“That is a nice big target, especially if I can see it.”

I really enjoy my subscription to Scientific American Mind.  I stumbled upon a small article from July/August 2011 about a visualization experiment conducted by researchers at the Free University of Amsterdam. The experiment was really simple: –         Ask three different groups to putt a golf ball at a target 5 feet away. –         Let each

Poverty and the Grading of Homework

The conversation around how schools can react to poverty typically centers around reduced breakfast and lunch programs.  On a few occasions I have heard people express concern as to the access that poverty-affected students have to sports programs, band and other extra-curricular activities.  I have never heard people discuss specifically how the grading of standardized

Why are we doing this? (Part II)

How We Designed our In-School Suspension System In my last post I detailed the process that saw a number of us at Pen Hi arrive at wanting an alternative to the traditional method of sending a student home for a drug suspension.  As stated, there were a number of reasons why we wanted to initiate

Why Are We Doing This? (Part I)

Our experience in implementing an in-school suspension system. The Problem When I first filled the role as Vice-Principal of Penticton Secondary, few decisions were clearer than what to do with students caught using or possessing drugs at school.  A student caught in such an offence was given a 3-day suspension of they agreed to visit