Another day, another end-of-year “Best” list.

Now, it’s time for research studies.

You can see all previous editions of this list, as well as all my ed research related “best” lists, here.

Here are my choices for the past six months:

Excellent Materials For PD On Increasing Student Engagement

Increased Lighting Is To Improved Public Safety As [Blank] Is To Improved Student Learning

New SEL Meta-Analysis Finds That SEL Improves “Prosocial Behavior” AND That Less Is More

The Best Research & Reflections About Why Test Scores Should Not Be The Be All/End All In Evaluating Schools & Student Progress

This Is The Most Interesting Piece About Education Research That I’ve Read In A Long Time

Study Found That Requiring Later Start Times For High School & Middle School Seems To Have Worked

The Best Research On How Having Books In The Home Helps Students

Yet Another Study Finds That English-Only ELL Classes Don’t Work As Well As A Positive Translanguaging Environment

New Study Reinforces What We Know: Factors Outside Of School Have Big Impact On Achievement & School Isn’t A Ticket To Equity

The “High-Dosage Tutoring” Bubble Appears To Be Popping, & That’s Why I’ve Been Pushing “Peer Tutoring” For Years, Instead

Study Finds That Enrollment In Ethnic Studies Classes Has Academic Benefits Across The Board

Great Summary Of Research On Writing Instruction Would Be A Good Focus For Professional Development

New Meta-Analysis Finds What Most ELL Teachers Know – Multilingual Teaching More Effective Than English-Only Approach

Apparently, Data Driven Learning Related To Language Learning Doesn’t Mean What You Think It Does

Review Of Research Suggests Reciprocal Teaching Could Be Best Strategy For Older Readers

Yet Another Study Finds That Human Connection & Relationships Are Key In Schooling

Two New, Important, & Useful Documents On Student Motivation

Interesting Survey Results – Teachers Think Aides & A Searchable Data Base For Lessons Are The Two Best Things That Could Save Them Time

Holding A Kid Back A Grade? Not So Fast, New Study Suggests

Another Study Finds That VAM Performance Rankings Penalize Teachers With Students Facing Many Challenges

The Best Research Out There On Using AI With English Language Learners

Here are a few others I think are useful, though I didn’t write separate posts about them:

Research in brief: Harnessing the translanguaging corriente is from ELT Planning. I’m adding it to THE BEST RESOURCES FOR LEARNING ABOUT TRANSLANGUAGING.

What Science Tells Us About Arguing With Your Father-in-Law is from The NY Times.  I’m adding it to The Best Posts & Articles On Building Influence & Creating Change.

Supporting Students in Transition to and from High School is a report from VCU. I’m adding it to The Best Resources For Learning About The Importance Of Ninth-Grade For Students – & How To Support Them.

Teacher Talk and Language Development: What a Large Meta-Analysis Shows About Quality versus Quantity is from Experience To Meaning. I’m adding it to THE BEST RESOURCES SHARING RECOMMENDATIONS ABOUT “TEACHER TALK”

INTEGRATING PODCASTS TO IMPROVE WRITING SKILLS OF UNDERGRADUATE STUDENTS IN ELT CLASSROOM is actually a study of the use of dictogloss. I’m adding it to The Best Resources For Learning How To Use The Dictogloss Strategy With English Language Learners.

Does something crack in secondary school? A large meta-analysis on student engagement is from Experience To Meaning. I’m adding it to The Best Posts & Articles On Student Engagement.

Student engagement declines across adolescence: A meta-analysis of longitudinal studies – I’m adding it to The Best Posts & Articles On Student Engagement.

It’s never too late to learn a language – adults and kids bring different strengths to the task is from The Conversation. I’m adding it to The Best Research About The Best Ages For ELLs To Learn English.

AI broke our exams. Are oral exams the fix? Hold your horses… is from From Experience To Meaning. I’m adding it to The “Best” Strategies For Creating AI-Resistant Assignments.

When school size matters and when it doesn’t is from The Hechinger Report and discusses research around small high schools.  I’m a big believer in the idea of dividing existing high schools in small learning communities, the way my old school operated during most of my time there.  Learn more at The Best Resources For Learning About Small Learning Communities.

I’m adding Intrinsic and extrinsic motivation from a self-determination theory perspective: Definitions, theory, practices, and future directions to Best Posts On “Motivating” Students.

Tumisu / Pixabay

Many of us have students who are facing challenges who find difficult to reach, and I am no exception.

I have a long list of strategies that I can pull from, all which have worked at one time or another, as well as failing many more times than they have worked.

But, often times it’s just a matter of throwing a lot of things against the wall to see if anything sticks.

