After ranting about the meaningless term “edtech”, what is other language educators use that is of little value?

There is much that could be written on that topic, and a recent post from Education Week offers lots of words with very little depth.

The publication asked their followers on social media to “share their least favorite education ‘buzzword’ and why it grinds their gears”. Then they simply chose ten terms, collected some of the responses, and voila, instant clickbait post.

Terms like “rigor” and “grit” are certainly obvious choices. But they are perennials at the top of the annoying list, serving as little more than excuses for imposing greater academic torment on students.

“Learning loss” is a newbie, imposed on us almost from the beginning of the pandemic. It’s use, mostly by those who don’t work with kids, completely ignores the methods by which we measure “learning” in schools today, and whether they are at all valid. (Spoiler: they are not)

I don’t understand the animosity towards words like “pivot”, “unpack”, and “self-care”. They’re certainly overused, and often misused, in and out of education. But such terms are just shorthand for longer phrases, ones we would quickly tire of if they were in common use.

Finally, why are these followers of Education Week upset with “kiddos”?

In my experience, it is not “usually only said by those who do not work with them on a daily basis.” I know many teachers (and others in schools) who affectionally refer to their students as kiddos. Although the other poster quoted is right that the practice doesn’t feel right in high school.

Anyway, as I said before, the language used to discuss our practice is important. Maybe Education Week should address that more often instead of having their audience write posts for them.

The featured photo has nothing to do with this topic. It’s a shot of the magnificent atrium in the National Building Museum during a recent Smithsonian craft fair.