Designing an ecosystem for academic excellence: 7 elements to consider
Designing an ecosystem for academic excellence: 7 elements to consider
April 14, 2016
Categories:
Math,
Reading
As a teacher, you want your students to achieve great things. Our responsibility as educators is to create an academic ecosystem—a community of “just-right” conditions—where students are able to thrive. If we could create the perfect ecosystem for learning, what [...]
Where is our reform focus?
Where is our reform focus?
March 31, 2016
Categories:
Math,
Professional Development,
Reading
A subtle transition has occurred around our profession’s discussions of reform, so subtle that many of us may not have consciously picked up on it. That transition is from conversations about “school effectiveness” to ones of “educator effectiveness.” In the [...]
The difference practice makes
The difference practice makes
March 17, 2016
Categories:
Math,
Reading
A few years ago, one of my colleagues suggested we take advantage of the gym in the basement of our office building and bring in a trainer. While I’d always been active, I found group training intimidating. Somehow I always [...]
Four strategies for teaching talkativeness
Four strategies for teaching talkativeness
March 3, 2016
Categories:
Assessment,
Math,
Reading
In an earlier post on the interdependent relationship between talkativeness and cognitive development, I shared Vygotsky’s theory on vocabulary acquisition as the defining moment in cognitive development, as well as the classic 1965 Hart & Risley study that validated [...]
Talkativeness and cognitive development
Talkativeness and cognitive development
February 4, 2016
Categories:
Reading
“Please see if I am grokking this properly.” (Angel, 2016) Admit it, before reading further, you thought about jumping to Google, dictionary.com, or even Wikipedia to see what “grokking” is, and more importantly, to learn what is required to grok [...]
Welcome to a new era in testing
Welcome to a new era in testing
January 21, 2016
Categories:
Assessment
When I go into schools and talk to teachers, there’s a lot of rich dialogue going on around testing. I’ve only recently come to the Marysville district, but I’ve been in the business for over 15 years and have seen [...]
Vygotsky and Gita explore the ZPD’s social side
Vygotsky and Gita explore the ZPD’s social side
December 17, 2015
Categories:
Assessment
I want to tell you about a person who has been described in many ways: an “outstanding scientist,” an “eminent scholar,” and even a “genius.” I want to tell you about Lev Semenovich Vygotsky. –Gita Vygodskaya And so begins Gita [...]
What kids are reading: New insights on the path to college and careers
What kids are reading: New insights on the path to college and careers
November 10, 2015
Categories:
Reading
It all comes down to the first sentence. That’s how I decide. If the writing pulls me in, I’ll buy or borrow the book. If not, it remains on the shelf, whether physical or virtual. No matter how riveting a [...]
Are your students ready for the Smarter Balanced assessment?
Are your students ready for the Smarter Balanced assessment?
November 10, 2015
Categories:
Assessment
In recent years, we’ve entered a new era of education—one that leverages data, insight, and, yes, testing to understand what learning looks like for every student and to meet new state standards. One of the new exams is the summative [...]
What educators need to know about measurement error
What educators need to know about measurement error
October 15, 2015
Categories:
Assessment
At my first introduction to measurement error, the word error gave me pause, and I silently wondered what good could possibly come from it. To most of us, an error usually means something is terribly wrong! It doesn’t help either [...]
