How one Mass. school bucked the rise in absenteeism The following Letter to the Editor appeared in the Boston Globe’s Opinion Page on November 22nd, 2023. The Nov. 15 editorial, “How to get absent students back in the classroom,” rightly points out that “more fresh thinking” is needed to address chronic absenteeism. Beyond students’ losing … Read more
Faculty and staff at the S. Christa McAuliffe Elementary School in Lowell recently experimented with maker education during a professional development workshop facilitated by Acera Education Innovation (AceraEI). The goal is to bring hands-on, creative, and STEM-infused curriculum to Lowell students. In the workshop, teachers worked in small groups to build circuits using batteries, LED … Read more
Faculty and staff at Missituk Elementary School in Medford recently experimented with maker education during a professional development workshop facilitated by Acera Education Innovation (AceraEI). The goal is to bring hands-on, creative, and STEM-infused curriculum to Medford students. Watch the video below to see Missituk teachers design, make, and iterate. In the workshop, nearly 80 … Read more
While most people wouldn’t connect kids with cardiovascular research, a Boston-based partnership is working to change that. One Brave Idea™(OBI) is an $85M research and innovation initiative co-founded by the American Heart Association and Verily, with significant support from AstraZeneca and Quest Diagnostics. OBI was established to pursue unconventional scientific approaches in order to make … Read more
The gymnasium was buzzing with the sounds of conversation and laughter as teachers proudly showed off their creations to their peers. Across a series of tables, dozens of “hacked” toys were on display: stuffed animals sported new flashing lights in their ears or bellies, and plastic flowers glowed with LEDs powered through miniature circuits. At … Read more
The Pyne Arts first grader wasn’t satisfied with the results of her first experiment. “I added a big water and a big glue the first time, and I did three small Borax,” she noted, having written her first “recipe” down on her clipboard. “But it was slippery and hard and too bouncy. I realized that … Read more
It was June, and although school had recently ended, the learning continued. Leonardo Medina, a teacher at Humanities & Leadership Development High School in Lawrence, was captivated by AceraEI’s professional development workshops in gene editing and microbiomics, and felt his students will be excited about the new units next school year. “The activity and discussion … Read more
What makes a school successful? One of the challenges with education is that we are not measuring the things that matter the most. The decades-long standardized testing movement has failed to close the equity gap in education, which was its entire intent. So, where does that leave us? We have an opportunity to redefine the … Read more