If everyone is doing it, "best practice" is only mediocre. 

The phrase "best practice" has resurfaced again. At least, in the circles I travel the phrase seems to be cropping up with regularity. This surprises me, since I thought it had dies a slow death.  

Best practice had its glory days a few years ago. It was all over twitter, and it haunted every public school PD session I attended. I wondered where it originated, but a Google search wasn't much help. As a former dot-com employee, the phrase seemed like something shouted across the cubicle farms and communal dining centers. There was always a phrase of the week/month that dotcom managers liked to promote...and best practice sure sounded familiar. 

I was delighted to see that wikipedia includes a critique of the phrase. It comforts me to know that I'm not alone in despising the phrase best practice. That entry even offers a more intelligent alternative: contextual practice. 

This makes sense to me, because every situation is different. Every classroom is different. Most importantly, every student is different. Let's put this into context. See what I did there?