4244 Search Results for "in"

• You can see most Nike Hyperfus You can see most Nike Hyperfuse 2012 of the championship are bright stars

  • From: Bunitlu_Lu
  • Description:

    Carefully opened the NBA's historical development, you can see most Nike Hyperfuse 2012 of the championship are bright stars, which seems to have won the most basic configuration. However, in the Union which have also appeared in some of the classic single-core win the case, bravely fighting the enemy boarded the peak of the bright star. Example can be listed, not many, but does not mean no, it is precisely because it is a way to survive from the superstar group which kill them, so more commendable.

    Spurs dynasty in the eyes of most people is a combination of GDP endorsement climb to the top of the team in 2003, but in addition to the 1999 Spurs Twin Towers, indeed Duncan single-core team. That season Parker is just 20 years old, just a sophomore, and Ginobili had just landed the NBA Lengtou Qing rookie, the role of the two men in the team, but can not be called giants. Year's playoffs Parker averaged 14.7 points is certainly impressive, but his assists just 3.5 Duncan high. But rather that the playoffs "Stone Buddha" is averaging 24.7 points, 15.4 rebounds and 5.3 assists and 3.3 blocks of data is indeed the father when the mother's role, is a true single-core team.

    2010-11 season, the Mavericks have never been considered favorites to Cheap Nike Hyperdunk 2012 win the team, their regular season record is good but not very shocking data, and only Nowitzki a superstar team. Thanks to the experience of the 2006 NBA Finals defeat, making the team is not optimistic about the 2011 playoffs is very surprising, Dirk led his team through the trials, and ultimately defeat the old enemy in the finals Heat finally win. Which that year's Finals, Dirk every time the fourth quarter are extremely brave, almost single-handedly at the distal backward time to reverse the situation, this championship course more blood, more admirable.

    Same case also appeared in the 1990s, Olajuwon led the Rockets to two consecutive admirable, if the second win his side Drexler such a superstar company, 1994 The summit is a single-core classic. That season Olajuwon around the best teammate power forward Thorpe, but he was just a very pure blue-collar player only, not the kind of character bravely fighting the enemy at a critical moment. So have Olajuwon and Ewing's fight to create Jordan nap during the rocket legend.

    Even as strong as the Chamberlain, in 1967, he successfully Nike Lebron 10 Low intercepted the Celtics win also have a large number of classic teammates, together with his team, including four players scoring more than 18 points, in order to Hong Ta Celtics dynasty. 1972 Chamberlain Lakers win, but also due to side with Jerry - West, Goodrich and McMillan sake of these players. And in the case of Jordan, the history of the NBA superstar, but also to rely on through Pippen support to his reign building work, all of these shows every moment mononuclear team win a tough place, but also people admire.

  • Blog post
  • 1 day ago
  • Views: 7
  • Not yet rated

• Fisher end of the season mid-s Fisher end of the season mid-season to join the Thunder contract Derrick Rose 1.5 will expire

  • From: Bunitlu_Lu
  • Description:

    Martin is to the Thunder before the start of the season,Allen Iverson Shoes the season of his annual salary of up to $ 12 million contract expires after the end of the season. Martin said he has talked with the general manager Presti and coach Brooks own future, but he is not willing to disclose any details.

    "I am willing to stay in place this summer, I will have some options, so I got to see how this thing progress," Martin said.

    Thunder existing lineup next season is still toting a contract player payroll of $ 66 million, the Thunder would be difficult to come up with a fertilizer about Martin. However, Martin said: "My career is now in a I do not need to go to get what I want those substances stage, more or happy and I know what my career you want, the key is happy to become part do something special. "

    Fisher end of the season mid-season to join the Thunder contract Derrick Rose 1.5 will expire, but he has no idea of ??retirement, Fisher said: "I am perfectly willing to play next season, if given the opportunity to come back, then I will enjoy this opportunity. "

    This summer, the Thunder faced with the most difficult choices that Perkins playoffs this season, Perkins PER -0.7, since PER statistics Perkins since this data is historically low (playing time must be more than 200 minutes), he a total of 24 points and five blocks but 24 turnovers and 39 fouls, when he presence the thunder lost a total of 40 points.