This past month, I have had a little success with having a couple of students complete a sheet I developed that is sort of a combination of previous goal sheets I’ve used (see Best Posts On Students Setting Goals) and a longer-term “visioning” activity I have often used and that I borrowed from Dan Pink (see The Best Resources For Doing A “One-Sentence Project”).

Basically, I have had students complete a form (you can download it here, and I’ll also copy-and-paste it here in this post) – one part everyday.  Since one of the challenges these students might have is difficulty focusing, keeping it short and simple has worked well.  After they have completed the form, which take a few days, I apply an idea I learned from Edutopia (see I LIKE THE IDEA IN THIS NEW EDUTOPIA VIDEO: “60-SECOND STRATEGY: DAILY INTENTIONS”) where I ask them at the beginning of each class which of the actions they listed on the form as ones they want to focus on that day. We then have a short individual discussion at the end of class.

It seems to have been helping, based on their commentaries and my observations.

Here’s what the two-page form looks like:

NAME __________________________________________________________

NEXT YEAR

My school goal for next year is ___________________________________.

My outside-of-school goal for next year is ____________________________.

Next year, I want my friends to describe me by saying I am _______________

______________________________________________________________.

Next year, I want my teachers to describe me by saying I am _____________

______________________________________________________________.

Next year, I want my parents/guardians to describe me by saying I am __________________

_____________________________________________________________.

TEN YEARS FROM NOW

In ten years, I want to ________________________________________.

In ten years, I want my friends to describe me by saying I am

________________________________________________________.

In ten years, I want my parents/guardians to describe me by saying I am

_______________________________________________________.

TWENTY YEARS FROM NOW

In twenty years, I want to _______________________________________.

In twenty years, I want my partner/wife/husband to describe me by saying I am

_______________________________________________________________.

In twenty years, I want my children (if I have them) to describe me by saying I am

_____________________________________________________________________

NAME ____________________________________

Things I can do NOW to help achieve these goals:

1.

2.

3.

When I don’t feel like doing these things, actions I can take to help me get back on track:

1.

2.

3.

When I don’t feel like doing these things, actions my teachers can take to help me get back on track:

1.

2.

3.

I’m not suggesting it’s some brilliant new intervention, but it’s just the latest strategy that may work with these particular students.

And then flop next year.

geralt / Pixabay

I thought readers might, or might not, find this new regular post useful.

Each week, I highlight several sentences, with links to their sources, that I find interesting/concerning/useful.  And they may, or may not, be directly connected to education.  I may also include my own comments or related links.

This regular post will join my other regular ones on teaching ELLs, education policy, Artificial Intelligence, infographics, and Pinterest highlights, not to mention sharing of my regular Education Week posts.

Here are this week’s sentences:

What ed-tech has forgotten to prepare students for: their present lives. Their humanity.

 “Writing groups have been a huge indicator of authenticity for me,” she says. “A student will happily turn in AI writing to me, but they will never put AI writing in front of their peers.

I used to think that public schools were vehicles for reforming society. And now I think that while good teachers and schools can promote positive intellectual, behavioral, and social change in individual children and youth, schools are (and have been) ineffectual in altering social inequalities. See The Best Resources On Why Improving Education Is Not THE Answer To Poverty & Inequality

A common joke in my profession is that no one likes writing itself. We like being about to write and having written.

While grading her 12th graders’ papers, the head of Lincoln High’s English department noticed that they all sounded as if they had been written by the same person, or, more likely, by an AI model. “Polished turds,” she called them. “It looks good on the surface, but there is nothing of substance or value in what it’s actually saying.”

I was terrified to give my life but also afraid I wouldn’t be brave enough to die for my students.

In fact, I don’t want to optimize my learning. 

As Heisenberg pointed out: you can’t watch something without changing it. Observers are never neutral.

Journalists, by their very nature, cannibalize other people’s words to tell their own stories.

“We’ve been successful in spite of her, not because of her,” she said.

Like others, I have now concluded that working directly on individual and collective teacher norms, building broader and deeper teacher knowledge and skills in  classroom instruction—not big-ticket structural changes—have a far better chance of improving teaching practices. 

Unpopular opinion; studies and critics debunking learning styles are taking on low hanging fruit & are avoiding answering the more difficult & much more useful question ‘How can we better differentiate instruction so we can reach every student in our classrooms?’

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— Larry Ferlazzo (@larryferlazzo.bsky.social) October 17, 2026 at 5:39 AM

You might want to check out The Best Resources For Learning About The Issue Of “Learning Styles”

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— Larry Ferlazzo (@larryferlazzo.bsky.social) October 19, 2026 at 4:19 PM

You might want to check out  Best Posts On Books: Why They’re Important & How To Help Students Select, Read, Write & Discuss Them.

