Joshua Block

Humanities Teacher at Science Leadership Academy in Philadelphia. Passionately believes that education is a tool to help people understand and transform their individual and collective realities.

Writing is Thinking

The other day I played my class a five minute radio piece about young people becoming first time activists in the aftermath of the tragedy in Ferguson. I was excited to share this reporting with my students because of the multiple voices with larger messages about democracy and active citizenship, two topics that are core to our […]Read Post ›

Democracy & Education Digital Stories

Teaching at a public school in Philadelphia it feels crucial to design curriculum that allows students to deeply understand, and speak out about, changes that are happening in the School District of Philadelphia. This year my American Government classes began the year with an inquiry into the concept of democracy. This lead to an investigation of […]Read Post ›

Avoiding the Flop

[Cross-posted on Edutopia] The beginning of the school year arrives with excitement, eagerness, and the potential for new beginnings. It does not take long for this initial surge of energy to wear off as students and teachers find themselves caught up in the actual routine of school. We can avoid this potential shift to monotony […]Read Post ›

Prioritizing Student Voices

[Cross-posted on Edutopia] I once taught a student whose self-confidence was so low that often, after submitting assignments, she would send several apology emails. Milly (not her real name) would write that she was sorry for the low quality of her work. (The work Milly submitted was generally excellent.) She was sorry for wasting […]Read Post ›