Feb
25
2009
25
2009
Top 10: How to Take Control of Your Teaching
Occasionally, I repost this article so that new readers can find it more easily. Based on some very enthusiastic feedback, it has since morphed into a book proposal called The Top Secret New Teachers Handbook. I'll share more as it ...
Feb
18
2009
18
2009
“I Statements” in Expository Writing
This weekend I'm presenting at the CATE conference in Santa Clara, CA. It's a session on developing high level, critical-thinking commentary in expository writing. My feeling is that great commentary is the Voice in Expository, it is the Show, Not ...
Feb
18
2009
18
2009
Here’s why test scores shouldn’t be the only criteria…
OK, so my first period's "Advanced" group went up 40% between their 1st district assessment and their 2nd. Another period went up 37%. Even my Honors class went from 81% Advanced to 97% Advanced, with only 1 student found in ...
Feb
02
2009
02
2009
Test Prep-Bubbling Power
So I looked at my 8th grade students' scores after they took the MMA and sighed. Their scores sucked.
Jan
29
2009
29
2009
Is EdTech changing how students think or is it addressing the changes in student thinking?
Science Daily is reporting that there has been a shift in how students are thinking as a result of their use of technology. They believe it possibly lowers critical thinking skills and analysis. Additionally, they wonder just how much schools ...
Jan
28
2009
28
2009
My New Interactive Whiteboard…an update
OK, you know when you get a new puppy and you love it and you couldn't live without it and then you find out it has hip dysplasia?
That's a little of what my relationship is like with my new ...
Jan
25
2009
25
2009
Marketing Metacognition
So I just got the January MindWare catalogue and I realize that here we have a toy catalogue that is solely for metacognitive purchases. So this got me thinking: how can schools market metacognition? I realized, of course, that until ...
Jan
24
2009
24
2009
Asking for Student Opinions Isn’t Risky, It’s Rewarding
I was reading this great article from Slate Magazine about the cheese that is Billy Joel. And I thought back to many a car trip singing his "Themes from an Italian Restaurant." I also remembered just how many times I'd ...
Jan
20
2009
20
2009
Recalling your own Metacognition
I've been working on metacognitive lessons with my middle schoolers in an attempt to teach reflection and the act of thinking about thinking. Anyway, one of the most important elements in teaching about thinking is in your own remembering of ...
Jan
17
2009
17
2009
NewsHour with Jim Leher: Michelle Rhee
I recently watched John Merrow's interview with Michelle Rhee on the NewsHour. Michelle seems like a real mixed blessing for education. On one hand, she's willing to clean house, and education does seriously need it. On the other hand, however, ...



