Creative Leadership Blog

What is Rigor?

In this thoughtful article (August 25, 2025) by Doug Fisher and Nancy Frey, “Rigor is misunderstood,” the authors say. 

The Power of Super-Facilitators for PLC Teams 

Guest Research Wednesday article by Allyson Apsey 

In the September–October 2025 edition of Harvard Business Review, author and Harvard professor Jamil Zaki makes a compelling case for developing “Super-Facilitators” to drive team growth and performance.

The Miseducation of Boys

“It is easier to build strong boys than to repair broken men.” Frederick Douglass.

The data is striking about the differences between boys and girls in schools.

Returning to the Value of Play for Kindergarten Students 

In this thoughtful report from August 20, 2025, schools may want to reconsider the emphasis on kindergarten as the first step to preparation for state tests.

Misunderstandings About Teacher Compensation
In this revealing synthesis of research about teachers’ compensation, Evie Bald (July 31, 2025), shows how cash compensation to teachers fails to understand what actual compensation is from the employees’ point of view.

Cautionary Tales About Curriculum Overload 
In this thoughtful article, Sarah Schwarz (Ed Week, August 4, 2025) notes that many districts that are already complying with mandatory “Science of Reading” curricula are also piling on with supplemental materials that teachers find more useful.

This week’s evidence comes from our San Bernardino City School District friends. Over the past 3 years, the DF rate decreased by 22.8% over the last year.

The new Mark Twain biography by Ron Chernow addresses forthrightly the debate about whether his books should continue to be taught in school. Chernow reveals in detail Twain’s strengths as a popular writer in books that, until recently, were part of the canon in many schools. Hemingway and others called Twain’s books “The Great American Novels.” Chernow also relentlessly details Twain’s many weaknesses, not the least of which was the stark racism, including the prolific use of the N-word in Huckleberry Finn.  

This week’s update addresses one of the most important skills every teacher must have: effective classroom management. A frequent complaint from school leaders is that they spend more time dealing with disruptive students whose teachers cannot deal with them. Thus, the school administrator has less time for their most important role – instructional leadership. The evidence comes from Edutopia, July 7, 2025, with the title “8 Small But Impactful Classroom Management Shifts.”

Here is a new view on how AI in the classroom could be positive, rather than the cheating machine that AI is often labeled. It comes from Dan Willingham of the University of Virginia.