    Taking into account the Perkins next two years of annual salary, respectively 9,000,000 and $ 9,700,000, many experts recommend Thunder amnesty Perkins. In this regard, Perkins does not care, he said: Mark - Mark Cuban (Bryant the Mavericks players) they may Amnesty Bryant, so anyone can be an amnesty, but I'm sure I will next season come back to continue the effectiveness of the team, I would like to upgrade their rebounds, I can contribute more in this regard. "

    George - Hill in the fourth game, the New York Knicks center Tyson - Tyson Chandler hit in the head concussion. Until this morning Pacers shootaround at Madison Square Garden, George - Hill headaches have not improved, so he had to miss the game.

    DJ Augustine will replace George - Hill and Stephenson Derrick Rose 3.0 partner with the composition of the starting field, and not in play in Augustine the Indiana Star "reporter Mike - Wales coach Waugh Siegel is likely to use Paul - George Stephenson in the backcourt. "

    George Hill in the playoffs, were able to get 16 points, 4.4 assists and 4.1 rebounds, he came in second in the team in scoring, assists and steals, on a fourth war with the Knicks, Hill more scored 26 points and four assists, hit rate of 64.3%. Hill Pacers 3-1 lead key players get match point, so his absence will cause a very big impact to the Pacers home game of the Knicks ushered in a very good chance of winning.

  • Blog post
  • 1 day ago
  • Views: 8
  • Not yet rated

• Cheap Nike Trainers then he wi Cheap Nike Trainers then he will be the score 4-2 win over the Warriors advanced to the Western Conference finals

  • From: Bunitlu_Lu
  • Description:

    San Antonio Spurs can win in the Golden State,Cheap Nike Trainers then he will be the score 4-2 win over the Warriors advanced to the Western Conference finals. However, this will not be easy, this round of the series two leading then have been the Warriors chasing a draw, both teams have not won the first two games.

    "No one to talk about it," Popovich comes to the Western Conference finals, "because the next game is a war, the opponent is a master of the team, they have both ends of the stadium pain flat So now not to think about other things, just playing to play hard. "

    Spurs in the last three games to show the advantage of their experience, the Warriors into the injuries and reveal the tired condition. In both the fifth war, Parker and Duncan, as well as other teams multi-flowering, the final 109-91 win, Warriors Curry and Thompson - Mark Jackson called "the history of the best shooting backcourt" two marksman, only 22 scored 13 points.

    However, Curry said after the game he would not injuries as an excuse, he is looking the sixth back home to outbreak. "Bird" Landry talked about the sixth game of the next in the Golden State, "We have not quit, we did not die, we will continue to fight, now is not the end. Fact, we are very excited be able to return home game, everyone in the locker room are very excited and ready. "

    Warriors coach Mark Jackson - also encouraged the players, "We have Asics Trainers always been a very united team, has always been a good habit to quickly adjust our performance is not ideal, always able to quickly rebound. Next, we will will once again be a strong rebound, I have no doubt. "

    Warriors do not retreat, this is only the second time since 1994 a young team to the playoffs, and now does not wish to end the playoff. Landry said, the game players to fully fight, to fight to the collapsed on the pitch, "It's like a game of NCAA, we need now is the effort and hard work, fight for every inch of land in the game after the end, we may have been doing all the energy we are even able to walk back to the car, we need to put all his energy on the court to spell out. "

    What happened was, LeBron when a ball attack, Nate trying to rush to steal, but LeBron is selected pass, because they have not brake the body, Nate's hand throughout the flutter in Le Brown's face. The referee Bennett soon whistled for a flagrant foul, but after watching the video repeatedly, or cancel the foul, because Nate did not mean to do this.

