NEPC-SchoolDiscipline.pdf (application/pdf Object) State_of_education.pdf (application/pdf Object) Brain-Based Learning: Resource Roundup. Edutopia's list of resources, articles, videos, and links for exploring the connection between education and neuroscience. (Updated: 12/2013) Building Brain Literacy in Elementary Students, By Judy Willis, M.D. (2013) Neurologist, teacher, author and Edutopia blogger Willis discusses the benefits of teaching elementary students how their brains work. Brains, Brains, Brains! How the Mind of a Middle Schooler Works, by Heather Wolpert-Gawron (2013) Blogger Wolpert-Gawron launches this three-part series by advising middle school teachers to read up on brain research with insight on how the 'tween brain works.
In her second blog, The Mind of a Middle Schooler: How Brains Learn, read about important brain terminology and a typical classroom scenario where a middle schooler's brain is hard at work. Diplomascount2012_presspacket_final.pdf (application/pdf Object) Do_High_Flyers_Maintain_Their_Altitude_FINAL.pdf (application/pdf Object) Rejecting Instructional Level Theory. A third bit of evidence in the complex text issue has to do with the strength of evidence on the other side of the ledger.
In my two previous posts, I have indicated why the common core is embracing the idea of teaching reading with much more complex texts. But what about the evidence that counters this approach? Many years ago, when I was a primary grade teacher, I was struggling to teach reading. I knew I was supposed to have groups for different levels of kids, but in those days information about how to make those grouping decisions was not imparted to mere undergraduates.
I knew I was supposed to figure out which books would provide the optimal learning experience, but I had no technology to do this. So, I enrolled in a master’s degree program and started studying to be a reading specialist. I maintained my interest in this issue when I went off for my doctorate. He had (has) a great clinical sense and he was skeptical of my faith in the value of those instructional level results. Anne Murphy Paul: Why Floundering Makes Learning Better. Call it the “learning paradox”: the more you struggle and even fail while you’re trying to master new information, the better you’re likely to recall and apply that information later. The learning paradox is at the heart of “productive failure,” a phenomenon identified by Manu Kapur, a researcher at the Learning Sciences Lab at the National Institute of Education of Singapore. Kapur points out that while the model adopted by many teachers and employers when introducing others to new knowledge — providing lots of structure and guidance early on, until the students or workers show that they can do it on their own — makes intuitive sense, it may not be the best way to promote learning.
Rather, it’s better to let the neophytes wrestle with the material on their own for a while, refraining from giving them any assistance at the start. (MORE: Paul: The Secret to Grace Under Pressure) With one group of students, the teacher provided strong “scaffolding” — instructional support — and feedback. What is Working Memory and Why Does it Matter? Remember the day when someone rattled off a phone number while you just hoped against hope you'd recall the string of digits as you were dialing? That was working memory toiling away. With the advent of cell phones, you may no longer use it this way very often. But working memory still plays a central role in learning and our daily lives.
If working memory is weak, it can trip up just about anyone. But it really works against a child with learning disabilities (LD). You can take steps to help a child with weak working memory, whether or not LD is a part of the picture. What Is Working Memory? Working memory is your brain's Post-it note, says Tracy Packiam Alloway, PhD, assistant professor of psychology at the University of North Florida in Jacksonville, Florida. You can think of working memory as the active part of your memory system. “Working memory helps us stay involved in something longer and keep more things in mind while approaching a task,” says Cruger. Types of Working Memory. Waiting for the Real Superman: A Christian School Closes the Achievement Gap | This Is Our City. Nearly 15 years ago, Russ Gregg began doubting that he understood what it meant to love his neighbor.
Living in the Phillips neighborhood of urban Minneapolis, he commuted every day to the upscale suburb of Edina, where he was an administrator at the private Christian academy where his children attended school. The question—"Does it mean that everything I want for my children, I should want for my neighbor's children as well? "—began to haunt him. After resigning from his position in Edina, Gregg began the process of cofounding Hope Academy, a private K-12 Christian school in one of the most economically challenged, ethnically diverse regions of the Twin Cities. Founded in 2000 and graduating its first class of seniors this spring, Hope provides a "God-centered education for the youth of the city," with a commitment to make tuition affordable for all 300 students, regardless of income and religious persuasion.
How to Be a Better Test-Taker. Learning Styles Don't Exist. Daniel Willingham's Learning Styles FAQ. Education Working Paper 6 | The Teachability Index: Can Disadvantaged Students Learn? Education Working PaperNo. 6 September 2004 The Teachability Index: Can Disadvantaged Students Learn? Jay P. Greene, Ph.D. Senior Fellow, Manhattan Institute for Policy ResearchGreg Forster, Ph.D.Senior Research Associate, Manhattan Institute for Policy Research Executive Summary Student “teachability”—the personal advantages and disadvantages that students bring to school with them—plays an important role in public discussion of education policy. These claims are rarely subjected to serious scrutiny. The Teachability Index shows that students today are actually somewhat easier to teach than they were thirty years ago. The states with the highest scores on the Teachability Index were North Dakota, Maine, New Hampshire, Vermont, and South Dakota. We also compare the teachability levels of students in each state with their academic outcomes.
In particular, states with more school choice or stronger accountability testing demonstrate better school performance. Introduction Method. What to Write Down During a Class Lecture. I dunno. I sometimes surprise people with what I can remember, but while I think it's important to remember the concept discussed, certain details may not be remembered unless your professor does upload the slides or offers a study guide. Are these offerings pretty consistently offered? If so, paying attention may be all you need. If you're unsure, better take notes. The cues mentioned here are pretty "duh", though. Good for beginners, but if you made it to college, you should know them already.
I agree with you and rarely take notes myself but I have noticed it does tend to allow my mind to wander more which means I pay less attention. Also, writing something down does tend to etch it in your mind slightly deeper making it harder to forget. I think it may depend on the subject. As much of the information we receive post-graduation is in this messy, fluid form, it may be good practice for us to learn how to take notes, summarize the material, and teach ourselves and others. Untitled. The Art of Failing Successfully | Head Case. Can D.C. keep middle schoolers from ‘teetering on the ninth-grade cliff’? - D.C. Schools Insider. Posted at 08:49 PM ET, 09/07/2011 Sep 08, 2011 12:49 AM EDT TheWashingtonPost “Dropout factories” is the term for high schools where less than 60 percent of freshmen complete their senior year.
With the District’s graduation rate at 43 percent, according to an Education Week study, it means that the dropout industry in D.C. is robust. But some of the data presented at Wednesday’s D.C. Council roundtable makes the case that the real dropout factories are the city’s middle grades: 6, 7 and 8. More than half of D.C. students who leave school do so in ninth grade, which means that their experience in middle school most likely laid the groundwork for their early exit.
“If we want to improve graduation rates, we need to catch students before they are teetering on the ninth-grade cliff,” said HyeSook Chung, executive director of D.C. The seven-hour hearing was the first of two planned by D.C. “I know we’re on a collision course, especially in Ward 6,” said D.C Council member Tommy Wells. What if the Secret to Success Is Failure? Delay Kindergarten at Your Child’s Peril.