TEACH Magazine

Ed Boland wishes he’d read his book before he began teaching. After more than 20 years in educational administration, much of that time spent helping students from low-income situations improve their education, he decided to help in a more direct way. He wanted to teach. In 2006, after years of juggling work and graduate school, he joined the ranks of public high school teachers in New York City.

Anyone who is familiar with teenagers knows that when one volunteers information about their school day to his parents—it’s big. Huge. That’s thanks to the phenomenon of Pokémon Go. The day after the official launch, my soon-to-be-in-grade-nine son, Alex, unexpectedly texted me from his summer transition program because his teacher had just announced that there would be a Pokémon Go Club starting the next day. I knew we wouldn’t even have to go through the “What did you do today? / Nothing…” dinner conversation that night!

Two years ago, my principal rolled an iPad cart into my classroom. I'd been challenged to design and implement a 1:1 iPad program that would enhance the highly structured academic curriculum already in place. I was bright-eyed and bushy-tailed as I set out on this technology adventure, but I quickly realized that trail-blazing wasn't all glitter and rainbows.

I have lost count of the number of times I have been told that rules without relationships lead to rebellion. Yet today, relationships with students seem to be feared instead of embraced. Over the years, quite by accident, I have discovered that this precept from days gone by is critical to classroom rules and to learning itself. Relationships are an essential part of learning, especially relationships between teachers and students.

Financial education. It’s a small phrase, but it holds big meaning. Some say teach it at home. Others say integrate it into existing curriculum.

When students look at the globe and see so much blue, it seems as though there’s an abundance of water. But that's just not true.

Often, we forget our students come to class each day with a lot more on their minds than academics. Despite this, my students willingly express gratitude each morning.

High-speed Internet access is not universal. But teaching with it—and without—highlights the never-changing qualities of good teaching. Some students at Timothy Davis’ school live in homes that sometimes seem “primitive,” their principal says. They’re not connected to high-speed Internet.