    This physical contact is very common in the game of basketball, let alone in the Heat and Bulls series, this case is even more rare. But sitting in the "Empress Dowager" This reaction is very strong ...

    That dwarf away from LeBron body! "According to TMZ sources said, sitting in the Gloria Leah screaming roar. See Gloria Leah such a move, the fans sitting around her stunned.

    Gloria Leah since LeBron entered the NBA has not been easy way to his NBA Basketball Shoes son, "Friends Mom door", to attend court aboard a private jet, these are the "multi-thing" mother to son .

    Gloria Leah has been in a playoff game for Cleveland and Boston in 2010, sitting on the sidelines watching the game yelling LeBron inability to concentrate, and ultimately the little emperor unbearable rushed to the sidelines roar own mother, is attracted opponent Garnett and Pierce and others tried to mediate.

    Which is in the race abusive LeBron himself all respect for opponents ......

  • Blog post
  • 1 day ago
  • Views: 32
  • Not yet rated

• Gloria Leah since LeBron enter Gloria Leah since LeBron entered the NBA has not been easy way to his NBA Basketball Shoes son

  • From: Bunitlu_Lu
  • Description:

    San Antonio Spurs can win in the Golden State,Cheap Nike Trainers then he will be the score 4-2 win over the Warriors advanced to the Western Conference finals. However, this will not be easy, this round of the series two leading then have been the Warriors chasing a draw, both teams have not won the first two games.

    "No one to talk about it," Popovich comes to the Western Conference finals, "because the next game is a war, the opponent is a master of the team, they have both ends of the stadium pain flat So now not to think about other things, just playing to play hard. "

    Spurs in the last three games to show the advantage of their experience, the Warriors into the injuries and reveal the tired condition. In both the fifth war, Parker and Duncan, as well as other teams multi-flowering, the final 109-91 win, Warriors Curry and Thompson - Mark Jackson called "the history of the best shooting backcourt" two marksman, only 22 scored 13 points.

    However, Curry said after the game he would not injuries as an excuse, he is looking the sixth back home to outbreak. "Bird" Landry talked about the sixth game of the next in the Golden State, "We have not quit, we did not die, we will continue to fight, now is not the end. Fact, we are very excited be able to return home game, everyone in the locker room are very excited and ready. "

    Warriors coach Mark Jackson - also encouraged the players, "We have Asics Trainers always been a very united team, has always been a good habit to quickly adjust our performance is not ideal, always able to quickly rebound. Next, we will will once again be a strong rebound, I have no doubt. "

    Warriors do not retreat, this is only the second time since 1994 a young team to the playoffs, and now does not wish to end the playoff. Landry said, the game players to fully fight, to fight to the collapsed on the pitch, "It's like a game of NCAA, we need now is the effort and hard work, fight for every inch of land in the game after the end, we may have been doing all the energy we are even able to walk back to the car, we need to put all his energy on the court to spell out. "

    What happened was, LeBron when a ball attack, Nate trying to rush to steal, but LeBron is selected pass, because they have not brake the body, Nate's hand throughout the flutter in Le Brown's face. The referee Bennett soon whistled for a flagrant foul, but after watching the video repeatedly, or cancel the foul, because Nate did not mean to do this.

    This physical contact is very common in the game of basketball, let alone in the Heat and Bulls series, this case is even more rare. But sitting in the "Empress Dowager" This reaction is very strong ...

    That dwarf away from LeBron body! "According to TMZ sources said, sitting in the Gloria Leah screaming roar. See Gloria Leah such a move, the fans sitting around her stunned.

    Gloria Leah since LeBron entered the NBA has not been easy way to his NBA Basketball Shoes son, "Friends Mom door", to attend court aboard a private jet, these are the "multi-thing" mother to son .

    Gloria Leah has been in a playoff game for Cleveland and Boston in 2010, sitting on the sidelines watching the game yelling LeBron inability to concentrate, and ultimately the little emperor unbearable rushed to the sidelines roar own mother, is attracted opponent Garnett and Pierce and others tried to mediate.

