Giving Compass' Take:

• Getting Smart lists some lessons learned from 2018 when the staff visited 100 schools across the US and internationally.

• From fostering an inclusive, vibrant culture to making sure partnerships are cultivated well, there is plenty of advice for educators and funders to take into 2019.

• Here's why the next education renaissance is human, not technological.

We visited more than 100 schools this year. About half were new schools (in the last 20 years) and the other half were (at least partially) transformed. Most are good early next-gen examples of personalized and competency-based learning. They were in every corner of the country and ranged from tiny rural schools in Idaho to big schools in Chicago (and a few in Europe and Asia). As a year-end reflection, we identified 10 lessons.

1. Culture is key.
2. Students are known and cared for.
3. Foundational ideas.
4. Intentional about outcomes.
5. Structures support deep work.
6. Shared work.
7. Talent matters.
8. Distributed leadership.
9. Learning environments matter.
10. Partnerships.

Read the full article about lessons learned from 100 school visits by Tom Vander Ark and Emily Liebtag at Getting Smart.