Pennsylvania public schools are among the best in the nation, according to many objective measures and research from respected institutions. For a decade, student achievement has been improving, thanks to the efforts of teachers and education support professionals who work with our children every day.
Below is an archive of Partners for Public Education web posts about what’s happening in Pennsylvania’s public schools.
Story Archive
Is your child’s teacher an Olympian
October 2017
As the world gears up for the Winter Olympics, Partners for Public Education is joining with the PA State Education Association and PA Parent Teacher Association to sponsor the “My Teacher Is an Olympian” contest for children in kindergarten through grade 3.
Is your child’s teacher an Olympian?
September 2017
As the world gears up for the Winter Olympics, Partners for Public Education is joining with the PA State Education Association and PA Parent Teacher Association to sponsor the “My Teacher is an Olympian” contest for children in kindergarten through grade 3.
Students embrace love and kindness
August 2017
Parents, kids, and educators from school communities across Pennsylvania are doing their part to spread kindness with a fun project called “Rock Out.”
Learning outside the test: Teacher witnesses rocket launch
May 2017
Reynolds, a Baldwin-Whitehall STEM teacher, was one of 28 educators and other professionals to travel to Florida to witness the launch of the SS John Glenn from Cape Canaveral.
Teachers in training make a difference for Cornell School District students
April 2017
College students who are studying to be educators gathered at Cornell Elementary and High School outside Pittsburgh on March 31 to take part in the annual Outreach to Teach community service project sponsored by Student PSEA.
They can change the world
April 2017
Pennsylvania Teacher of the Year Michael Soskil believes that educators have a responsibility to empower students. Soskil’s story is featured in one of four new digital ads produced by PSEA highlighting how educators and support professionals are bringing the power of a great education to students in our public schools.
Identifying a need in Upper Darby
March 2017
Volunteers with the Upper Darby Education Support Professionals Association are partnering with local food bank Philabundance to distribute backpacks of healthy food to kids who take part in a local after-school program.
In their own words: PA educators talk about how they challenge students
February 2017
Every day, educators across the commonwealth challenge students to achieve new goals. We asked some of them about the ways that their students are challenged at school. Here’s what they had to say.
School spotlight: Challenging students to learn Spanish at an early age
February 2017
The Southern Lehigh School District launched the Spanish Immersion Program at Liberty Bell Elementary School in 1989 — the first program of its kind in Pennsylvania.
Challenging students to do their best
February 2017
In this issue of Partners Post, we look at how educators are challenging students to prepare them to be successful in their future endeavors.
The professionals in your school are here to help kids with anxiety
January 2017
There are several professionals who can help, including school counselors, school nurses, school social workers, school psychologists, administrators, and teachers.
Keeping students motivated in a digital world
December 2016
When technology is used as a learning tool, many of the needs that American psychiatrist William Glasser identified as motivators for human behavior are met in one way or another, educators say.
Change technology, change the world
December 2016
Every December, school kids in Pennsylvania and beyond participate in the Hour of Code, a global education event that is a part of Computer Science Education Week.
Connecting at school and at home
December 2016
More and more schools across the nation are connecting with parents and students online.
Helping young learners to see in Upper Darby
November 2016
Partners for Public Education and the Upper Darby Education Support Professionals Association hosted the Philadelphia Eye Mobile at Upper Darby Community Day on Oct. 22. Twenty-two students received free eye exams and new glasses.
Celebrating the men and women who help our children succeed
November 2016
Across Pennsylvania, tens of thousands of education support professionals — classroom aides, office staffs, cafeteria employees, bus drivers, building maintenance staffs, and many others — work to make our schools run smoothly.
Celebrating our public schools
November 2016
Every November, we celebrate American Education Week — a week when millions take time to honor those who make a difference in the lives of our children.
‘Shark Tank’ turns high school students into entrepreneurs
July 2016
On the popular TV show “Shark Tank,” entrepreneurs pitch their business ideas to a panel of investors. At Big Spring High School, students are pitching the ideas in an innovative learning program that immerses students in the real world of business.
Teacher and student design prosthetic hands for aspiring musicians
July 2016
Working with his technology education teacher, Pine Grove High School freshman Nick Brown used the school’s new 3-D printer to design prosthetic hands for two middle school students who wanted to play music.
Celebrate the great things happening in PA schools
July 2016
Just how good are Pennsylvania educators? The commonwealth is home to the last two winners of the Milken Family Foundation’s Educator Award, a national honor known as the “Oscar of teaching.”
Friday Photo: I mustache you what you’re reading?
March 2016
Seventh-grade students at Palisades Middle School in Bucks County sport mustachioed bookmarks from Partners for Public Education while celebrating the value of good books during Read Across America Week in early March.
Learning Lessons from PA classrooms hits the small screen
February 2016
The Pennsylvania Cable Network (PCN) has partnered with the Pennsylvania State Education Association (PSEA) to produce a television program that highlights the great things that educators and support professionals are doing in our schools every day to help students learn and grow.
PA Business Week introduces students to the American economy
February 2016
During Pennsylvania Business Week, teams of students form and manage companies using financial simulation software that allows them to price their products and compete with each other virtually. Students name their companies and products, overseeing everything from production to marketing.
Strengthening the link between technology and student achievement
December 2015
Technology in the classroom is nothing new for science teacher Steve Rhoades, a 22-year veteran of the Wilson School District in Berks County. Long an acolyte of digital learning, Rhoades has found that students are often more engaged when classrooms go online.