    Which is in the race abusive LeBron himself all respect for opponents ......

  • Blog post
  • 1 day ago
  • Views: 10
  • Not yet rated

• Unmuted: The Importance of Stu Unmuted: The Importance of Student Feedback

  • From: Mindy_Keller-Kyriakides
  • Description:

    Unmuted: Using Student Feedback to Create an Effective Secondary Learning Environment

    Join us for a Webinar on June 25     Space is limited. Reserve your Webinar seat now at: https://www2.gotomeeting.com/register/580671226   By the time they reach high school, teenagers know the business of school and teaching. They know what works and what doesn’t work, how to get under a teacher's skin, and how to avoid doing anything. Seriously capitalizing on their input is at the core of how to reach them and increase their willingness to learn. If teachers provide students with a strong foundation of trust and rapport, student feedback can function as a powerful metacognitive dialogue, a constant flow of “what are we learning” and “how are we learning it?” When taken to the next level, it also entails much higher thinking processes such as: How well is the teacher teaching it to me? The aim of this session is to provide educators with the means to garner student feedback purposefully and effectively. Participants will: • Discuss how criticism can strengthen their teaching practice. • Hear, firsthand from former students, how a teacher who seeks and uses student feedback impacts students and their learning environment. • Work through potential scenarios, brainstorming ideas that they can immediately use in the classroom. • Be provided with a handout that includes helpful links and student feedback tools. Target Audience: This webinar is designed for new and veteran secondary teachers, but may also be applicable for instructors of teacher preparation courses.   About the Presenters: National Board Certified Mindy Kyriakides is fifteen-year veteran of the classroom in both online and traditional environments.  She, along with her former students, authored Transparent Teaching of Adolescents: Creating the Ideal Class for Students and Teachers (2012, Rowman & Littlefield Education), a conversation about best practices for high school teachers. She also runs an education blog for secondary teachers. Her fellow presenters for this session are former students and co-authors.   Title: Unmuted: Using Student Feedback to Create an Effective Secondary Learning Environment Date: Tuesday, June 25, 2013 Time: 8:00 PM - 9:15 PM EDT   After registering you will receive a confirmation email containing information about joining the Webinar.

  • 1 day ago
  • Views: 7
  • Not yet rated

• The Importance of Student Feed The Importance of Student Feedback

  • From: Mindy_Keller-Kyriakides
  • Description:

    I had no idea how important it was to my high school students that I asked them for their feedback on our courses. The impact was far more profound than I ever imagined.
    
    In light of the recent Duncanville issue, where student Jeff Bliss offers criticism to his teacher, the time to discuss listening to student feedback, particularly on how they're learning, is now. Had his teacher taken the time to establish a learning environment where criticism was not considered a form of disrespect, but rather, a constructive dialogue, things might have turned out differently for both of them.
    
    In this video, some of my former students offered their perspective on just how much they appreciated being asked for their feedback. We're also offering a webinar on the topic! 

    Unmuted: Using Student Feedback to Create an Effective Secondary Learning Environment

    Hosted by Kappa Delta Pi, June 25, 8pm

    Register at:  https://www2.gotomeeting.com/register/580671226

  • Video blog post
  • 1 day ago
  • Views: 46

• Jan_Zeiger

  • ASCD EDge Member
  • Points:250
  • Views: 67
  • Since: 3 days ago
  • Not yet rated

• Customer Service: Pour Some Su Customer Service: Pour Some Sugar On Me

  • From: Steven_Weber
  • Description:

    School staff focus on curriculum alignment, differentiated instruction, professional development, college and career readiness, standards, and academic interventions. Is it possible that schools can lose their focus on customer service? Customers include families, community members, and all guests who visit the school website or schoolhouse.

     

    Customer service involves the front office staff, classroom teachers, teacher assistants, custodians, counselors, and all staff members. How are customers treated when they enter your school? Ask your school staff, “What does it mean to go the extra mile for the customer?” Do families feel like the front office staff answers the phone in a professional manner? Do teachers fire off emails when they are upset with students or parents? How do schools analyze the way they are treating customers?

