Education’s New Lingo

I went to my children’s curriculum night last week.  Throughout the twenty-minute presentation, their teachers made mention of so many of the key topics in education: PBIS, flexible seating, growth mindset, data/benchmark testing, technology, Common Core, no-homework philosophy, and restorative practices.  While I was like, “Yep, this makes sense!” I was curious about the other parents. I spend my days learning about this stuff and putting it into practice. But, it’s so significantly different from the way it was when I went to school.  

In twenty-minutes, I certainly didn’t expect teachers to be able to explain the research or build a strong understanding of the “why” behind all of these educational shifts.  But, education has drastically shifted in the last 10-15 years. How can we better educate our parents in order to continue to work together to support their children?