NEW YORK TIMES May 4, 2014 Trophy Fury What’s Behind Claims that Kids Are Coddled and Overcelebrated? By Alfie Kohn [This is an expanded version of the published article, which was titled “Do Our Kids Get Off Too Easy?” and adapted from The Myth of the Spoiled Child.] The last time I checked, a web search for the phrases “everyone … Read More
Why I Write
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY March 7, 2014 Why I Write By Alfie Kohn Is it possible that a hint of self-congratulation adheres to the fact that we writers like to pose this question to ourselves? You don’t see a lot of people holding forth on, say, “Why I Sell Tires.” The assumption is that there’s something uniquely marvelous about the choice … Read More
The Attack on Self-Esteem
Chapter 6 in THE MYTH OF THE SPOILED CHILD (Da Capo Books, 2014) The Attack on Self-Esteem By Alfie Kohn A new idea is hatched; it catches on; it begins to spread; it inspires a flurry of books and articles, conferences and seminars. And then it fades away. The cycle is common in many fields, but I’m most familiar with … Read More
The Roots of Grades-and-Tests
Introduction to De-Testing and De-Grading Schools: Authentic Alternatives to Accountability and Standardization, edited by Joe Bower and P.L. Thomas (Peter Lang Publishing, 2013) The Roots of Grades-and-Tests By Alfie Kohn Most of the contributions to this book focus on problems with either grades or tests. In an article about college admissions published more than a decade ago, however, I suggested … Read More
Why Do We Punish Children?
January 2013 Why Do We Punish Children? By Alfie Kohn Adapted from a four-part public exchange with Deborah Meier, beginning in January 2013, that appeared on Education Week‘s “Bridging Differences” blog. Whenever it appears that I disagree with someone, I like to begin by figuring out where we’ve parted company. Is our disagreement substantive or just a function of how … Read More
What Do Kids Really Learn from Failure? (##)
October 3, 2012 What Do Kids Really Learn from Failure? By Alfie Kohn Education experts have long known that there is more to success — in school or in life — than cognitive ability. That recognition got a big boost with science writer Dan Goleman’s book Emotional Intelligence in 1996, which emphasized the importance of self-awareness, altruism, personal motivation, empathy, and … Read More
Criticizing (Common Criticisms of) Praise (##)
February 3, 2012 Criticizing (Common Criticisms of) Praise By Alfie Kohn Over the last few years I’ve had the odd experience of seeing my work cited with approval by people whose views on the issue in question are diametrically opposed to my own. The issue I have in mind is praise. I’m troubled by it, as are the people who quote … Read More
The Case Against Grades (##)
EDUCATIONAL LEADERSHIP November 2011 The Case Against Grades By Alfie Kohn [This is a slightly expanded version of the published article.] “I remember the first time that a grading rubric was attached to a piece of my writing….Suddenly all the joy was taken away. I was writing for a grade — I was no longer exploring for me. I want … Read More
Teaching Strategies That Work! (Just Don’t Ask “Work to Do What?”) (##)
August 10, 2011 Teaching Strategies That Work! (Just Don’t Ask “Work to Do What?”) By Alfie Kohn So here’s the dilemma for someone who writes about education: Certain critical cautions and principles need to be mentioned again and again because policy makers persist in ignoring them, yet faithful readers will eventually tire of the repetition. Consider, for example, the reminder … Read More
Poor Teaching for Poor Children … in the Name of Reform (##)
EDUCATION WEEK April 27, 2011 Poor Teaching for Poor Children … in the Name of Reform By Alfie Kohn [This is a slightly expanded version of the published article.] Love them or hate them, the proposals collectively known as “school reform” are mostly top-down policies: divert public money to quasi-private charter schools, pit states against one another in a race … Read More