“Let kids be kids a little longer” is a motto of Wait Until 8th, an organization that encourages parents to delay giving their children smartphones until the end of eighth grade. With the advent of the iPhone in 2007 and the rise of YouTube and TikTok, our children have slowly become the “anxious generation,” a […]
Melissa Hostetter
Melissa Hostetter is a science teacher at Franklin Middle School and serves on the executive committee of the Springfield Education Association.
Posted inOpinion
Learning begins at home
Each year, Illinois Times publishes an article on the status of Springfield District 186 Schools. Across the district, teachers, staff and administrators give their all, pouring their heart and soul into our students’ futures. Many of our students make gains, but not the dramatic grade-level jumps necessary for major changes to the Illinois Report Card. […]
Posted inOpinion
A screen-based childhood harms kids
Ten years ago, while teaching fourth grade at Glenwood Elementary School in Chatham, I embarked on a novel website: Mystery Location. Through Mystery Location, my class joined a class in California via Skype. Each class gave geographic clues to the other as to our locations. It was so exciting! The activity embodied the true wonder […]
Posted inOpinion
School absences impact communities
Over the last few years, a marked transformation has occurred in education. Long-standing research on how to best teach children to read was acknowledged. School districts around the country embraced the “science of reading” – an interdisciplinary body of knowledge about reading and writing. Thankfully, our local districts have begun to make this long-overdue change. […]
