What We're Reading: Building a better conversation about teaching

  • Don’t miss the first excerpt from Chalkbeat CEO Elizabeth Green’s “Building a Better Teacher,” out next month. (NYTMag)
  • Hear more at Elizabeth’s first reading, in Brooklyn on Aug. 4. (Chalkbeat NY calendar)
  • Elizabeth shares tips, gleaned from reporting her book, for parents who want to help their children with math. (Motherlode)
  • An educator riffs off the excerpt to make the case for “slow reform.” (Storify)
  • A math teacher rounds up some of the research reflected in Elizabeth’s story. (dy/dan)
  • A researcher found that extra time in math classes didn’t pay off for sixth-graders. (Stanford Report)
  • A New Haven school that scrapped extra time for students in favor of time for teachers represents a trend. (Hechinger)
  • A mother says her preschooler’s experience bears out data about black boys being disciplined disproportionately. (WaPo)
  • A sociologist notes that implicit bias and real differences in behavior can be at play in discipline disparities. (Shanker)
  • The Achievement First charter network is starting its quest for “disruptive change” by overhauling one school. (New Haven Independent)
  • Teachers union contract negotiations are heating up in Los Angeles. (L.A. School Report)
  • From profiles to tragedies, here’s a rundown of New Yorker stories about education to read while you can. (Vox)
  • A city educator describes her journey from naive Teaching Fellow to experienced teacher. (Atlantic)
  • Project-based learning is the focus at the teacher-run Workshop School in Philadelphia. (NPRed)
  • The author of “Up the Down Staircase,” the iconic book about teaching in New York City, has died at 103. (New York Times)
  • Here’s a primer on Mayor Bill de Blasio’s pre-K expansion plans and why they matter. (Vox)
  • American principals are more likely than colleagues in other countries to say their students are poor. (Upshot)
  • Chicago has told its largest charter network to make it easier for students to apply. (WBEZ)
  • The start-of-the-school-year nightmares have set in. What’s yours? (Tween Teacher)