All Blog Posts (9,941)

How can I increase student effort?

I have found that some students put little effort into their assignments because they feel like they will just fail anyway. I am interested in increasing student effort on assignments and projects. What is the best way to show them the correlation between their effort and their success?

Also, do you think students at the elementary level can be accurate judges of the effort they've put into their work?

I'm always looking to find ways to incorporate technology, any ideas for…

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Added by Michelle Figge on January 24, 2011 at 2:44pm — 1 Comment

5 Ways to Empower Your Students...

Here are 5 concrete examples of how I am empowering my German 2 and 3 students. I was inspired to write this post after reading a great post by Chris Wejr (… Continue

Added by Justin Tarte on January 24, 2011 at 6:47am — 2 Comments

Why You Should Consider “Implementing Instructional Technology Innovations”

This 10 week online course provided an introduction to many Web 2.0 tools and ways in which they might be used in the classroom.

This past September through December, I had the good fortune of taking this online course, an offering from the University of Wisconsin – Stout.…

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Added by Kelly Walsh on January 24, 2011 at 6:00am — No Comments

The “College and Career Ready” Farce

Schools around the country are tossing out the old “College for All” slogan and replacing it with the popular Obama-school…

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Added by Michael Dunn on January 23, 2011 at 4:46pm — No Comments

Teacher Evaluations: Presumption of Incompetence

Teacher Evaluations: Presumption of Incompetence…

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Added by Michael Dunn on January 23, 2011 at 4:43pm — No Comments

Michelle Rhee, Child Abuser, Wants More Abuse in School

Check out one of the latest by Valerie Strauss, “What Rhee’s Comments About Her Children Say About Her.” Apparently,…

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Added by Michael Dunn on January 23, 2011 at 4:41pm — No Comments

Alabama’s Tough New Anti-Union Laws—A Boon for Organizing?

Several tough new anti-teacher’s union laws were recently passed in Alabama, in the wake of an ethics investigation of education lobbyist Paul Hubbert.…

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Added by Michael Dunn on January 23, 2011 at 4:40pm — No Comments

Supporting At-Risk Students in the Online Environment

John* failed to log-in 8 days in a row after he’d enrolled in my online, 10th grade, English course. I watched my Performance Dashboard, waiting for it to report that John wasn’t, in fact, a disengaged student. On the 8th day, I picked up my phone and dialed the number of his mentor. After a short run around at the front desk, I was transferred to Paul*, who reported to me that he hadn’t seen John in over a week and all he knew was that the boy had made a court appearance sometime back and…

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Added by Rashel Fitchett on January 22, 2011 at 12:33am — No Comments

Optimizing Students' Learning

Maximizing the opportunities – that’s the keyword – and the key to good teaching. “I choose the word opportunities because that is all any teacher can provide for his or her students”, writes Doyle in his book (page 4). This reminds me of this idiom, “you can lead a horse to water, but you cannot make him drink”. I truly agree with his view on providing the environment to create learning opportunities that optimize students’ learning. Teachers are not only responsible to…

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Added by A. A. Karim on January 21, 2011 at 8:28pm — No Comments

10 reasons to get educators blogging...

5 reasons educators should start reading blogs:

1) - Blogs are the heart of learning and sharing...

If you are an idea and inspiration junkie like myself, then you will find blogs to be extremely beneficial. Educators of all ages and backgrounds are bringing their ideas, reflections and experiences to one convenient location; their blog.… Continue

Added by Justin Tarte on January 20, 2011 at 1:39am — 1 Comment

14 books educators should read...

Here are 14 books that I have read over the last two years that have had a positive effect and impact on me as an educator. Some of these books were read in the book club at Seckman High School, and some were read as part of my doctoral studies. Despite doing a lot more online reading of late (blogs, articles, etc...), I still feel that books play an important role in educator growth and development. Please comment and let me know what you would add to the list.… Continue

Added by Justin Tarte on January 20, 2011 at 1:37am — 2 Comments

Trying to do what's best for kids...

I recently made some big changes in my German classes. I have been contemplating these changes for a while now, so please don't assume I made these changes without thoughtful consideration. My focus has transitioned to having my students show what they have learned, instead of simply assessing them on what they are willing to do. It bothers me when I see students who have a high level of content mastery, but yet have a low grade. Likewise, I see misrepresentation… Continue

Added by Justin Tarte on January 20, 2011 at 1:36am — No Comments

10 steps for educators new to Twitter...

Educators from all around the world are beginning to use Twitter as a valuable piece in their professional growth toolbox. As professional development continues to evolve and transform, we will need new ways to encourage teachers to embrace new opportunities. Here is a "How… Continue

Added by Justin Tarte on January 20, 2011 at 1:34am — No Comments

The power of a comment...

I recently did a blog post titled, How do you Define Learning? This post centers around the struggles I am having this year as I move away from the traditional style of…

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Added by Justin Tarte on January 20, 2011 at 1:32am — 1 Comment

Technology that augments the use of technology by educators...

I recently had a discussion with a friend about the relative merits and demerits of technology, and before you jump in to claim that the pros outweigh the cons, let me iterate that the topic under debate was the value of (or lack of it) technology for those who are either scared to use technology or have no clue about it. The tech savvy may find this hard to understand, but there are still those who refuse to embrace technology or do so under considerable duress.

There’s no doubt that…

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Added by Justin Tarte on January 20, 2011 at 1:30am — 2 Comments

What are you really worth...?

There are lots of things that people love: new car smell, walks on the beach, winning the lottery and most importantly, opening a gas station soda only to find out you won a free soda!

In addition to these most cherished things in our lives, I also really love to be inspired and motivated. Over the last couple weeks there have been two pieces in particular that have so eloquently come together in perfect harmony...…

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Added by Justin Tarte on January 20, 2011 at 1:28am — No Comments

End of blog

As it is a new year and I will be teaching a year 2 class this blog will no longer be used.

Keep a eye out for my Google sites classroom blog - coming soon :)

Added by Juan O'Shea on January 20, 2011 at 1:19am — No Comments

Reverse Instruction and 1 to 1 Laptop Schemes

Thoughts and ideas about "Reverse Instruction" and 1 to 1 Laptop Schemes - see original blog here

As I have mentioned previously on this site, the key to implementing and developing a successful 1 to 1 Laptop Scheme in a school is about adapting teaching styles and pedagogies. With the increase of more 1 to 1 Laptop schools, the ability to introduce “Reverse Instruction” to our 21^st Century learners is becoming even more…

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Added by Steven David Pearce on January 20, 2011 at 12:08am — No Comments

Educators: Writing to Learn

Learning only happens for me in one manner. Writing. Today, Will Richardson reminded me of that in his The "Future of Education" webinar (http://bit.ly/K2WJp).

Among the numerous topics discussed, was the idea that Educators as Learners are a powerful tool in the classroom. An educator, according to Richardson, is most effective in the classroom when teaching students how to learn, not what to learn. So, first off, the educator himself must be a… Continue

Added by Rashel Fitchett on January 18, 2011 at 10:19pm — 4 Comments

How does students' prior knowledge affect their learning

This presentation is a summary of important points from the first chapter of the book "How Learning Works - 7 Research-Based Principles for Smart Teaching" by Ambrose and others. In Chapter 1 (How Does Students' Prior Knowledge Affect Their Learning) the authors discuss the importance of teachers to recognize that students bring with them prior knowledge acquired naturally through daily life activities or in prior courses they have studied. Some of the prior knowledge are relevant but some are… Continue

Added by A. A. Karim on January 18, 2011 at 1:16am — No Comments