American Federation of Teachers New Jersey, AFL-CIO

By combining repeat reading, paired reading and fluency trackers, elementary school teacher Sonja Cassella finds that students “are more motivated to do that crucial work that builds fluency,” she writes in a June 7 story for Edutopia.

Read Cassella’s three-step strategy here.

With America “splintered along political and geographic lines,” social studies has found itself caught in the crossfire — and at the same time, there’s an overall feeling that this set of subjects “has been given short shrift in American schooling,” writes Kelly Field for The Hechinger Report.

“As the field has become more politicized, schools have scaled back the time they spend on social studies, leaving their graduates unprepared to navigate political differences,” writes Field.…

Competitive salaries for teachers “would lower attrition rates and attract fresh talent that would push everyone to do better,” writes Colette Coleman, a former educator in Los Angeles and Indonesia, in a guest essay for The New York Times.

“For many teachers, the extra money would allow them to quit second jobs and give their primary work the attention it needs,” adds Coleman.…

Writing for Edutopia, longtime educator David Wilson provides tips for new teachers that are meant to provide them with structure on a daily basis as well as support when times are tough.

Read his advice here.

Even though the classroom “has become a minefield of political dos and don’ts,” longtime North Carolina history teacher Valencia Ann Abbott continues to “teach historical truths, to help my students become critical readers and thinkers and skillful and persuasive writers,” she writes in an essay published by Chalkbeat. 

“Revealing long-ignored history gives students a more comprehensive understanding of the past, which in turn gives us a deeper understanding of ourselves,” she adds.…