     

    Six Ways To Pour Some Sugar On The Customer:

     

    Website
    The school website is the new front door. Families and community members make a judgment about your school before they arrive in the front office. Is your school website customer friendly? If you have a focus on technology integration, does your school website look like it was created in 1990? Does your website offer a welcome message or invite families to visit the school? If Open House was the biggest event between 1980-2000, then the school website opens your school to more than the all of the guests who attended Open House during that 20 year span. Your school is connected with the world. What kind of message are you sending? Would a family in Florida view your site and want to buy a house in your community, based on the information and message on your website?

     

    
    Customer Service
    Customer service involves phone skills, email etiquette, communication skills, and the way the customer is treated when they spend time at your school. Which restaurants come to mind when you think of outstanding customer service? Have you ever had poor customer service at a hotel? Have you ever visited a church and felt like none of the members knew you were in attendance? Customer service is easy to identify, especially when we are the recipient of poor customer service. When families have a bad experience at your school, they will spread the word throughout the community and through social media. As communities build more charter schools, private schools, and home school organizations, customers will walk rather than talk.

     

    
    Blog
    The media may promote your school once or twice a year. Administrators and teachers can promote the school on a weekly basis by posting on a school or teacher blog. Pictures from field trips, class projects, community service, guest speakers, and student awards can assist in communicating with families. Most blogs allow for families to forward the message to their family and friends via Twitter, Facebook, and other social media. Blogs also allow for two-way communication. The traditional method of communicating with families was a flyer in a second grade student’s backpack. With a blog, the school can communicate with families and families can post comments or ask questions about the event before their child arrives home.

     

    
    Coffee Hour
    Several schools host a Principal’s Coffee Hour once monthly. There is usually a topic that the principal or a guest speaker shares with families. The highlight of any Principal’s Coffee Hour is the time that families are able to share their opinions, ask questions, and brainstorm ways to support all students. Coffee Hour provides a monthly time for two-way communication. Parents will provide you with their opinions and they will feel respected because the school provided a forum for adult conversation about their most prized possession, their child. How is your school promoting two-way communication with families and stakeholders?

     

    
    Twitter
    Twitter allows home-to-school and school-to-home communication. Families can receive updates from the school. While Twitter may not work for all families, it is a great tool. Most schools see social media as one form of communication. The sign in front of the school reaches some families, the school website reaches others, and a flyer may still work for families without a computer or a Smartphone. The reason I feel like schools should consider Twitter is because it allows families to forward or reply to each tweet. If you have ever been in a relationship with someone you realize the importance of two-way communication. A strong relationship between families and school staff will improve your customer service and customer satisfaction.

     

    
    School App
    As the number of people with Smartphones increases, your school should consider a school app. “Smartphone vendors shipped 216.2 million units in the first quarter of 2013, which accounted for 51.6 percent of the worldwide mobile phone market” (Bean, April 16, 2013). If the school website is the new front door in 2013, then the school app may be the new front door of the future. An app can combine all of the items highlighted in this article. A school app may not be nice to have, but the next step in your communication and customer-service plan.

     

     

    Conclusion
    Most schools have a professional development plan, school improvement plan, and a curriculum map. I have rarely seen a school’s customer service plan. When it comes to service, if you fail to plan you may be planning to fail. Jeff Bezos, CEO of Amazon.com, said, “We see our customers as invited guests to a party, and we are the hosts. It’s our job every day to make every important aspect of the customer experience a little bit better.” There are only two kinds of schools; those with outstanding customer service and those without outstanding customer service. On a scale of 1-10, how would you rank the customer service at your school?