Friday Photo: ‘Stache this in your favorite book
November 2015
A student from the Hermitage Area School District in Mercer County sports one of Partners’ new bookmarks that doubles as a pretend mustache.
Did you hear the good news?
November 2015
Millions will celebrate American Education Week by honoring those who make a difference in the lives of our children. Partners for Public Education celebrates the good news in our public schools every day with stories and information you can’t find anywhere else.
Friday Photo: Kindergartner Science Camp
June 2015
At Sporting Hill Elementary in Cumberland County, kindergartners had a little science fun after their spring Field Day.
Friday Photo: It’s student field trip season
May 2015
At the Pennsylvania State Capitol, fourth graders from Corl Street Elementary School in State College learned the ins and outs of state government in early May.
Year-end celebrations and summer learning
May 2015
As we near the end of the school year, students and teachers across Pennsylvania are celebrating their many accomplishments over the past year. The end of the year, however, should not mean the end of student learning.
Retired, future educators transform a school library
April 2015
On a warm spring day earlier this month, more than 300 enthusiastic college students joined several teachers, volunteers, and retired educators at Camp Curtin Academy in the Harrisburg School District, an urban district hit especially hard by recent school funding cuts. Armed with art supplies, blueprints, and ambitious goals, they set out to beautify the school and transform the school library.
Commentary: Opening the classroom doors to one and all
April 2015
“Teaching is not a lost art, but the regard for it is a lost tradition.” — Jacques Barzun, American historian and philosopher of education
Friday Photo: “Touch of the Future” art show
April 2015
Tara Ryan, an art student at Central Bucks South, won the 3D Functional category of the PA State Education Association’s “Touch of the Future” art show with a work titled “Lemon Jar.”
Friday Photo: 10 lessons the arts teach
March 2015
The Pennsylvania Art Education Association set out to visually explain just how much kids learn from the creative arts.
March is ‘Music in Our Schools’ Month
March 2015
Upper Merion Area High School senior Kaitlyn Lutz started playing the violin when she was 3 years old. Once she started elementary school, her school’s music program turned her early interest into a lifelong passion. “If I didn’t have music, I’d feel lost,” Kaitlyn said.
Friday Photo: Students go to the United Nations
February 2015
Two students from East Stroudsburg High School South traveled to the United Nations in Manhattan to participate in an interactive discussion with 500 young people from across the globe.
A community takes a stand for its neighborhood schools
February 2015
For the parents and students of the York City School District, the idea of handing over their neighborhood schools to a for-profit charter operator was a nonstarter from the get go. Over the past six months, they have joined educators and community leaders to speak out against a plan that would make York City the first all-charter district in Pennsylvania.
Let’s make sure Pennsylvania’s public schools remain best in the nation
November 2014
Pennsylvania public schools are among the best in the nation, according to many objective measures and research from respected institutions. For a decade, student achievement has been improving, thanks to the efforts of teachers and education support professionals who work with our children every day.
On Nov. 19, celebrate the men and women who help our students succeed
November 2014
They are often the first school employees to greet your children each morning and the last to see them off at the end of the day. Across Pennsylvania, tens of thousands of education support professionals — classroom aides, cafeteria cooks, bus drivers, building maintenance staffs, and many others — work day in and day out to make our schools go.
Student artists exhibit their work at local art museum
November 2014
Every year, art teacher Connie Calvanese takes a student group from Garrettford Elementary School in Upper Darby to visit the nearby Brandywine River Museum of Art. This year, students are doing more than visiting the museum; they are exhibiting their artwork.
High school coffee shop prepares students with special needs for real world
November 2014
There’s nothing like that first cup of coffee in the morning. For the students and teachers of Stroudsburg High School, that cup comes with a friendly smile — and a lot of learning.
Students say thank you to local veterans
November 2014
This time last year, teacher Heather Bunk and her fourth-grade class at Russell Elementary School in Warren County decide to write a few letters. Veterans Day was approaching, and so they took pen in hand to write “Thank You” notes to veterans at a local VA clinic.
Celebrating American Education Week
November 2014
American Education Week is an opportunity to celebrate public education and to honor those who make a difference every day in the lives of millions of children.
‘Parents overwhelmingly believe in public schools’
October 2014
Nearly seven in 10 gave their child’s school an A or a B grade, according to an annual poll by PDK/Gallup gauging American attitudes toward public education.
Raise your voice for college affordability: Take the Degrees Not Debt Pledge
July 2014
Painful funding cuts in recent years have resulted in rising college costs. SSeven out of every 10 Pennsylvania students have crushing student debt of at least $30,000. We can do better.
A world-class track star teaches and inspires her students
May 2014
When not teaching foreign languages to students at Stroudsburg Area High School, Jennifer Malavolta is a world-class track star who inspires her students to work hard to accomplish their own dreams.
Pennsylvanians are proud to Thank a Million Teachers
April 2014
Imagine a program to thank a million teachers that culminates in awarding $2,500 grants to help pay for school supplies or professional certifications. That’s the concept of an innovative program sponsored by Farmer’s Insurance.
National Teacher Day is Tuesday, May 6
April 2014
Traditionally, this annual day of celebration, part of National Teacher Appreciation Week, is an opportunity to recognize the important work and contributions of teachers and public schools.
Career and Technical Education offers unique opportunities for students
April 2014
One important way to help give every child the opportunity to succeed is to ensure that multiple approaches and career pathways are readily available to all students. To meet this goal, districts need properly funded, comprehensive programs.