Archive: Feb 2012
Welcome to the Post Textbook World: Ten Elements
A friend asked what I thought about Jay Mathew’s post on textbooks. I thought the rear view mirror critique of a process to pick better textbooks read more like a 1982, not a 2012 discussion – and certainly not the 2015 conversation we should be having.
Good Work: Persistence
Bill is one of the millions of people that are unemployed, underemployed, or facing employment insecurity. Folks like Bill give it their all and serve their customers or families with a smile, yet find themselves in lousy situations uncertain of their future in a plodding globalized economy. His persistence is rooted an identity as strong as the foundation of his cabin and grounded in beliefs shaped during his Jesuit education. Bill is persistent, constant to a purpose even in the face of adversity.
Common Core Launches Avalanche of Innovation
Common Core State Standards provide a national platform for innovation. For the first time, content developers can invest for a national market. The Core has triggered a wave of investment in engaging, personalized learning content and tools.
Staff Picks: How We Find Our News
This last week, many of our readers and partners have asked: Where do you gather your information? Well, we thought we'd share that with you! Below are our top picks for getting the front-line news.
ProProfs Training Creates Advanced Web-Based Courses
ProProfs launched ProProfs Training, a new tool aiming to make online training much easier for non-tech-savvy teachers and educators. ProProfs Training is a brand new web-based software that allows anyone to easily create advanced multi-media online courses.
STEM Education Takes Off With Fly to Learn
Students in the Fly to Learn program learn STEM fundamentals through the design, construction, flight, and performance evaluation of virtual airplanes. X-Plan incorporates realistic laws of physics found in the field, which fosters the beginnings of critical thinking and problem solving found in aviation careers.
California Reports Charter Schools Deliver Positive Impact for Low-Income Students
The California Charter School Association (CCSA) released today its second annual Portrait of the Movement: How Charters are Transforming California Education report, detailing academic performance of California's charter schools. The report finds that low-income students continue to be well-served by charters; and confirms that charters are having a positive impact on delivering high student achievement.
Collaboration, Really?
When I think of instances of true collaboration, Eric Whitacre’s Virtual Choir comes to mind: a blending of individual voices, each making his or her best effort to interpret the phrasing to contribute to the breathtakingly beautiful whole, all with the common goal of rendering a beautiful piece of music together. This extraordinary accomplishment suggests to me a metaphor for what we need to be doing as educators.
Review: Raising the Standards Through Chapter Books
Americans today are reading less. The National Endowment for the Arts reported that less than one-third of 13-year-olds read daily and 19 percent of 17-year-olds are non-readers. Even those that do read, the report suggests, aren't reading as well. Reading scores among students today have declined. While employers report the increasing importance of reading as a basic skill, many graduates today fall short.
Competency-based Approach Can Support Personalized Learning in Ohio
Nearly 40 percent of college freshmen in Ohio need to take remedial courses because they are unprepared for college-level work. The total bill for remedial classes in 2009 came to $130 million, rising to $147 million in 2010. Remediation is most costly to students who take longer to complete their degrees and are more likely to drop out.