Blog

The political events and images of rioters storming the U.S. Capitol on January 6, 2021 reached schools and homes across the nation and beyond. Several members of the Learning First Alliance are posting statements and resources regarding the riots to help school leaders, teachers and specialists work with their schools...

Originally published March 2, 2020. See LFA's homepage for any updates. As schools reopen virtually and in person, school offiicals continue to grapple with a sudden and uncharted course to manage COVID-19 (novel Coronavirus) outbreaks. LFA recently published a report, "Managing COVID-19 in School Buildings" with advice from school nurses...

Transitions can be technical or aspirational, but they also need to be objective. Ninety percent of all students attend traditional public schools. Currently, many of those schools were underfunded even before the pandemic and current economic turmoil and being impacted by federal requirements that provide little in the way of...

The 11 member associations of the Learning First Alliance have asked the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to allow teachers and all school staff priority access to new vaccines for Covid-19. Such a move would allow schools to reopen more safely and help promote public confidence in a vaccine...

By Cathy Houchin According to Charlotte Danielson’s book Teacher Leadership That Strengthens Professional Practice, “The term teacher leadership refers to that set of skills demonstrated by teachers who continue to teach students but also have an influence that extends beyond their own classrooms to others within their own school and...

The Covid-19 pandemic is wearing out our school leaders and educators, or perhaps, they are wearing themselves out. What has started as a crisis has become an ongoing set of challenges that is exhausting and frightening. Educational leaders are moving from one problem to the next, knowing well that there...

By Ted Willard, Discovery Education At some stage in every teacher’s life, they reach a point when they feel like they should write a letter of apology to the students they taught early in their career, and I am no different. I can remember how, in my first few years...

By L. Earl Franks and Richard M. Long This blog was originally published by the American Psychiatric Association Foundation. Public schools are facing their biggest challenge: Educating students during a worldwide health pandemic. Public schools have always strived to be a safe haven for all students, a shelter for our...

Originally published Sept. 22, 2020; updated Sept. 28, 2020. As the Covid-19 pandemic continues and schools begin to reopen virtually and in hybrid models, many surveys are attempting to gauge attitudes and beliefs of educators, parents and the public on how this can and should be done safely. LFA recently...

Too many of our students are dealing with mental health and social-emotional issues that impact their learning and future success. This is a significant challenge for public schools, communities, and families, and we know that a wide array of professionals are needed in public schools. But more than 14 million...