives on SEL for educators, parents, and leaders. She continues to advocate for SEL integration across classrooms and digital learning environments to help young people navigate the ethical and social dimensions of technology.

This article was originally published by The Learning Counsel, a research and media organization focused on the shift to digital curriculum and the evolving landscape of education.

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When Love Triggers a Domino Effect

A Teacher’s Hope After Newtown

Written By: Robyn Shulman

Throughout my years in the classroom I rarely called the children “students.” They were my kids. I poured myself into keeping them safe, knowing that caring deeply for children is not a flaw but a responsibility. Early in my career a principal told me I cared too much. After the Newtown tragedy, it is impossible for me to imagine any parent, administrator or teacher showing too much concern for the children in their care.

Some colleagues called me overprotective. I was the teacher who counted heads multiple times on field trips, insisted that children hold hands at the zoo, declined activities that felt unsafe, and followed up whenever something didn’t sit right with me. Kids sometimes teased me for acting like their mom. I never minded. I experienced a lockdown, reached out to families when I saw warning signs, and once prevented a student from meeting an adult she had been communicating with online. That intervention may have saved her life. Those experiences shaped my conviction that vigilance and care matter.

The events in Newtown reopened many of those memories and reminded me of the gravity of the responsibility we have for children—our most precious gifts. The faces and names of those lost are images we must hold with honor and respect. Their memory should never be exploited for political gain; instead, it must guide us toward constructive action.

This tragedy affected countless people on multiple levels. Our nation felt shocked, angry, afraid, and profoundly changed. Yet even amid grief, we can choose hope and meaningful change. Below I share what I hope will come from such a painful chapter, with the aim of honoring victims, supporting families, and improving safety and well‑being for children everywhere.

I hope this never happens again. I hope communities, schools, and leaders commit to preventing any repetition of such violence.

I hope the beautiful faces and names of the children lost remain a source of remembrance and compassion, not a tool for political division.

I hope the heroism of administrators and teachers who gave their lives protecting children is never forgotten. Their courage must inform how we honor and support school staff going forward.

I hope the families of Newtown find a path to peace and a place of steady comfort in time. Grief is long and individual; communities must offer ongoing support, not just immediate sympathy.

I hope we learn more about mental health and address it proactively. Better access to care, earlier intervention, and compassionate assessment of those in crisis could help prevent future tragedies. Recognizing and supporting those who suffer silently must be a priority.

I hope communities become better at noticing people who are struggling and take thoughtful action rather than dismissing warning signs. A culture of attentive support can make a life‑saving difference.

I hope we cherish every moment with our children—holding hands, listening closely, putting away distractions, and making real time for family. One more hug, one more conversation at the dinner table, a phone set aside to be fully present: these simple, everyday acts convey love and security that matter more than we often realize.

I hope our society recognizes and supports the majority of teachers and administrators who enter education out of a genuine desire to help children grow and thrive. They deserve respect, resources, and the trust of the communities they serve.

My deepest wish is that the grief we carry becomes a catalyst for more love and kindness. May the memory of those we lost spark a chain reaction of compassion—moving across towns, cities, and countries—so that children everywhere can grow up safer, loved, and supported.

May all who mourn find moments of peace, and may families and communities discover strength in each other during this time. Let us honor those lost by committing to protect, cherish, and listen to the children in our lives.

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