Mike Lefko
Bio
A 26 year educator, taught at the elementary, middle school and high school levels. Served as a school leader in public, private and charter schools. Aspire to teach aspiring teachers at the undergraduate level and conduct research.
Stories (4/0)
School: It's Not Work...It's Training (and You're out of Shape, So of Course It's Going to Be Hard)
I had the opportunity to work with a student one on one today. This is a student who impresses me as very smart, yet he fails his courses repeatedly. Why? It is simple, or so I thought. He is just not driven to achieve in school.
By Mike Lefko6 years ago in Education
The Difference You Make
We met for a conference today with a mom and a student. The student has, at least situationally speaking, anxiety that is paralyzing, and anxiety that brings the child to tears. She was sitting with her mom and a group of adults she had never met before, and we were all talking about her. This meeting could have been a case study in how we, as a society, should address and nurture matters of mental health the way we should, the way we need to; how we meet the needs of the whole child, something we don’t seem to talk about quite as much these days.
By Mike Lefko6 years ago in Education
Social Skills—More Than Just Your Grandmother's Expectations
Social Skills—More Than Just Your Grandmother’s Expectations As an educator, some of the things that I learned pretty early on were that students will rise to the level of expectations you set for them, and that we have an obligation to do our very best to raise not only scholars, but citizens who can function in, and ultimately contribute to society to make it a better place.
By Mike Lefko6 years ago in Education
Failure Apparently IS an Option
Failure…apparently IS an option. I see it every day. Smart young minds choosing not to try. It used to be students who had a hard time learning in school would act up, and become behavior problems, but you could get through to many of them—perhaps most of them.
By Mike Lefko6 years ago in Education