Why Is Strategy So Difficult? www.theatlantic.com/ideas/2026/1…

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— Larry Ferlazzo (@larryferlazzo.bsky.social) October 20, 2026 at 4:49 PM

It’s interesting & disappointing to me that she says it will take “leadership on top” to make a difference because parents won’t change things on their own. What about community organizing?—What It Took for Nikole Hannah-Jones to Write About Her Daughter’s Distress www.nytimes.com/2026/10/20/i…

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— Larry Ferlazzo (@larryferlazzo.bsky.social) October 20, 2026 at 4:57 PM

“Considering all of these factors, anyone claiming that all teachers should teach in a particular way, or for that matter, all students should learn in a singular way is a charlatan.” – Larry Cuban

— Ralph Pantozzi (@mathillustrated) October 20, 2026

@mathillustrated Some Teachers Think Using Scripts Is Bad, But Remember: Telemarketers Use Scripts and Everyone Loves Telemarketers

— New York Times Education Pitchbot (@GreyLadiesNYC) October 21, 2026

If a Somali commits a crime in Minnesota he’s Somali but if he saves 20 kids on a runaway school bus he’s a Minnesota Man

— Lydia Kauppi (@lydiakauppi) October 21, 2026

Schäferle / Pixabay

It was a great election night, and it only seems to be getting better!

Here are some decent commentaries from folks about what the results mean for education:

Democrats Will Control Congress. What Educators Can Expect is from Ed Week.

How the 2026 election scrambled the politics of American education is from Matt Barnum at Chalkbeat.

Democrats sweep in blue tsunami. What does it mean for education? is also from Chalkbeat.

Texas Democrats have vowed seismic changes to K-12 education once they take office.

From state takeovers to vouchers, here’s how school policy could change for millions of Texas students under their reign. Latest for @texastribune.org www.texastribune.org/2026/11/05/t…

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— Megan Menchaca (@meganmenchaca.bsky.social) November 5, 2026 at 6:14 AM

One factor that helped fuel Democrats’ dominance in Texas last night: Parental anger over the GOP’s multiyear to war to force private school vouchers, ban library books and impose conservative Christian values on public schoolchildren.

“Parents are just hopping mad,” one Republican told us.

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— Mike Hixenbaugh (@mikehixenbaugh.com) November 4, 2026 at 4:43 PM

For those of us in California, here are some articles from Ed Source:

Xavier Becerra will become California governor as education shake-up looms

Richard Barrera leads Sonja Shaw in California superintendent race by wide margin, results show

Split decision on taxing the wealthy: Prop. 3 wins, Prop. 40 losing

And here’s an interesting article from some folks at USC: What Should Governor Becerra Do About Education? Three Ideas

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Emily Hanford’s Sold A Story podcast has helped prompt a debate on the so-called “Science of Reading” (I think Michael Pershan’s post, Emily Hanford’s Story Was Basically Wrong is the best piece to read about it).

Now, she’s back with Sold A Story 2, which focuses on Direct (with a capital D) Instruction.

It’s obviously sparking debate, and here’s a beginning list of what I think are the most interesting and useful pieces to read about it (I’ll be adding to the list as time goes on):

Direct Instruction is the American Default is by Michael Pershan.

What ‘Sold a Story’ Misses About Direct Instruction is the headline of one of my recent Education Week columns.

DI and di – why they are not the same and why that matters is by Daniel Muijs.

Direct Instruction: What to Know About the Topic of the Next ‘Sold a Story’ Podcast is from Ed Week.

To Sell a Story is by Marcus Luther.

Selling a story that’s lost the plot is by Ben Riley.

Abuse as Old as Time is by Gary Stager.

For what it’s worth, I found this ChatGPT explanation of Project Follow Through, highlighted in Sold a Story 2, very illuminating.

Trevor Aleo and Nick Covington have been publishing a good series of posts analyzing the podcasts.

This seems pretty important ———Project Follow Through: A study so old it makes me look young https://t.co/7w9GQRgDPb https://t.co/1Eimxo4Rsa

— Larry Ferlazzo (@Larryferlazzo) October 31, 2026

Forget the conspiracy, Direct Instruction has been taken up by schools and districts again and again, only to be abandoned. Why??? New @haveyouheard.bsky.social explores the forgotten history of DI on.soundcloud.com/l6idjNaiYwOa…

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— Jennifer Berkshire (@jenniferberkshire.bsky.social) November 5, 2026 at 5:43 AM

The New Yorker magazine recently unveiled a new game called “Catalogues.”

In it, players are presented with seven items that they have to put into some kind of order.  The trick is that you are not told what “order” means – it’s often not chronological.

