“When I taught middle school students about finding trustworthy sources online a decade ago, internet connections and processors were still so slow that the hunt for multiple sources to confirm a finding took so much effort that analysis and interpretation was a much smaller part of the equation,” says Rachael Gabriel.

As the number of Holocaust survivors worldwide continues to dwindle each year, the question of how to preserve the stories of survivors as a means of remembrance and education becomes ever more relevant. Alan Marcus, associate professor in curriculum and instruction, is working to answer that question through research on three-dimensional, interactive technology.

2019 marks the 50th anniversary of that landmark case, Tinker v. Des Moines School District, where Tinker and the other plaintiffs prevailed.

In the Q&A below, National Education Policy Center Fellow and University of Connecticut professor Preston Green III explains the significance of the case, tracing its implications to modern-day student speech issues (like those related to social media) that the 1965 Court could not have foreseen.

“Given that the Neag School’s mission is to improve educational and social systems to be more effective, equitable and just for all, federal funding for research focused on key issues in special education aligns seamlessly with our efforts to support educators, policymakers, and students nationwide,” says Gladis Kerstaint, dean of the Neag School of Education.

“The church is dictating what is taught or done,” says Preston Green of the Memphis charter network’s lease with the diocese. “That seems like a conflict under the [U.S. Constitution’s] establishment clause to me,” which prohibits the government from favoring a religion.

“We really need to think systematically about how to permit charter schools to exist in a way that won’t deleteriously impact school districts,” says Preston Green, a professor of education at UConn’s Neag School of Education. “So understand that when I’m calling for a moratorium, I’m not calling for a backdoor closure but, rather, really thinking deliberately about how they can exist and be situated in a way that their inefficiencies are lessened.”

If we want students to develop an interest in mathematics and to develop a sense of themselves as people who engage with mathematics for applied or theoretical purposes, we need to design instruction that engages with authentic mathematical practices. As teachers unpack the Common Core State Standards Mathematical Practices Standards, they may notice that several common instructional habits often go against the thinking, habits of mind, and dispositions that support deep understanding.

“We really need to think systematically about how to permit charter schools to exist in a way that won’t deleteriously impact school districts,” Preston Green says. “So understand that when I’m calling for a moratorium, I’m not calling for a backdoor closure but, rather, really thinking deliberately about how they can exist and be situated in a way that their inefficiencies are lessened.”

Congratulations to our Neag School alumni, faculty, staff, and students on their continued accomplishments inside and outside the classroom. If you have an accolade to share, we want to hear from you! Please send any news items and story ideas to neag-communications@uconn.edu.

Neag School alumni Jamie S. Baker ’03 (ED), ’04 MA, and Ronall L. Cannada ’05 (ED), ’06 MA visited the UConn Storrs campus this past spring to attend the inaugural 2019 Black History Month Networking Night, held to connect students from UConn’s ScHOLA2RS House, led by the Neag School’s Erik Hines, with alumni and friends of the University. They each reflect here on the impact of the event, as well as on their careers in education since graduating from the Neag School.