I vividly remember the first time I was surrounded by National Board Certified Teachers (NBCTs) because the difference in this group was palpable. Complaining was low, celebrating was high. Negativity was low, positivity was high. For the first time I could remember, I was in a group of teachers who talked—seemingly endlessly—about innovation in their classrooms and schools. They were clearly leaders in their field: speaking, writing, mentoring, and presenting to audiences la

By Erin E.H. Austin, NBCT My final year at the first high school I ever taught at was tough. I had three different levels of French, and one of my classes had 43 students in it. (That’s not a typo.) I begged my principal for another section and argued that too many of the activities I did that were best for learning simply couldn’t be done with a class size that large. Never mind the fact that 43 juniors wouldn’t even fit inside my classroom! The rest of the conversation went

By Erin E.H. Austin, NBCT The fact that we had to completely reinvent the way we do public education over the past two plus years is painful, but it’s also--dare I say it--exciting! As a veteran teacher, I’ve found that it makes me want to “steer into the skid”; I want to see just how much I can shake things up. The pandemic years seemed like as good a time as any to change the entire framework of my teaching. The UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) “The 2030 Agenda for S

Global Experiences For All: 5 Ways to Make Student Travel More Equitable By Erin E.H. Austin, NBCT I will never forget my first trip to Paris. I stood before priceless works of art, I drank wine under the Eiffel Tower at night, and I even got locked in Père Lachaise Cemetery after hours. (Not my finest moment.) That trip changed me. It opened up an entirely new world and culture, and it fueled my desire to learn the language, make connections, and most importantly, explore th