A Student I Once Knew
a student I once knew by: Shane Phipps I could feel him sizing me up I was just trying to do my job but I could sense that he wasn’t … Continue reading A Student I Once Knew
Author: Shane Phipps
My name is Shane Phipps. I am a teacher and writer living in Indianapolis. I have taught 8th grade U.S. history since 2001. I am the author of historical novel, The Carter Journals: Time Travels in Early U.S. History (Indiana Historical Society Press, 2015). My book is used in several school districts across the region as a supplemental curriculum resource. I write a weekly column about education in the Anderson Herald-Bulletin. This column is also shared in about a dozen other newspapers throughout the state of Indiana. I also write a blog for the national platform called Patheos. You can check that out at this link.
The mission of this particular blog is to face the growing crisis within public education head on, honestly and frankly. That's just what you'll read here. I've been immersed in the game of education for two decades and I've seen the changes, most of them for the worse. I have a platform to share with my readers the real truth about what is going on. I'll share inspirational successes, disappointing failures, and ideas for making things better.
TikTok is Complicit in Destroying Schools and Needs to Be Held Accountable
In case you haven’t heard, there is a very disturbing trend happening on social media right now that is having a terrible impact on schools across the nation. The trend … Continue reading TikTok is Complicit in Destroying Schools and Needs to Be Held Accountable
Mask Mandates Keep Kids in School: It’s a Fact With or Without Scientific Data
Teachers in many school districts across the nation are looking out at half empty classrooms as the Delta Variant of Covid 19 ravages their rosters. Other districts have far fewer … Continue reading Mask Mandates Keep Kids in School: It’s a Fact With or Without Scientific Data
Far-Right Lawmakers Attempting to Strip Minority Students of Role Models
The truth is under attack in this country. This has been so in the battlefields of social media for years, but now the war has shifted into our most fundamental … Continue reading Far-Right Lawmakers Attempting to Strip Minority Students of Role Models
A Message from the Front Lines of the Indoctrination Wars
Over this summer break, I quite intentionally took time away from writing about political things. I unplugged myself from most of the controversies that swirl around us, and it was … Continue reading A Message from the Front Lines of the Indoctrination Wars
Who Will Teach Your Children when Teachers Have Finally Had Enough?
You’ve heard the expression, “I’ll shout it until I’m blue in the face,” well, public school teachers are blue in the face. We’ve been shouting for many years now—shouting about … Continue reading Who Will Teach Your Children when Teachers Have Finally Had Enough?
Push to Return Schools to Normal has Many Teachers Concerned
Like the world in general, the education landscape has been anything but normal in the past year. As the pandemic began to spread early last spring, schools had to scramble … Continue reading Push to Return Schools to Normal has Many Teachers Concerned
Teachers Walk a Tightrope Over Political Strife
These are uncharted waters. The seas are raging, and we are all just trying to batten down the hatches and hold on. With the nation in turmoil from the election … Continue reading Teachers Walk a Tightrope Over Political Strife
Trump’s “Patriotic Education Commission” Plan Shows Complete Lack of Understanding of what Patriotism Is
“This past week, the president doubled down by announcing that he will create a “Patriotic Education Commission” so that schools will be forced by “patriotic parents” to “stop teaching about what America has done wrong” and “start teaching about freedoms.” When I heard this announcement, I was gobsmacked. It has become clear to me that our president and those who still support him—most particularly, the far-right Christians—do not understand the concept of patriotism whatsoever. As a teacher of American history for the past 20 years, I feel it is my duty to try and deliver to them a lesson on patriotism and American freedoms.”
Public Education Needs to Radically Change Its Primary Focus in Order to Save Our Nation
The farther down our current path we travel, the more convinced I become that it’s going to take public education to turn us around. And that, I’m afraid, can’t happen … Continue reading Public Education Needs to Radically Change Its Primary Focus in Order to Save Our Nation
The Awesome Responsibility of Teaching Students in Troubled Times
Teachers haven’t had this kind of volatile national atmosphere in which to do our jobs for over 50 years. Not since at least the late 60s has our nation been … Continue reading The Awesome Responsibility of Teaching Students in Troubled Times
The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly of Reopening Schools
“Nobody expected the reopening of schools to be without problems. It is the way schools react to these problems that will make the difference between being able to stay open and having to close back down. Being honest, forthright and transparent is a good place to start.”
