| By Gale Staff | Youth sports programs offer fertile ground for nurturing critical life skills: teamwork, persistence, and pride in one’s accomplishments. However, as teachers, we sometimes see drawbacks. For example, student-athletes may suffer from unrealistic expectations and real or perceived pressure from parents, peers, and coaches. Sports can also create barriers that exclude … Read more
| By Gale Staff | Twenty-some years ago, I gravitated to an English degree because I loved writing and reading, but it wasn’t until my first upper-level seminar that my abilities to analyze works of literature deepened. In the course, we were encouraged to make liberal use of historical documents to help our twentieth-century minds … Read more
| By Gale Staff | With unobstructed access to international affairs tucked into our pockets, it’s nearly impossible for students to avoid a constant stream of troubling images. A scroll through social media means seeing apartment buildings in Ukraine reduced to rubble by Russian artillery, Gazan skylines left in ruins, and Taiwanese protestors marching for … Read more
| By Amy Hackney Blackwell | This May and June will see an entomological event that occurs only once every 221 years. Two broods of periodical cicadas are now digging their way out of their subterranean homes. One brood consists of cicadas that emerge every 17 years. The other is cicadas on a 13-year cycle. … Read more
| By Gale Staff | In many states, teenagers can register to vote before they turn 18—but there is no age limit for learning about the democratic process. Experts encourage early voter education. A 2020 study found that students who learned about the voting process in high school were “more likely to vote and participate … Read more
| By J. Robert Parks | Brown v. Board of Education of Topeka, Kansas, which was decided seventy years ago this week on May 17, 1954, might be one of the most famous Supreme Court decisions of the twentieth century, but it’s also one of the more misunderstood. Although it’s widely hailed today as the … Read more
| By Amy Hackney Blackwell | Citizen science uses the power of crowds to process collections of data that are too large for individual scientists to run on their own. Some projects use volunteers in the field to collect data, often with smartphones. Others use the internet to crowdsource efforts that require huge amounts of … Read more
| By Gale Staff | Soon, schools will be closing for summer break. But in addition to pool parties and family vacations, that final bell signifies something else for K–12 teachers: time to begin creating lessons for the next school year. Before you submit your final grades and head for the pool, check out the … Read more
| By Gale Staff | Since the 2020 election, 16 million Americans have turned 18, boosting younger voices at the polls. Confronted with potential misinformation and bias through social media and other news sources, how can high school educators ensure these new voters are accurately informed? That’s where digital media literacy comes in. Young voters … Read more
| By Gale Staff | In addition to being a storied general and a powerful politician, Julius Caesar was one of the most influential individuals in history. He helped shape society as we know it and continues to fascinate scholars. With July 12 marking the birthday of this great Roman leader, use the occasion to … Read more