Education Frontlines
John Richard Schrock
New jargon overheard in the teachers’ lounge
No field encounters as many new terms as teaching. Every week or two, another new term is invented to label concepts or actions supposedly not described before. In some cases, the new terms support a new method or philosophy of education and soon disappear.
• “AI instructional slop” refers to the superficial lessons developed using AI. Indeed, in the last year, the term “slop” occurs behind a considerable number of shallow products developed by large language models that fail to be “intelligent” in the sense of actually understanding the materials they generate.
• “Brain-based education” is a recent development following the replacement of behavior-based psychology research, which failed to meet the replication requirements of real science, with neuroscience that can contribute to understanding some behaviors based on new research on the function of nerves and the brain. Unfortunately, some educationists apply brain/neuron research to justify practices beyond the sciences.
• “Neuroplasticity” is likewise a result of the movement of neurobiology into psychology and is a term used to describe the human brain’s ongoing ability to form new connections, resulting in learning new skills, forming memories, etc. Much of our knowledge is being developed from research on patients recovering from injury. However, much educational use of this term currently goes far beyond the current understanding of how we re-wire neural pathways and drifts into unjustified support for educational methods.
• “Chronic absenteeism” became a heavily used term during the COVID-19 pandemic where many students in America studied online from home and in many cases did not show up to participate in online classes. Absence of 10% or more of classwork was considered a major contributor to the dramatic losses of student advancement in language arts and math. Attendance did not return to pre-pandemic levels after the pandemic was over, and absenteeism continues to be a serious concern. Research now shows that total absences remain a serious cause of lower math performance. Unexcused absences are more problematic for older students and students in language arts, where absence rates of just 3-7% remain damaging.
• “Dual language” has differentiated from bilingual education that began in the 1960s and focused on English learners. More recent dual language programs enroll native English speakers as well as English learners and often involve teaching a subject in total immersion in one language, and sometimes involving heritage languages for native American students.
• “Future-focused learning” is the theme of an upcoming educational conference. K-12 education is faced with another round of “advanced technology integration” and having students develop tech skills including use of artificial intelligence under the threat that failure to modernize classrooms will leave our students behind. This educationist strategy previously led to most states adding computer science and coding requirements to their high school required curricula. But now it promotes learning new AI that eliminates the need for students to learn coding.
• “Grade grubbing” refers to parents or students requesting changes in the grade assigned by a teacher. It is becoming more common. According to an Education Week two-year survey, 44% of teachers reported they had changed a grade at least once. Of those who did, 45% indicated it was due to a grading mistake. Others indicated it was due to additional work or work turned in late. Some teachers blame “helicopter parents” who are overly involved in their child’s schoolwork.
• “Un-college” appeared as a term about a decade ago, but it has now become widespread as larger numbers of high school graduates, especially boys, seek alternative certificates, two-year credentials or other career-driven programs. While one major driver has been the major increase in college costs, there is a definite anti-intellectual attitude among many American students and parents that higher education is just job training.
• “Six Seven!” made the 2025 Dictionary.com “Word of the Year.” In some regions, elementary and middle school students shout “six-seven” while moving both hands up and down. Some students shout it whenever the numbers 6 or 7 or both are mentioned. It likely originated when the numbers were in a song by the rap artist Skrilla in 2024 and then spread in social media during the next school year. Some students are shouting out the number(s) for no reason, often disrupting instructional time just to be funny. It has no meaning.
It is likely that in the near future, several of the educationist terms described here will also be “six-seven.”
John Richard Schrock is a Roe R. Cross distinguished professor and biology professor emeritus at Emporia State University.