We at Hertz Furniture are pleased to announce the recipient of our 21st Century Learning Commons Grant. Crossroads Academy of Kansas City has been awarded a furnished learning commons valued at up to $50,000. The prize includes furniture, design, delivery and installation.
The grant was open to all US charter schools opening a new school in 2015 or 2016 whose state association participates with BuyQ (formerly known as Momentum Ventures). BuyQ helps charter schools reduce operational costs through group purchasing contracts for products and services. Applications for the grant were accepted from April 1 to May 16, 2015.
There’s a new school on the block, so to speak. Referred to as “Teacher Powered Schools”, this innovative concept is catching on. The idea developed in 2007 when teacher Lori Nazareno and her colleagues thought to design and run a teacher powered school.
Presently, there are about 70 such schools in action in the US and they seem to be meeting their goals where other schools continue to struggle. Let’s explore this initiative.
The Teacher Powered School is built on the premise that teachers know best what students need and have enough professionalism to find ways to fulfill those needs. Teachers work collaboratively to design and implement school learning, manage the budget, maintain student discipline, select personnel, decide their salaries and benefits and more. They also agree on a system for evaluating the success of their programs.
Introducing 21rst century classrooms into our already existing school infrastructure is a challenge that school leaders including principals, assistant principals, school business managers and edtech professionals are facing today.
Whether you expanding or renovating school, are in the midst of school construction or are planning a new school, you will face many challenges including space, logistics, planning and of course, budget constraints. How can you relieve the stress, design and succeed while keeping to your plans and budget? Watch this 1 minute video!
Last week’s blog discussed the facts that 1. Mobile devices seem to be here to stay. 2. They are addictive for young and old alike. 3. They cause serious distraction and social interaction challenges. 4. They increase bullying.
Before diving into the various cell phone policies in schools which schools can take towards mobile devices, I’d like to further discuss the addiction factor. A 2011 study found that removing a Smartphone from a high-user for 24 hours resulted in both physical and mental withdrawal symptoms such as fidgeting, feelings of isolation and anxiety.
Hertz Furniture is proud to share the Simplifying The Process of Creating a School Budget Infographic with you. Although budget requirements vary by state to state and district to district, by breaking down school budgets into the main categories to be considered we can start to simplify and discuss how to successfully build a school budget.
We’ve all done it or experienced it. You are sharing something deeply personal with a friend when their phone rings. “Oh, sorry. I’ll just be a minute.” they say, leaving you wondering just how deep this relationship really is. A couple is out for a romantic dinner ‘together’ and…both are on their cell phones. You’re at a funeral when…RING/BUZZ/DING goes off and, even worse, the person answers their phone and starts a conversation! And, let us not forget that driving has now become like an obstacle course with trying to avoid swerving cars as they text and drive or with pedestrians who never look up from their phones. The examples are endless.
Many administrators find the creation and maintaining of school budgets a great challenge. Similar to household finances, one must not only honestly evaluate needs but also have a clear idea of where money is being spent and how to cut back or even increase expenditures where necessary.
Although budget requirements vary from district to district and even state to state, there are some broad categories which should be taken into account when creating school budgets.
Here are some of the main areas to consider:
Most of us have experienced the cutting of school funds along with the demand for greater student success. How can we best meet these challenges? Firstly, it is crucial to know how much money is actually being spent. For the purposes of this blog, we will focus just on the classroom.
Do you know how much that AP math course costs? What about music lessons or remedial English? Must some classes remain small while others can be increased in size? How can one evaluate the value of their school dollars?
Most of us do not have control over which classroom we are assigned. However, we can all find ways to make the best use of the space we have. As discussed in my last few blogs, teacher centered learning is becoming less fashionable while student cooperative learning is thriving. Additionally, teachers need to take into account various student learning styles and comfort levels to maximize classroom success. Here are some helpful hints towards these goals.
Flexible seating arrangements using flexible furniture come in handy. Sitting students in a U for class discussions has been found to be more effective than in rows. This also leads to better all around eye contact and a feeling of equality between students.
I recently had a telling experience while sitting at a friend’s dinner table. The mother asked her son how his class was today. He answered, “It got deleted”. Let’s be honest. Unless you are living under a rock, most of us are not only reliant on our computers for daily functioning but are also involved with social media in one form or another. In this digital era, our youngsters may no longer know the difference between something getting cancelled and something getting deleted.
Though I have no doubt that by the time our elementary school students graduate high school there will be many more “new and improved” digital social outlets, social media today is more than just a way to connect to friends. It has evolved into a serious tool used for education and business as well. As many of our young people are practically born with a Smartphone in hand, is bringing social media into the classroom a necessity or a distraction?
In an outstanding display of innovative and inspired teaching, Kay-Lynne Schaller guided her student to win a Gold medal in the National Leadership Conference in San Antonio on July 11 th for her design plan for a “More Exciting Classroom” project using Hertz Furniture’s school furniture products. Hertz Furniture recognizes both Mrs. Schaller’s and her student, Allie Ruf’s efforts in constructing this project and winning a Gold medal. Congratulations Mrs. Schaller and Allie!
Readers be forewarned; I am about to age myself. When I was in school, George Orwell’s “1984” was required reading. We couldn’t imagine then that much of what the book presented would be experienced in our lifetime. “Big Brother is watching” is a common euphemism in English vernacular. With today’s search engine targeted advertising, satellite cell phone use and cloud storage, we know that little of what we do, say or write is private. In fact, it is accepted behavior to put on public forums like Facebook and other social media outlets what would have been considered private information only a decade ago. The question is often asked, “Is anything sacred anymore?”
“I have never let my schooling interfere with my education” – Mark Twain
Do grades matter anymore? According to one of the most influential companies on the planet today: not really. In a recent op-ed in the New York Times, Thomas Friedman interviews the Senior Vice President of People Operations at Google Inc., Laszlo Bock. The interview is a fascinating window into the work culture of the internet’s leading search engine, as Bock discusses the traits that the company seeks in its new employees. The bottom line: we are no longer living in the employment market of the 20thcentury. A college degree –once an assumed necessity for professional advancement- is simply not what it used to be. On some teams in Google, nearly 14% of the members have received no college education.
Hertz Furniture is proud to present this infographic representing how classroom design including classroom layout and ergonomic furniture effects student learning. Learn more about how flexible classroom design, ergonomic classroom furniture and environmental factors effect student behavior in this infographic.