Rich Espey

The National Endowment for the Arts Begins Terminating Grants (Gift Article) The endowment told arts organizations that it was withdrawing or canceling current grants just hours after President Trump proposed eliminating the agency in the next fiscal year.

Cutting pre-approved and pre-appropriated funding for Arts organizations (a drop in the bucket for the federal government but life blood for artists) isn't "eliminating waste and fraud" - it's cruelty. But when you are addicted to cruelty, like any drug, you have to get your daily fix.

I'm struggling to convince colleagues at my #progressiveeducation school that the pedagogy of compliance (credit to Zaretta Hammond) is toxic. Our students thrive when they contribute to the curriculum and learn what matters to THEM. How have you overcome the pedagogy of compliance? #EduSky

So much well-deserved talk of empathy lately. Empathy is knowing that kids #lovingschool means centering Urgency, Individuality, and Community. #Edusky #progressiveeducation

For students to be #lovingschool we need to prioritize CREATIVITY over compliance. True #progressiveeducation embraces students' voices in what and how they learn. They don't work for us - we work for them. #EduSky

For teachers who want students to be #lovingschool, I recommend you read and act on "Culturally Responsive Teaching & The Brain" by Zaretta Hammond. Be a "warm demander"!

Will #progressiveeducation survive in Trump 2.0? I think it will. Because we can still get adolescents #lovingschool. Follow me.

and maybe a more creative way of engaging other adults and paraprofessionals in the classroom so one person doesn't have to do it all?

Excited to see this!! That's the kind of classroom I've worked hard to develop.

For teachers, the third key to a "leave the room" moment is Community. Students need to feel that what they are learning and doing is part of something larger than themselves - their class, their school, their local community, their country, the world.

#lovingschool

#progressiveeducation

For teachers, the second key to a "leave the room" moment is Individuality. Students need to be able to learn what they want and how they want, at least some of the time! #lovingschool #progressiveeducation

The first key to a "leave the room" moment is Urgency. Students need to feel that what they are learning is important to them, and that they are learning "just in time" to solve a problem or answer a question they care about. #lovingschool #progressiveeducation

I once heard, “You know you’re doing a really good job as a teacher if you could leave your classroom and the kids would still be doing what you want them to do.” Forging “leave the room” moments was my mission as a teacher. My forthcoming book is about how to achieve those moments. #lovingschool

The book examines how the "rules" of school have stifled children for centuries, and how we can change those rules to make school a joyful experience for adolescents.

After a long teaching career, I'm writing a book tentatively titled "Loving School: Infusing Adolescent Education with Humanity and Joy". So I'm starting #lovingschool!

First post on Bluesky. Who else is here?