The tension between the realities of the future and the comfort of a reliably perceived past are palpable. Put another way, the security of “this is the way we have always done it,” versus the uneasiness of preparing for an … Read More
21st Century Education
What a Standardized Test Can’t Predict is What our Students Need to Learn
The Atlantic, Wall Street Journal, New York Times, Washington Post, World Economic Forum, and Scientific America run stories routinely about what students need to learn and do to be successful in the future. An endless stream of studies, counter-studies, information, … Read More
Grades Fail Students
High school students, vying to get into college, know that the application process is a game with its own set of rules: Get good grades, get enough tutoring to ace the ACT or SAT, and make sure you have lots … Read More
Be Aware of Technology and Social Media
In 1908, in Detroit, cars were seen as a vexing problem. That summer, 31 people were reported to have been injured or killed after being hit by a car, or after a car accident. Many more deaths were not even … Read More
Beyond the Why
Singapore. Hong Kong. New Zealand. Finland. What does Hillel Day School have in common with these far-off countries? A commitment to changing education to prepare children for the competitive and complex world they are inheriting. The schools in these countries … Read More
Where Truth Can Be Found
From time to time I am asked how religion and science intersect at Hillel. Many people believe that there must be an inherent tension between science and religion, as if one possesses the “right” answer about questions of the universe, … Read More
Na’aseh v’nishma and the Maker Movement
“Na’aseh v’nishma– We will do and we will understand.” That is what the Israelites proclaimed as they were about to receive the Torah from God. We will be commemorating that moment in the creation of the Jewish nation next week … Read More
What Matters Most (Hint, It’s Not an Elite College)
New research shared at a recent meeting of the Conference of Pediatric Academic Societies shows that the percentage of young children and teens hospitalized for suicidal thoughts or actions has nearly doubled in the past decade. The numbers do not … Read More
From Public School to Hillel: Why I Made the Switch, and Where it Got Me
By Julie Tigay, first and second grade general studies co-teacher In the summer of 2012, I was an exhausted public school teacher. I had 30 kids in my class, not enough space and the pressure of the Common Core curriculum. … Read More
My Encounters with an Incredible Man: Bill Farber
On a sunny day in October, 2013, Rabbi Harold Loss of Temple Israel came to visit me with an essential question. I remember it clearly: “I have a potential donor who would like to know what transformational dream do you … Read More