I found it very intriguing. I often had my ELL and English-proficient students do sequencing activities where they had to put items into chronological order, but I really liked The New Yorker’s addition of a critical thinking skill of needing to identify the meaning of “order.”

But I was stumped.

So, I asked ChatGPT:

The New Yorker has a new game called Catalogues. Basically, players are given a list of items and have to put them in the correct order, but you have to figure out what the correct order really is. I’m trying to figure out how I and if i can adapt this to a game in my ELL class students can play in groups with min whiteboards and I display a teacher made version in front. I often have students do a sequence activity where they have to put things together in an obvious chronological sequence. However, I like the idea of this new game because it adds the critical thinking challenge of players needing to figure out what “order” is. However, I’m stumped right now in figuring out if it’s feasible. Any ideas?

It had a great answer (which is why I’m adding this info to The Best Ideas For Using Games In The ESL/EFL/ELL Classroom):

I think it’s very feasible, but I’d adapt the mechanic rather than copy it exactly.

The challenge for ELLs is that if students have to figure out both the language and a very obscure ordering principle, the cognitive load may be too high. But if you choose ordering principles that are discoverable from language and background knowledge, it could be excellent.

Here are a few versions:

1. “What Is The Rule?” (My favorite)

Display:

• bicycle
• airplane
• skateboard
• car
• train

Groups discuss:

1. What might the ordering rule be?
2. Put them in the correct order.

Possible answer:
Fastest to slowest

• airplane
• train
• car
• bicycle
• skateboard

Students write both the order and the rule on mini-whiteboards.

This creates language output:

“We think the rule is fastest to slowest.”

or

“Our group thinks it is ordered by size.”

2. Multiple Plausible Rules

Display:

• puppy
• teenager
• baby
• adult
• elderly person

Students must determine:

Youngest to oldest

The nice thing is that students will often propose incorrect but reasonable hypotheses first.

That discussion is where the language learning happens.

3. Content-Based Version

For science:

• seed
• flower
• sprout
• fruit

Students must discover:

Life cycle of a plant

For social studies:

• vice president
• mayor
• president
• governor

Possible rule:

Level of government authority

or

Who serves the largest population

4. “Catalogues With a Twist”

Give six items.

Only five fit the hidden rule.

Example:

• egg
• caterpillar
• larva
• pupa
• butterfly
• frog

Students must:

1. Identify the odd one out.
2. Figure out the rule.
3. Put the remaining items in order.

This adds another layer of reasoning.

5. Language-Focused Version

Display:

• gigantic
• huge
• large
• small
• tiny

Students discover:

Biggest to smallest

This works beautifully with vocabulary instruction.

You could also do:

• freezing
• cool
• warm
• hot
• boiling

6. The “Larry Version”

Because you often use sentence-building activities, you could make the ordering principle linguistic.

Display:

• because
• sentence
• complete
• a
• is
• this

Students must discover that the correct order creates a grammatical sentence.

Or:

• yesterday
• store
• went
• I
• to
• the

Answer:

I went to the store yesterday.

The hidden rule is:

“Create a correct English sentence.”

A Competitive Classroom Format

1. Display five items.
2. Groups get 60 seconds.
3. On mini-whiteboards they write:
   • the correct order
   • the rule

Scoring:

• Correct rule = 2 points
• Correct order = 1 point

This is important because students can sometimes identify the rule without perfectly ordering every item.

Why I think this could work well with ELLs

Your current sequencing activities mainly practice chronology.

This game adds:

• categorization
• comparison
• hypothesis formation
• academic discussion
• justification

Students have to say things like:

“I disagree because…”

“Maybe the rule is…”

“Let’s test this idea.”

“I think this goes first because…”

Those are exactly the kinds of productive language moves we want ELLs making.

The sweet spot is probably making the hidden rule challenging enough to require discussion, but obvious enough that groups can solve it within 1–2 minutes. That’s where the engagement comes from.

Then, I asked:

Sounds good. Can you give me more examples?

I actually think there are three different versions of this game that would work particularly well for ELLs:

Type 1: Ordering by a Hidden Attribute

Students know all the words. The challenge is discovering the ordering principle.

Example: Animals

• elephant
• rabbit
• mouse
• horse
• dog

Answer:
Largest to smallest

Example: Jobs

• president
• principal
• teacher
• student
• baby

Answer:
Oldest person who typically has that role to youngest

Not immediately obvious.

Example: School Objects

• backpack
• pencil
• classroom
• school
• district

Answer:
Smallest to largest

Example: Foods

• grape
• watermelon
• apple
• blueberry
• orange

Answer:
Smallest to largest

Type 2: Hidden Process or Sequence

These are closer to your current sequencing activities but less obvious.

