A personal reflection by Tracy Mayor in The Times’ “Motherlode” blog addresses the complex pain of her son’s college admission rejection. We had a strong reaction as she described her own emotions and involvement in the process. We come away feeling that, as parents, we must disentangle our own hopes and dreams from our children’s, especially as they prepare to fly on their own.
More than a decade ago, the math faculty at Phillips Exeter devised a novel approach to teaching their subject. Their problem-based curriculum, freely available online, is unique and revolutionary. We think it’s worth a short discussion.read more
A series of books and articles has whipped up a bit of a frenzy for teaching higher math to the Kindergarten set. There’s a lot of great thinking at work here, but also some bad habits. Conceptually oriented play is excellent but must also still be play.read more
A recent article and book reminds us that the SAT happened by accident. Reflecting on the billion dollar industry it has become and the power it wields on anxious high school students, we are struck by the unfortunate culture it has inspired around it read more