October is National Co-op Month, and we’re excited that it marks five years of , a partnership between the CHS Foundation and Ģ����ý! Over the course of those five years, over 1 million students have learned about agricultural co-ops and explored the business model behind their success. They’ve worked on skills they need to collaborate with others who share the same interests. And they’ve taken that bring different aspects of agriculture and agricultural co-ops to life in engaging ways.

It seems especially appropriate to celebrate this anniversary when fall harvest season is in full swing across the U.S. Depending on the region, right now include pumpkins and gourds, cabbage, sweet potatoes, pears, apples, tomatoes, sweet corn, grapes, and melons. While students may understand the seasonal nature of food availability, they may not understand the role that agricultural co-ops play in growing crops and getting them from farms to the marketplace.

If you could identify a period of time or experience that had a strong influence on your choice of career, would middle school come to mind? It’s certainly a time of significant changes and growth, physically and mentally, for students. Teaching and learning also look quite different from elementary, with added depth that can nurture curiosity while challenging understanding. But based on middle school student responses in the 2026-2027 Education Insights Report, career connections are not commonly visible in instruction—only 10% reported frequently learning about careers in class.

We know from research that students aren’t waiting until high school to imagine future possibilities. They start noticing different careers, forming interests, and asking questions about what professional options they might have as early as elementary grades. Looking at our report data on when students said they discovered a career of interest, 78% of the time it was elementary or middle school.

While early career interest is welcome, educators and the students themselves are concerned that they don’t have enough information before high school to really understand all of the choices they can make. Let’s explore why middle school is a missing link to stronger career readiness and spotlight some practical ways that educators can add career exploration to instruction.

Our 2026-2027 Education Insights Report states that 56% of educators surveyed put “STEM, computer science, or IT among the top three career paths for today’s students.” This certainly makes sense, given that technology and the science, math, and engineering behind it play a huge role in shaping our personal and professional lives. What’s more, workplace projections identify the greatest job growth and strongest wage expectations for STEM and technology-related fields in the next 10 years.����

Does this translate into high student interest? Research tells us that although many students do express interest in STEM careers, fewer would rate this as their first choice. Depending on the grade level of students, the percentage varies. For example, high school students are over six times more likely to say they want to go into technology or software development than elementary students.����

This suggests that more consistent exposure to STEM career possibilities would help students understand what STEM work requires, gain confidence in their ability to develop key skills, and imagine themselves in those careers.����

As recent technological developments and related industry responses change what K–12 career readiness means now, education leaders across the U.S. may want to take a closer look at their school or district’s approach to it. One significant change is in the types of skills students need to be successful in the workplace: durable, transferable skills like collaboration, communication, and problem-solving. And it’s become evident that it’s never too early to begin career-connected learning, especially if you want to build and sustain interest in STEM professions.

While there’s no single solution that will fit every school’s needs, adopting a new program that counts career-connected learning as part of its foundation may be a good option. In this article, we’ll walk through how to evaluate a career readiness program, so you can give your team the right resources to support effective instruction.

Many families and experts are carefully considering how much screen time is healthy for kids of all ages, so it should be no surprise to see the question “Should schools limit screen time?” being discussed. Some technologies in schools only play a background role, like an LMS, but others like cellphones and education technology programs will comprise the bulk of screen time each day. The various types and applications of technology in schools mean that setting a screen time number is no simple task, but that a complete ban is not the solution. For example, students will likely need to gain and apply knowledge about different technologies for career success.

In this article, we’ll walk through what to look for in education technology solutions that makes their associated screen time valuable and how Ģ����ý programs match up.

Technology has become one of the most debated topics in education. Across the country, states and districts are taking a fresh look at how—and even whether—it should be used in classrooms. Some studies raise legitimate concerns about excessive or ineffective technology use, while others point to the positive impact technology can have when it’s implemented intentionally.

I don’t believe the answer is to remove technology from classrooms. Instead, we need to be much more thoughtful about how we use it.

When technology is used well, it can help teachers personalize instruction, provide meaningful insights into student learning, and create learning experiences that simply aren’t possible otherwise. But technology should never be used just because it’s available. It has to earn its place alongside great teaching, meaningful discussion, print resources, and hands-on learning.

When I’m evaluating instructional technology—or talking with district leaders who are—I always come back to three questions:

• Is it teacher directed?
• Is it tied to learning outcomes?
• Is it grounded in the science of learning?

If the answer to any of those questions is no, it’s worth taking a closer look before putting the tool in front of students.

When looking at student achievement, many schools and districts are still searching for the right formula to build reading and math skills to levels that will help students realize their potential in life. Bryan Goodwin, CEO of McREL Institute, pointed out in a Ģ����ý webinar that while there isn’t a single answer for all the challenges different schools face, the best performers share one characteristic: focus. These schools set up a system that allows them to focus on one thing and do it well. The result is high-quality instruction across classrooms that boosts student performance.

How can you support your team so that the quality of instruction goes up and stays up? Let’s explore some of the best options school and district leaders have to get educators ready to teach more effectively than ever.