Example

• smoke
• spark
• ashes
• fire
• wood

Answer:
Stages of a fire

wood → spark → fire → smoke → ashes

Example

• diploma
• elementary school
• college
• middle school
• high school

Answer:
Typical educational pathway

Example

• butterfly
• egg
• caterpillar
• chrysalis

Answer:
Life cycle

Example

• checkout
• choose a book
• return home
• arrive at library

Answer:
Going to a library

Type 3: Vocabulary Development

This is where I think the biggest payoff might be.

Example

• freezing
• warm
• boiling
• cool
• hot

Answer:
Temperature scale

Example

• whisper
• yell
• speak
• scream

Answer:
Volume

Example

• exhausted
• tired
• energetic
• sleepy

Answer:
Energy level

Example

• furious
• annoyed
• calm
• angry

Answer:
Intensity of emotion

My Favorite Twist: Two Possible Rules

This is where the game becomes really interesting.

Example

• ant
• dog
• horse
• elephant

Groups may think:

smallest → largest

Correct.

But then ask:

Could there be another rule?

Maybe:

• shortest lifespan to longest
• lightest to heaviest

Students have to defend their reasoning.

That creates authentic discussion.

Social Studies Examples

Government

• city council
• president
• governor
• school board

Answer:
Smallest area of responsibility to largest

Rights

• vote
• run for office
• free speech
• petition government

Answer:
Could be ordered by frequency of use.

Students have to figure it out.

Immigration

• citizen
• newcomer
• permanent resident
• refugee

Students determine the organizing principle.

Science Examples

Water

• steam
• ice
• liquid water

Answer:
Coldest to hottest

Solar System

• Mercury
• Earth
• Venus
• Mars

Answer:
Distance from the Sun

Weather

• drizzle
• shower
• rainstorm
• hurricane

Answer:
Strength

A Variation I Think You’d Love

Give students:

• bicycle
• skateboard
• airplane
• train
• car

Tell them:

There are THREE possible rules.

Groups get a point for each valid rule they can identify.

Possible answers:

• fastest → slowest
• most expensive → least expensive
• carries most people → fewest people

This shifts the activity from “guess what the teacher is thinking” to “justify your reasoning,” which is often more productive for language development.

For your students, I’d probably start with concrete categories (animals, food, transportation, school objects) and then gradually move toward abstract concepts (emotions, government, historical events, scientific processes). That’s where the critical-thinking element really starts to emerge.

Each week, I publish a post or two containing three or four particularly useful resources on classroom instruction, and you can see them all here.

You can also see all my “Best” lists on instructional strategies here.

Here are this week’s picks:

To make learning “sticky,” teach ideas in at least 3 different contexts.@dylanwiliam explains in this short video:https://t.co/7yMBgoOMO7

— Learning & the Brain (@learningandtheb) March 19, 2026

Hinterland: Teaching Beyond the Curriculum is from Joel Kenyon. I’m adding it to A BEGINNING LIST OF THE BEST RESOURCES ON TELLING STORIES WHEN WE TEACH.

Building Routines to Manage Cognitive Load is from Edutopia. I’m adding it to The Best Resources On The Value Of Classroom Routines.

I’m adding this post to THE BEST RESOURCES FOR LEARNING HOW TO USE PROJECT-BASED LEARNING & PROBLEM-BASED LEARNING IN YOUR CLASSROOM:

fun/easy thing to do before students turn in essays: have them leave a comment explaining the reasoning behind their title

(always a win!)

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— Marcus Luther (@marcusluther.bsky.social) March 25, 2026 at 6:16 AM

Using Supreme Court Cases in Middle School Social Studies is from Edutopia. I’m adding it to The Best Sites To Learn About The U.S. Supreme Court.

Here are some recent useful posts and articles on educational policy issues (You might also be interested in seeing all my “Best” lists related to education policy here):

Silicon Valley parents want the tech they help build out of their children’s schools www.theguardian.com/us-news/ng-i…

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— Larry Ferlazzo (@larryferlazzo.bsky.social) October 27, 2026 at 11:16 AM

Sad story illustrating a lot of complex challenges facing urban school districts like LAUSD as enrollment declines and competitive pressures heat up www.latimes.com/california/s…

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— Morgan Polikoff (@mpolikoff.bsky.social) October 27, 2026 at 7:29 AM

A snapshot of America’s schools: Trends and global comparisons is from Brookings.

