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A graphic on assessing conceptual understanding caught my attention this week because it asks a question that is bigger than assessment design. What are we really trying to know about what students have learned? For a long time, schools have been very good at measuring what is easy to measure. Did the student remember the vocabulary? Did they complete the assignment? Did they get the correct answer? Did they meet the deadline? Did they earn enough points? Those things can tel

My daughter is a newly minted high school freshman, which means we are entering that season of welcome emails, syllabi, expectations, routines, and introductions to the people who will help shape the next four years. This week, I received a welcome email from her Global History teacher that made me stop for a moment. It was honest. It was refreshing. It sounded like a real educator talking to families about what students were actually going to experience in the classroom, not

"Edutainment" It can look the same on the surface. Smiling faces. Active classrooms. Students moving, talking, participating. That does not always mean they are learning. There is a quiet but critical difference between engagement and entertainment. Entertainment keeps students busy. Engagement requires students to think. One fills time. The other builds understanding. Classrooms can feel successful when energy is high, and students are compliant, responsive, and visibly invo