     

    Next Steps
    Questions for School Staff to Consider

    
    

    1. Does our school provide outstanding customer service?

    
    2. What are our weaknesses? What action steps do we need to take to improve?

    
    3. What are the characteristics of outstanding customer service?
    (Share your own experiences in school and non-school settings)

     

    4. What can we measure every 18 weeks (semester) to analyze our efforts to provide customer service?

     

    5. Do we have a school plan outlining what customer service looks like?
    (Think Chick-fil-A; It doesn’t matter if the manager or a teenager provides you with service. There is consistency within and across stores).

  • Blog post
  • 4 days ago
  • Views: 800

• Fun TraveLearning Fun TraveLearning

  • From: Jan_Michael_Vincent_Abril
  • Description:

     

    The continuously shrinking world and the bout towards a knowledge-based economy impacted every aspect of human life in diverse ways. Even education could not escape this. Educators have sought various ways to make learning more relevant, real-life, and responsive to the changing needs of time.

    Inspired by all of this, LIFECOLLEGE, the school where I am working, came up with a unique program that is an eclectic mix of educational and international exposure and travel for 4th year high school students between 15-16 years old. The travel program commenced in 2006 where students first traveled to Australia. The following year, the school traveled to Singapore and Malaysia. Indonesia was included in the succeeding year. And by 2012, students have been traveling to Singapore, Malaysia, Indonesia and Thailand.

    As the school envisioned to become a cutting-edge learning hub for global champions, it seeks learning opportunities anchored on 21st century skills that to prepare its students to gain a global perspective without losing their heart for local community development.

    This travel program called Global Competence Class include fun and exciting activities such as visit to museums, landmarks, cultural centers, historic places, science centers, theme parks and the most important of all, one-day immersion in various partner schools.

    Each activity is linked to a learning competency in various learning areas including developing skills in communication, collaboration, and respect for cultural diversity.

    Through this program, the students also learn how to budget their time and money, how to commute in buses, trains, and ferries, how to read maps and follow directions, how to observe keenly and write about what they have observed, and how to understand our identity as Filipinos vis a vis our Asian neighbors.

    All learnings are documented on a travel journal produced by the schools. This is a collection of mindmaps, observation notes, reflections, photos, collectible items, and daily devotions to make the educational travel a memory escapade to remember for life. To prepare for this kind of trip isn't very difficult.

    The following steps would be of help.

    1. Secure passports and DSWD travel clearance. By The beginning of the school year, parents must be aware of the trip's requirements, expenses and itinerary. Legal documents such as passports must be secured from DFA while Travel Clearance is secured from DSWD. These are the necessary papers needed for minors to travel.

    2. Finalize itinerary. The next step is to scout for educational places to visit according to the learning goals? send proposals. Once the itinerary is finalized, search for affordable airline ticket prices and book immediately. Then look for hotels. The group would normally stay in the hotel during daytime. 

    3. Prepare travel logs. Since the itinerary is already set, a journal will help to document what the students learned. This is the most important part of the travel and a source of grade for those who participated. Included in this log are the worksheets for each place to visit, the checklists for the itinerary, contact persons in case of emergency, things to bring, and the evaluation sheet.

    4. Predeparture and Travel briefing. Orient the students with the guidelines on proper behavior in various places such as airports, trains, ferries, and places to visit. It would be best if they know what to do, where to go, and how to behave in places where cultural diversity is the norm.

    Educators who wanted to make a difference in the lives of their students must learn how to venture out and take bolder steps to innovate. Travel, at the least, is just one of the many options. In this country, where travel is now made available for every one, edu-tours is an exciting way to expose, prepare, and push our students to the real world.

  • Blog post
  • 5 days ago
  • Views: 38

• Complexity: Edge of Chaos Complexity: Edge of Chaos

  • From: Kevin_Goddard
  • Description:

    A common saying about schools is that schools are a reflection of the communities they serve, but communities are complex. Schools by nature are a complex interplay of social, cultural, economic, political, and symbolic capital unable to be bound or directed by simple directives such as legislative mandates. Schools should try to use the complexity of the community to envision an even better community than the one that exists. The edge of the community, the unsure boundary, the frothy-foamy conversation between organic fractals of human existence gives complex systems the capacity for innovation and organizational learning (Fels, 2006; Stacey, 1996).