Red-state Democrats are pledging to rein in vouchers. Blue-state voters are being asked to restrict transgender athletes. School board candidates are running against closures. These are some of the education issues on the ballot this year. www.chalkbeat.org/2026/10/27/e…

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— Erica Meltzer (@ericameltzer.bsky.social) October 28, 2026 at 10:25 AM

McMahon Spends $43,000 for New Furniture as She Looks to Close Her Department www.nytimes.com/2026/10/28/u…

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— Larry Ferlazzo (@larryferlazzo.bsky.social) October 28, 2026 at 10:50 AM

How James Talarico’s Years Teaching Middle School Prepared Him for Politics www.nytimes.com/2026/10/28/u…

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— Larry Ferlazzo (@larryferlazzo.bsky.social) October 28, 2026 at 3:26 AM

Who has the most to lose if Trump teachers back into the closet? Your child.

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— Mother Jones (@motherjones.com) October 28, 2026 at 7:40 AM

Opinion: Universities keep asking whether AI can make teaching more efficient. This essay argues the tougher question belongs higher up the org chart: How much senior administrative work could AI, databases, and faculty expertise replace? https://chroni.cl/4icixYf

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— Chronicle of Higher Education (@chronicle.com) October 28, 2026 at 7:00 AM

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— Larry Ferlazzo (@larryferlazzo.bsky.social) October 28, 2026 at 6:21 AM

New teachers union president wants to steer educators away from partisan politics www.npr.org/2026/10/28/n…

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— Larry Ferlazzo (@larryferlazzo.bsky.social) October 28, 2026 at 3:30 AM

Some schools are banning caffeine pouches. Here’s what parents and students should know
apnews.com/article/be-w…

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— Larry Ferlazzo (@larryferlazzo.bsky.social) October 28, 2026 at 1:23 AM

Teacher pay in the US is relatively low and trending downward www.brookings.edu/articles/tea… via @cedr.bsky.social

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— Larry Ferlazzo (@larryferlazzo.bsky.social) October 27, 2026 at 2:05 PM

This riff from Sand won’t make national news, but it will matter a ton when he wins. Blue state dems haven’t been paying enough attention to voucher/ESA politics (or any K-12 issues for that matter). If you look closely, these new and rapidly expanding programs are playing a large role in the politics in places like TX and IA. As much as data centers IMO.

— Ravi Gupta (@RaviMGupta) October 28, 2026

You do not actually have to worry about that Sir ..IT DOES NOT happen

— Henry Winkler (@hwinkler4real) October 28, 2026

New:

In a recent speech, Education Secretary Linda McMahon suggested that American education has deteriorated for the last several decades — ever since the federal government got more involved in the ’60s and ’70s. Is this true?

I dig into some history.

www.chalkbeat.org/2026/10/29/l…

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— Matt Barnum (@mattbarnum.bsky.social) October 29, 2026 at 11:24 AM

What was Emily Oster doing at a Kalshi event? www.motherjones.com/politics/202…

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— Mother Jones (@motherjones.com) October 29, 2026 at 12:05 PM

A Female Student as a Play’s Male Lead? A Texas School District Objects. www.nytimes.com/2026/10/30/t…

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— Larry Ferlazzo (@larryferlazzo.bsky.social) October 30, 2026 at 10:36 AM

Teachers union sues Trump over public service loan forgiveness www.washingtonpost.com/nation/2026/…

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— Larry Ferlazzo (@larryferlazzo.bsky.social) October 30, 2026 at 8:46 AM

Tough Choices Ahead For U.S. Schools Facing Demographic Shift via @forbes.com s www.forbes.com/sites/peterg…

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— Peter Greene (@palan57.bsky.social) October 30, 2026 at 4:02 AM

Strange this hasn’t gone viral/national (yet).

‘Where is our teacher?’: Oshkosh holds vigil for teacher who was deported https://t.co/1XDChLc2eV

— Alexander Russo (@alexanderrusso) October 31, 2026

Culture War Tensions Roil Beverly Hills School Board Race www.nytimes.com/2026/11/01/u…

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— Larry Ferlazzo (@larryferlazzo.bsky.social) November 1, 2026 at 8:20 AM

With House Likely to Flip, Democrats Look to Stop Education Dept. Dismantling is from The 74.

My newest report on Alpha School is live. It focuses on Alpha's leadership, including:

— Profiles of key leaders, including…Bill Ackman?!
— CEO of Alpha endorsing @ehanford.bsky.social podcast
— 17 campuses on internal probation
— Elizabeth Holmes & Billy Evans (of course)

Short 🧵

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— Benjamin Riley (@benjaminjriley.bsky.social) November 2, 2026 at 4:42 AM

N.Y.C. Schools Are Deeply Segregated. These Students Demand Change. www.nytimes.com/2026/11/02/n…

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— Larry Ferlazzo (@larryferlazzo.bsky.social) November 2, 2026 at 6:42 AM

Ten Commandments posters make Texas a test site for religion in schools wapo.st/3Ut91XM gift link

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— Larry Ferlazzo (@larryferlazzo.bsky.social) November 2, 2026 at 6:17 AM

Ten years ago I began this regular feature where I share a few posts and resources from around the Web related to ESL/EFL or to language in general that have caught my attention.

