Grading in the Age of Coronavirus

Last week we asked a lot of important questions about the state of education while the country is in lockdown from COVID-19, and we asked for our readers’ feedback to be able to draw some broad conclusions. Today, we’re going to talk about a related topic that’s on many students’ and educators’ minds — grading. … Continue reading “Grading in the Age of Coronavirus”


The Ups and Downs of Distance Learning in the Age of Coronavirus

Today, we’re trying a new format for the blog, since we’re all facing a very difficult situation stemming from the global pandemic. Education, while not at a standstill, has greatly changed by moving entirely to distance learning for the moment, and we need to determine a number of things as we move forward. Two of these … Continue reading “The Ups and Downs of Distance Learning in the Age of Coronavirus”


Charting Progress in AceReader

Now that the new school year is almost upon us, teachers planning their lessons may wonder how AceReader’s Assessment Tests can help them determine how much their students will improve their reading fluency skills over the course of the next academic semester or year, as well as how they will be able to demonstrate the … Continue reading “Charting Progress in AceReader”


Reading/Teaching Science Fiction Helps Inspire Students in the Age of Technology

Science fiction may be a relatively young genre in the vast span of human literature, but it holds a unique place in our modern technological world, and thereby in our educational system. Science fiction has the ability to inspire imagination and innovation. It also helps draw young people to the STEM (science, technology, engineering, and … Continue reading “Reading/Teaching Science Fiction Helps Inspire Students in the Age of Technology”


Guest Blog, Elizabeth Smith – Ace Reader: A Solution to a Multi-Faceted Problem

According to the 2015 NAEP Report (the last year that twelfth graders were included), slightly over 1/3 of public school fourth, eighth, and twelfth graders read at a proficient level or above.[1] The overwhelming majority of that 37% is at the proficient level. As most teachers know, “proficient” isn’t equivalent with grade level. The statistics … Continue reading “Guest Blog, Elizabeth Smith – Ace Reader: A Solution to a Multi-Faceted Problem”


Poverty and the Educational Process – Part 4: Relationships and Distress

[Editor’s note: This is the last part of a four-part series on poverty and the educational process. Links to the previous blog posts are included below.] Poverty has a multifaceted impact on both student engagement and student success in the classroom. Last week we looked at Effort and the Growth Mindset. In this post, we … Continue reading “Poverty and the Educational Process – Part 4: Relationships and Distress”


Poverty and the Educational Process – Part 1: Health and Nutrition

[Editor’s note: This is part one of a four-part series on poverty and the educational process. Links to the previous blog posts will be included in each succeeding part.] In 2015, approximately about 20 percent of children under the age of 18 (about 14.7 million) came from families living in poverty, and 10 percent lived … Continue reading “Poverty and the Educational Process – Part 1: Health and Nutrition”


Practical Optimism for Teachers and Students

In their blog post “Cultivating Practical Optimism: A Key to Getting the Best from Your Brain,” Drs. Marcus Conyers and Donna Wilson describe the concept of “positive optimism.” They define it as a way “to describe an attitude about life that relies on taking realistic, positive action to increase the likelihood of successful results.” They … Continue reading “Practical Optimism for Teachers and Students”


Using Games for Comprehension

Generally when we get individual students, or schools, onto the AceReader platform, we stress that improving your reading skills is not a competition. The only person you’re competing against is yourself, and the only scores that matter are those that show how much your speed, comprehension, and fluency improve as a result of your practice … Continue reading “Using Games for Comprehension”