    Equilibrium-oriented systems want to control disorder to move toward stability which limits energy crossing into the system so they act as ‘closed systems’ to keep energy from escaping. These systems apply negative feedback and other controls for order resulting in “strict policies, rigid hierarchies, resistance to change, and maintenance of the status quo” (Gilstrap, 2005, p. 58). In contrast, self-organized behavior reaches a steady state on its own while still remaining ‘critical’ in that it is barely stable (Waldrop, 1992). This is a fine point created by tension along the continuum.

    Stuart Kauffman believes human organizations that are too structured or specialized do not allow agents to learn beyond the traditional processes for performing a job. On the one hand, if no one has clearly defined roles, the organization is chaotic without progress. The organization wants a balance of agents having a common purpose with the ability to adapt to the behavior of other agents in the organization. Complex problems can be solved at the edge of chaos because of the redundancy, loose couplings, blurry but present hierarchical roles, etc. Organizations that can evolve processes to bring in an increasing flow of energy move to the edge of chaos where they can solve complex problems and gain a competitive advantage to anticipate the future in order to survive (Waldrop, 1992).

    Chaos by itself doesn’t explain the structure, the coherence, the self-organizing cohesiveness of complex systems…complex systems have somehow acquired the ability to bring order and chaos into a special kind of balance…called the edge of chaos where life has enough stability to sustain itself and enough creativity to deserve the name of life…The edge of chaos is the constantly shifting battle zone between stagnation and anarchy, the one place where a complex system can be spontaneous, adaptive, and alive….learning and evolution move agents along the edge of chaos in the direction of greater and greater complexity (Waldrop, 1992, p. 12, 296).

    These zones along the edge are similar to boundary conversations discussed by Bruffee (1999) where constant struggle determines what will shift to center and what will be marginalized. This gives new meaning to the phrase “on the cutting edge” of education. With no room to move in either direction, or you will no longer be on the edge, all you can do is move along the edge to stay on. “Systems function best when they are at the ‘edge of chaos’, poised between too much rigidity in the face of change and too much change in the face of achieved progress” (Levin, 2002, p. 12). Education needs emergent boundaries to allow work to be done and to keep systems from freezing up or flying into chaos (Church, 2005).

  • Blog post
  • 5 days ago
  • Views: 30

• You Don't Really Know Until Yo You Don't Really Know Until You Go

  • From: Robert_Zywicki
  • Description:

    

     

     

    I recently returned from Hunterdon Central’s Holocaust Overseas Study Tour.  Our group of twenty students and four educators traveled to Czech Republic and Poland to visit Terezin, Lidice, the Warsaw Ghetto, Treblinka, Majdanek, and Auschwitz-Birkenau. It was a transformative experience for me as an educator, parent, and citizen.

     

    I thought I would be prepared, at least intellectually, for what I would see on our trip. I grew up in a city with large Jewish and Polish populations.  From my earliest years I heard the stories of neighbors and close family friends who had survived Nazi camps.  Beginning in the first grade I was exposed to annual Holocaust education programs. As a social studies teacher I taught about the Holocaust for over a decade. Each camp is a visceral confrontation with the worst depravity known to humanity.  All I can say is that you don’t really know the enormity of the Holocaust until you go and visit the sites. 

     

    I hope more educators launch programs like Central’s Holocaust Overseas Study Tour.  Holocaust education is citizenship education.  The benefits are not just historical knowledge of the Holocaust. It is an opportunity to reflect upon what it means to have rights as a citizen and a reminder that we must be eternally vigilant to protect human rights.

     

    The inscription on the mausoleum at Majdanek in Lublin, Poland reads “let our fate be a warning to you.” The twenty students on the trip who come from a variety of religious and cultural backgrounds were in a word – inspiring. Their desire to study the Holocaust and return to present to their peers and the community about their experience is at the heart of everything we aspire to instill in students.   Tonight, our students will share their experiences from our trip and bear witness at the Flemington Jewish Community Center.