You might also be interested in all my Best lists on teaching ELLs.

Also, check out A Collection Of My Best Resources On Teaching English Language Learners.

In addition, look for our latest book on teaching ELLs, The ELL Teacher’s Toolbox 2.0.

Here are this week’s choices:

Title III State Profiles is from NCELA.

Immigrants who master English have higher high school graduation rates in NY than native speakers https://t.co/ZiQNs57BXI pic.twitter.com/zMuRxd42LE

— Ben Smith (@semaforben) March 14, 2026

What does research say about how digital storytelling (DS) can be used to enhance children language learning?

This infographic summarises evidence from 50 studies.

🧑‍🏫 DS can be used as an engaging and child-friendly approach for learning.

👨‍🏫 It helps children to create… https://t.co/och3FlYx3G pic.twitter.com/ofgJQTgaaT

— TESOLgraphics (@tesolgraphics) March 15, 2026

Impact of Removing Exit Exams on Graduation Rates journals.sagepub.com/doi/abs/10.3…

“Removing exams led to increases in school-level ACGR of 3 percentage points, with the limited English proficient ACGR…projected to increase up 15 percentage points at 4 years after exam removal.”

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— Paul Bruno (@paul-bruno.com) March 15, 2026 at 1:33 PM

“In some cases, teachers reported half the class or more is in the process of learning English, and they don’t have time to teach the basics of English because they need to focus on delivering the provincial curriculum to the rest of the students.”
!?!https://t.co/0oqtZV0FCd

— Jamie Sarkonak (@sarkonakj) March 12, 2026

Karaoke Lover could come in very handy to teachers who use songs in their teaching.  I’m adding it to The Best Online Karaoke Sites For English Language Learners.

Photo Grid Collage lets you do what it says – for free.  I talk in The Best Ways To Use Photos In Lessons about I use collages in class.

ELL students can watch this video and talk/write about what they saw:

Leo_Romero / Pixabay

When I was teaching, I always liked doing a lesson to help students write struggle stories – personal experiences where they change the narrative about problems they faced into ones of success (I have a full lesson plan about it in my book, The Student Motivation Handbook).

There are a number of online resources about this kind of thing, and variations of it.

I thought readers would find it helpful if I brought them all together:

What it means to have a Jalen Brunson mindset is from The Athletic.

A Look Back: The Power Of Stories

The Best Examples Of Turning Problems Into Opportunities — Help Me Find More

“Islands Of Competence” Seems Like A Good Framework To Encourage Student Self-Motivation

A Look Back: Student-Written Growth Mindset Stories

Helping Students Create “Public Narratives”

Reframing the Narrative is a series of what looks to me like some decent inquiry-based social studies units. Check them out here.

How to Reframe Struggle Stories as Inspiration Stories in Your Personal Statement is from ProFellow.

Reading struggle stories of role models can improve the perseverance of undergraduates with low perseverance

A veteran educator takes issue with Emily Hanford’s stance on a contentious instructional system.

Here are some excerpts:

“Parallel text” – where one column is in English and the other column has the same words in the students’ home language – can be a very helpful strategy for both making texts accessible and for helping language acquisition.

There are many online tools that offer these kinds of texts, and you can find them at THE BEST TOOLS THAT SHOW “PARALLEL TEXT” – SAME SENTENCES TRANSLATED INTO DIFFERENT LANGUAGES SIDE-BY-SIDE.

Educators can also have an AI chatbot create their own.

The image at the top of this blog post is an example of one ChatGPT created in response to this prompt:

Create a short summary of the three branches of government in language accessible to an English Language Learner.  Create it in two columns – one in English and then the other in Spanish, having the exact words on the Spanish side parallel to English side.

I’d certainly use this if I was still in the classroom!

Mohamed_hassan / Pixabay

I often write about research studies from various fields and how they can be applied to the classroom. I write individual posts about ones that I think are especially significant, and will continue to do so. However, so many studies are published that it’s hard to keep up. So I’ve started writing a “round-up” of some of them each week or every other week as a regular feature.

You can see all my “Best” lists related to education research here.

Here are some new useful studies (and related resources):

Why do teachers and students (dis-)agree in judging student motivation? A lens model perspective

In my post today I look at my new study. In thousands of UK youth, tiny correlations between social media time and mental health outcomes vanish once other factors in the youth’s life are controlled.

