School Administrator: September 2017

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The Developing Teenage Brain
BY LIZ GRIFFIN
Q&A with neurologist Frances Jensen on the strengths and vulnerabilities of adolescents’ brains and other aspects of her new book The Teenage Brain: A Neuroscientist’s Survival Guide to Raising Adolescents and Young Adults.

• Naglieri: How executive function helps students
• Six misconceptions about adolescent brains

The Rewired Brain
BY DAVID A. SOUSA
Students’ fixation on personal technology is altering their attention, thinking and memory, requiring new tacks for classroom educators.

• Debunking education’s neuromyths

Connecting Brain Research With the Art of Teaching
BY JUDY WILLIS
The neurologist-turned-educator highlights the science behind what video games tell us about engaging students in school.

The Invisible Injury of Concussions
BY DENNIS L. MOLFESE
A neuropsychologist’s work identifies a responsibility for educators to protect students from a sports culture that tends to minimize the health consequences of head injuries.

• Roziers: Championing school-based athletic trainers

Beyond Safety Protocols: Concussion Management for Learners
BY SCOTT LAFEE
Some school systems supplement return-to-play protocols for students with brain injuries with return-to-learn guidelines that call for academic support for recovering students.

• Academic supports from a student’s view
• Five keys to concussion management programs

STARTING POINT
Implications of new neuroscience research for education practices.

STATE OF THE SUPERINTENDENCY
Surveying Constituents
A Gallup study of school systems’ public opinion polling habits.

BEST OF THE BLOGS
Four excerpts from superintendents’ most reflective and lively blogs.

ETHICAL EDUCATOR
The Persistent Bigot
Our panel analyzes the case of a board member who uses Facebook for racist and homophobic messages.

SOCIAL MEDIA
A Vote for Voxer’s Professional Benefits
BY MICHAEL LUBELFELD
The author endorses the “walkie talkie” app for communication, leadership growth and relationship building.

LEGAL BRIEF
Costly Violations for Inaccessible Websites
BY JOEL D. BUCKMAN
Federal disability law has navigation demands for your district’s site.

BOARD-SAVVY SUPERINTENDENT
What Do You Share About a Brewing Crisis?
BY NICHOLAS D. CARUSO JR.
When should your board members be in the loop or kept in the dark?

MY VIEW
A Rant About Civility
BY ROARK HORN
A veteran education leader asks: What does all the incivility mean for us as educators?

MY VIEW
Eight Skills Every Student Needs by 18
BY JULIE LYTHCOTT-HAIMS
The former freshman dean at Stanford University observes too many students today lacking a sense of agency in their own lives.

FOCUS: PUBLIC COMMUNICATION
Telling Our Story of Our Culture
BY MARTIN J. SEMMEL
A Connecticut superintendent gives an overview of his district’s use of various platforms for spreading positive words.

Reading & Resources

• Book Reviews
• Why I Wrote This Book...
• Abstract
• Bits & Pieces

 

  

PRESIDENT’S CORNER
The 21st-Century Brain
BY GAIL PLETNICK
Discoveries in neuroscience bolster educators’ attention to students’ nonacademic needs.

EXECUTIVE PERSPECTIVE
Missing Love in the Proper Places
BY DANIEL A. DOMENECH
Announcing the timely launch of AASA’s “I Love Public Education” campaign.

INSIDE AASA
C.J. Reid and Lori Vines on Membership
The two-person department attends to growth and retention through service.

PEOPLE WATCH
A monthly rundown of AASA members making career moves.

PROFILE: Stewart I. McDonald
BY LIZ GRIFFIN
Building trust was job one as superintendent in Kodiak Island, Alaska.