Professional Development Blog

A Place at the Table

Susan Graham taught family and consumer science (formerly “home ec”) for 25 years. She is a National Board-certified teacher, a former regional Virginia teacher of the year, and a Fellow of the Teacher Leaders Network. In this opinion blog, Graham invited readers to pull a chair up to her virtual table as she offered her voice-of-experience perspective on teaching today, with a special focus on teacher leadership and continuous professional growth. This blog is no longer being updated, but you can continue to explore these issues on edweek.org by visiting our related topic pages: teacher leaders, teacher PD.

Education Opinion Gum: It's a Sticky Policy Issue
To chew or not to chew? That is the question. It may seem petty, but in a data driven, research based education world, it is a sticky policy dilemma with which every teacher must wrestle.
Susan Graham, January 17, 2011
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2 min read
Education Opinion Remember Me?
What our students remember matters. But it may be equally important that we remember our students.
Susan Graham, January 9, 2011
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1 min read
Education Opinion Listen to Me!
Even at the movies during winter break, teaching permeates my thinking.
Susan Graham, December 28, 2010
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2 min read
School & District Management Opinion Naughty or Nice?
Who knew? The investigative team of the Associated Press and Stanford University has been helping with keeping up with who's been naughty and nice!
Susan Graham, December 19, 2010
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2 min read
School Climate & Safety Opinion Going Green
Teachers are not an easily renewable resource so it makes sense to reuse and re-purpose them rather than discard them.
Susan Graham, December 12, 2010
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4 min read
Education Opinion Pow! Take That!
The good news was that my lesson was highly engaging. The bad news was that it was so engaging that there was a fight in my room. It was my classroom.
Susan Graham, November 29, 2010
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4 min read
Education Opinion Freedom From Want
Whether they are eating turkey or tuna or tamales or tabouli, I hope that children will experience Freedom from Want on Thanksgiving Day.
Susan Graham, November 21, 2010
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1 min read
Education Opinion What's a Picture Worth?
A picture may be worth a thousand words, but do those words tell the picture's story or do they simply allow us to create a thousand-word story of our own?
Susan Graham, November 8, 2010
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3 min read
School & District Management Opinion The 100-Year Homework War
Will our nation have the will to restructure how we do public education? Heck, we can't seem to reach detente in the Homework Wars!
Susan Graham, November 3, 2010
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3 min read
Education Opinion An Incomplete, Unsigned Manuscript
As one of the many "unsigned manuscripts" of my sixth grade teacher, I'm not ashamed to say I'm an incomplete work.
Susan Graham, October 26, 2010
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1 min read
School & District Management Opinion Guess Who's Coming to Dinner
Remember when they served lunch at school and dinner on airplanes? While airlines have dropped food service, D.C. schools have expanded to three meals a day.
Susan Graham, October 20, 2010
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2 min read
School & District Management Opinion Don't Make Me Get Out My Cape
A lot of people have been Waiting for Superman. I wonder how long they'll wait before it occurs to them that he doesn't always wear tights and a cape.
Susan Graham, October 11, 2010
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3 min read
Education Opinion Up Against the Wall
All teachers, no matter how experienced or skilled, occasionally find themselves backed up against the wall with a classroom management issue.
Susan Graham, September 26, 2010
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4 min read
Education Opinion A Star is Born - But Who Gets Burned?
When our schools become movie sets for grownups seeking the spotlight, children are sometimes left in the dark.
Susan Graham, September 20, 2010
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2 min read
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