From her position as a STEM curriculum developer for an NSF-funded program and close watcher of developments in STEM learning nationwide, science educator Anne Jolly offers five predictions about the path STEM education will follow in 2014.
Co-Teacher Resolutions / Two Teachers in the Room
by Elizabeth Stein · Published 01/12/2014 · Last modified 12/10/2019
Goal setting, not resolution-making, can help develop “a co-teaching state of mind” that leads to stronger classroom partnerships, says special educator Elizabeth Stein. Make the most of collaboration, Stein urges, and keep the egos at bay.
Jeff Wilhelm’s practical strategies – including unique frontloading ideas for addressing prior knowledge – will set students up for using visualization techniques that can improve reading comprehension, says literacy consultant Anne Anderson.
Former teacher Paddy Eger offers detailed training guidelines to prepare adult assistants for the classroom, says reviewer Karen Linch. “I spent many years learning to be a teacher, so it makes perfect sense that parents and volunteers need to be trained.”
In this thought-provoking book, the teacher-authors’ Science Writing Heuristic (SWH) strategy goes beyond the argumentation of the subtitle, says reviewer and science teacher Tracey Muise, modeling how learning can be driven by student inquiry.
Linking Leadership to Student Learning draws on a major US study to reveal how school leaders actually impact student achievement, says reviewer Holly Procida. Key finding: Collaborative leadership has more impact than individual leadership.
Kids on the Cusp / Teacher Evaluation
by Mary Tarashuk · Published 01/06/2014 · Last modified 12/10/2019
Middle grades teacher Mary Tarashuk has reached the final rubric in her state’s mandated teacher self-assessment: Professional Responsibilities. She says the words used to define “highly effective” performance seem out of synch with real teaching.
What does the annual avalanche of diet advertising mean to the classroom teacher? It’s a teachable moment, says media literacy expert Frank Baker — an opportunity to sharpen visual literacy and critical thinking skills and bring the Common Core standard for argument writing into play.
Working Draft / Writing and Coding
by Kevin Hodgson · Published 01/05/2014 · Last modified 11/24/2019
If our English Language Arts students don’t learn the basics of reading and writing computer code, asks middle grades teacher Kevin Hodgson, how can we be sure they will grow up to be creators of ideas and not just users of information created and managed by others?
In Whole Novels for the Whole Class, Ariel Sacks offers a student-centered approach that promotes love of reading and deepens discussions, says reviewer Heather Wolpert-Gawron. Sacks’ documented strategies also address Common Core standards.
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