Helps clarify the “correlation doesn’t equal causation” question…social… pic.twitter.com/EOCVoXB5rm

— Chris Ferguson 🇮🇪☘️🍺🍀🌈🎩💚 (@CJFerguson1111) March 16, 2026

I have little doubt that teacher satisfaction has declined over the past 15 years, but this X-axis is an abomination. (Nice catch by @AmyA1A!) https://t.co/xxw4g3sNoB

— Kelley K (@KelleyKga) March 16, 2026

Make research visible in your classroom 🌟

Our posters support students and staff by summarising big ideas in simple visuals.https://t.co/VDLOErJsYE pic.twitter.com/Jx8lsENOv4

— InnerDrive (@Inner_Drive) March 17, 2026

“children who were exposed prenatally to industrial pollution have lower wages, are more likely to live in poverty as adults, have fewer years of completed education, and score lower on a summary index of long-run outcomes than their unexposed siblings” https://t.co/9TZ6p1uCIK

— Paul Bruno (@Paul__Bruno) March 15, 2026

Research-Backed Strategies to Keep Students on Task is from Edutopia.

Terrific Kevin Mahnken piece on our new paper on which teacher applicants are making it through the hiring pipeline. We were surprised by the demographic differences, especially for Asian applicants. Here’s the paper: caldercenter.org/publications…

www.the74million.org/article/scho…

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— Dan Goldhaber (@cedr.bsky.social) March 23, 2026 at 9:20 AM

I’ve been a longtime Star Trek: The Next Generation fan and, in fact, have now began to watch the series again for the first time since it came out.

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A big new study on student engagement, with a zillion co-authors, including Carol Dweck, was recently released.

It’s titled A Scalable, Theory-Based Intervention to Infuence Teachers’ Student Engagement Practices Improves Academic Performance in a State-Wide Sample.

The practices the study promoted won’t be anything new to most teachers:

Practices targeted by the program. In the FUSE program, we provided teachers with professional learning that helped them to communicate a culture of learning (and overturn the culture of judgment and evaluation) through relatively short, targeted messages to students (see Table 1 and Extended Data Figure 5). These messages conveyed that all students, regardless of their past performance, can learn, improve, and do well if they work hard and seek appropriate help from teachers and peers. Examples of these messages include the ideas (a) that students’ mistakes provide useful information to teachers about what students need and about how the teachers can be more effective in their teaching, (b) that test scores represent students’ performance at one moment in time and, if not optimal, need not determine how well they can perform in the future, and (c) that the teacher has 4 rigorous but flexible classroom grading policies if students correct their mistakes and show evidence of mastering the material (via retesting or revision). (see Supplemental Online Materials).

However, while the practices won’t be new, the study’s authors included the materials they used to train teachers to implement them. I think a fair number of them might be new to teachers, and suitable for distribution and discussion among faculty.

You can download them here, and then scroll to page 11.

I’m adding this info to The Best Posts & Articles On Student Engagement.

jkmoller11 / Pixabay

Veterans Day is coming up on November 11th.

You might be interested in The Best Websites To Learn About Veterans Day.

bhuwanpurohit / Pixabay

Diwali, the Hindu Festival of Lights, will start on November 8th this year.

You might be interested in The Best Sites For Learning About Diwali.

Ten years ago, in another somewhat futile attempt to reduce the backlog of resources I want to share, I began this occasional “Ed Tech Digest” post where I share three or four links I think are particularly useful and related to…ed tech, including some Web 2.0 apps.

You might also be interested in checking out all my edtech resources.

Here are this week’s choices:

Doodle Battle is yet another online drawing game.  I’m adding it to The Best Online Games Students Can Play In Private Virtual “Rooms”

Screens in Schools: What the New Screen-Time Debate Means for Educators is from Ed Surge.

Is There Too Much Screen Time in School? Read student answers at the NY Times Learning Network.

Here’s an interactive periodic table.

Kwerty is yet another online game to teach keyboarding. I’m adding it to The Best Sites Where Students Can Learn Typing/Keyboarding.

ProWhiteboard offers a free online…whiteboard.

Prawny / Pixabay

Here’s my regular round-up of new “The Best…” lists I posted this month (you can see all 2,618 of them categorized here – you might also want to check out THREE ACCESSIBLE WAYS TO SEARCH FOR & FIND MY “BEST” LISTS).

Here are the lists from this month:

The Best Resources For Learning About The Student Protests In France

The Best Resources For Teaching About Elections

The Best Resources On “Connective Instruction”

The Best Research & Reflections About Why Test Scores Should Not Be The Be All/End All In Evaluating Schools & Student Progress

The Best Resources For Learning About Youth Participatory Action Research

AI won’t provide the productive struggle English learners need to grasp the new language.

Here are some excerpts: