Stevemiranda

LATEST ARTICLES ( 270 )

• The Hard Lessons Learned by KIPP, and What We Can Do Next

  

  The New York Times ran a great piece about a week ago called, “What if the Secret to Success is Failure?” One section of the story talks about KIPP school... Read more

  Posted on 27 September 2011 DEBATE, SCHOOLING, SOCIETY

• The Rehnquist Revolution (from the Archives)

  

  A colleague of mine at PSCS called in sick one day and left his lesson plans with me. For his Constitutional Law class, he wanted students to watch a video... Read more

  Posted on 26 September 2011 DEBATE, SCHOOLING, SOCIETY

• The High School Transcript is the Most Nefarious Force in Education That No One...

  

  I’m a big fan of the William Goldman movie The Princess Bride. There’s a famous line uttered by the character Inigo Montoya to the character Vizzini, who keeps... Read more

  Posted on 25 September 2011 DEBATE, FAMILY, SCHOOLING, SOCIETY

• The First Step in Changing the System is to Stop Doing Things That We Know in...

  

  I saw this story on the ABC news website:Only one in four college-bound high school graduates is adequately prepared for college-level English, reading, math an... Read more

  Posted on 24 September 2011 DEBATE, FAMILY, SCHOOLING, SOCIETY

• The Problem is the Problem (from the Archives)

  Here’s a great story I read on Aza Raskin’s blog:It’s 1959, a British industry magnate by the name of Henry Kremer [asked] a haunting question: Can an airplane... Read more

  Posted on 23 September 2011 DEBATE, FAMILY, SCHOOLING, SOCIETY

• The Importance of Being Weird

  My favorite football player of all time is Dallas Cowboys quarterback Tony Romo. He made national headlines this past week with an extraordinary performance. Read more

  Posted on 22 September 2011 DEBATE, FAMILY, SCHOOLING, SOCIETY

• Pick Yourself

  

  Many years ago, I was living in Seattle and looking for a new place to live. I searched the rooms-for-rent section of the newspaper and got busy making calls an... Read more

  Posted on 21 September 2011 DEBATE, SCHOOLING, SOCIETY

• Today’s Word: Queejuss (from the Archives)

  

  A student approached me one day during lunch and said, “Mr. Miranda, I’m wondering if you can do me a favor.” “Maybe. What is it?” “My friend just called and... Read more

  Posted on 20 September 2011 DEBATE, SCHOOLING, SOCIETY

• We Are Always Amassing Information from Our Environment and Using It to Add to O...

  

  Yesterday, I mentioned that a friend suggested I read Kathryn Schulz’s excellent book Being Wrong, because, she said, “It’s about PSCS.” Here’s another example... Read more

  Posted on 19 September 2011 DEBATE, SCHOOLING, SOCIETY

• In School, It’s Not That Kids Aren’t Curious. They Just Might Not Be Curious...

  

  My friend Lisa said to me, “I’m reading a book right now called Being Wrong. Have you heard of it? You have to read it, it’s all about PSCS.” It’s not actually... Read more

  Posted on 18 September 2011 DEBATE, SCHOOLING, SOCIETY

• Playing Catch (from the Archives)

  

  I’ve always been a big sports fan. When I was a teenager, I remember watching a post-game interview with New York Yankees pitcher Jimmy Key, who had just... Read more

  Posted on 17 September 2011 DEBATE, SCHOOLING, SOCIETY

• The Mobius Strip

  

  I’ve been connected to PSCS for more than three years now, but just yesterday I gained a deeper understanding of the school’s philosophy. Read more

  Posted on 16 September 2011 DEBATE, SCHOOLING, SOCIETY

• PSCS Fall Fundraiser

  

  Hello everyone, PSCS is running its annual fall fundraising campaign. If you’re interested in supporting an amazing independent school that’s in the process of... Read more

  Posted on 15 September 2011 DEBATE, FAMILY, SCHOOLING, SOCIETY

• “Questions Are the New Answers” (from the Archives)

  

  I read an essay from ex-venture capitalist (now bestselling author) Peter Sims that I really liked. I have nothing to add to what he wrote, so I’ll just share m... Read more

  Posted on 15 September 2011 DEBATE, SCHOOLING

• The Story of Oceanography 101 (from the Archives)

  

  My undergraduate college had all the usual academic requirements, but the most loathed one on campus was the science requirement. Read more

  Posted on 14 September 2011 DEBATE, SCHOOLING, SOCIETY

• Everything is Possible

  

  I want to tell the story of what happened at PSCS today. The staff led the students through an activity designed to launch a new idea, something we’re calling... Read more

  Posted on 13 September 2011 DEBATE, SCHOOLING, SOCIETY

• The Difference Between What You See and What You Don’t See

  

  In school, there are the things you see and the things you don’t see. When a principal stands at the classroom door and looks in through the window, she might... Read more

  Posted on 12 September 2011 DEBATE, SCHOOLING

• Why Kids Can’t See the 800-pound Gorilla in Their Lives

  

  Check out this video. It’s just over a minute in duration, so it won’t take long.If you don’t want to watch, here’s a quick explanation. Read more

  Posted on 11 September 2011 DEBATE, FAMILY, SCHOOLING, SOCIETY

• The Dyslexic Advantage

  

  Yesterday, I wrote that our society has become overly reliant on scientific data to prove things that should be obvious through common sense observation. Read more

  Posted on 10 September 2011 DEBATE, SCHOOLING, SOCIETY

• The Scheduling Circus

  

  Today was one of my favorite days of the school year. It was the first day of what we call the “scheduling circus.” This is when staff and students begin the... Read more

  Posted on 09 September 2011 DEBATE, SCHOOLING, SOCIETY