Michael Zwaagstra is a senior fellow at the Frontier Centre and public high school teacher. He received his Bachelor of Education and Master of Education from the University of Manitoba and Master of Arts in Theological Studies from Liberty University in Virginia. He is the author of A Sage on the Stage: Common Sense Reflections on Teaching and Learning, and co-author of What’s Wrong with Our Schools and How We Can Fix Them. He is a frequent author of education policy research and newspaper columns across Canada. His research mainly focuses on curricula, teaching instruction and public education. Michael’s research and commentary have been featured in radio, television and newspapers across the country. Michael lives with his wife and children in Steinbach, Manitoba.
Picture a school in an underprivileged part of north London, England. One-third of nearby families live in poverty, a significant percentage are visible minorities, and the neighbourhood crime rate is twice the national average. What kind of academic results would...
Desks in rows with students facing the front of the room. Teachers providing lots of direct instruction. Students spending plenty of time doing individual practice work in their own desks. No, we did not travel back to the 1950s. This is what many classrooms look...
On Aug.1, the provincial government will announce its back-to-school plan for the fall. It is likely that K-12 classes will be in-person rather than online. Good thing too. It’s one thing for university students to take courses online. All professors have to do is to...
If some petitioners get their way, Cecil Rhodes School will be no more. To be more precise, the Winnipeg school would still exist, but under a new name. No doubt most Manitobans who hear about this have one burning question: Who is Cecil Rhodes? Cecil Rhodes was a...
While it’s not the same minute-by-minute data provided by the Alberta Electric System Operator for their grid, SaskPower has begun breaking down where its power is coming from on a daily basis. And the data from Oct. 3 and 4 showed wind generated an average of just...
Executive Summary The various federal political parties are all promoting the policy agendas they believe will foster a sustainably high quality of life for all Canadians. It remains to be seen whether they will attain the success that they aim to achieve. In some...
Alberta education minister Jeff Johnson recently announced plans to scrap the Provincial Achievement Tests (PATs) currently written by grade 3, 6 and 9 students. More “student-friendly” assessments will be written at the beginning of the year. This is a disappointing development, especially since Alberta has long been the top-performing province in the country.
Vacuous edu-babble needs to be stripped from curriculum guides and replaced with meaningful standards based on academic content.
The public education sector widely accepts that students have individual learning styles. Teachers are expected to tailor their lessons to meet the needs of the visual, auditory and tactile-kinesthetic learners in their classes. However, the learning styles theory is no more valid than an urban myth.
Common Sense Education gives parents, teachers and students a direct window into the foolish fads that afflict our public education system. This fifth of ten episodes explains why school choice is essential to improving the quality of schools for all students. The...
If implemented properly, merit pay is a reform that could be used to reward effective teachers.
Common Sense Education gives parents, teachers and students a direct window into the foolish fads that afflict our public education system. This fourth of ten episodes discusses what is required to ensure every child can learn to read fluently. The series is written...
Common Sense Education gives parents, teachers and students a direct window into the foolish fads that afflict our public education system. This third of ten episodes investigates so called 'new math' and why it doesn't match up to the classic methods. The series is...
When it comes to student discipline, schools often veer into one of two extremes: implementing draconian zero-tolerance policies or bending over backwards to accommodate troublemakers. Students have the right to a safe and orderly learning environment.
Common Sense Education gives parents, teachers and students a direct window into the foolish fads that afflict our public education system. This second of ten episodes looks at the destructive idea of banning zeros from schools entirely. The series is written and...