     

     

  • Blog post
  • 5 days ago
  • Views: 167

• Retire the school newsletter. Retire the school newsletter. Start a school blog

  • From: Ryan_Thomas1
  • Description:
    
    

     
     Most schools use a monthly newsletter to keep parents and the wider school community in touch with what’s going on. Those of you behind the newsletters know how much time, energy and money it takes to generate the content, proof it, format it, print it and mail it. Despite our efforts, we’ve finally come to terms with two things: first, print has fallen out of favor; second, most newsletters end up in the recycling bin along with the Chinese restaurant menus and random circulars parents receive in the mail. So how can schools more effectively communicate with parents? The answer is simple and it won’t cost you a thing: Start a school blog.
    
    

    etire the school newsletter. Start a school blog
    
    

    Many prefer to read news online
    According to research published last year by Pew Research, a substantial percentage of leading newspaper readers get their news digitally. Currently, 55 percent of New York Times readers say they prefer to access news on a computer or mobile device, as do 48 percent of regular USA Today and 44 percent of Wall Street Journal readers. While this isn’t proof that nearly 50 percent of your readers prefer to access school news online, there’s a good chance that they do.
    
    

    Blogs are current
    By the time parents receive their monthly newsletter, much of the information is already outdated. Who wants to read about the “big game” or a service learning project three weeks after it happened? Blogs allow you to update readers as newsworthy events are taking place—not after. Another thing to keep in mind is that event information (dates, times, etc.) changes. Once a newsletter has been printed and shipped, there’s no going back. Blogs give you the flexibility to make changes whenever you want. 
    
    

    Blogs will save you money
    Most blogging platforms are free. No more printing and shipping costs; no more envelope licking; no more label printing. If you are concerned about alienating parents who are less tech-savvy or prefer to read print, send home a survey and find out who your readers are and how they prefer to access school news.
    
    

    Blogs provide a rich, multi-media experience
    Unlike print, which is linear and static, blogs allow you to easily integrate video, audio, photos and text. Now you can show, not simply tell, parents what’s going on in school. You’ll be surprised at how capturing students “in the moment” and posting pictures and videos of them throughout the day will impact parent engagement.
    
    

    There are dozens (probably more) of blogging platforms to choose from and most of them are free. Blogger, for example, is Google’s free blogging service. It only takes minutes to set up and you can customize the theme and color of your site. If you already have a Gmail account, there’s good news: You’ve got a Blogger account too. Simply sign into Gmail and select “Blogger” from the “more” menu. Other blogging platforms you might check out include WordPress.com, Blog.com, or even TypePad Micro.
    
    

     

                                    

  • Blog post
  • 5 days ago
  • Views: 243
  • Not yet rated

• 5 tips for a successful end-of 5 tips for a successful end-of-year transition

  • From: Ryan_Thomas1
  • Description:

    For many students, beginning a new school year can be a great source of anxiety. Thanks to a successful end-of-year transition though, one that you can begin right now, a new teacher and classroom can be an exciting event—not one that causes insecurity or dread. To help your students make a successful transition into the next academic year, we’re offering five simple activities you can put into practice right away.
    
    

    5 tips for a successful end-of-year transition
    
    

    The relationship doesn’t end with the academic year
    You don’t have to cry like my second grade teacher did on the last day of school, but do let your students know that you valued your time with them. Also, let them know that the relationship doesn’t have to end with the academic school year. They may be moving rooms and working with new teachers, but let them know that they are always welcome to say hello, stop by after school or interact with your new students on your classroom blog.
    
    

    Ask their new teacher to visit your room
    Arrange a time for the new teacher to visit your classroom so that s/he can interact with the students. If you’re looking for a list of tried-and-true icebreaker activities, you can find them here. 
    
    

    Meet the new teacher’s current class
    One way to ease your students’ fears about their transition is by having them each interview one student in their new teacher’s current class. They might ask questions like:
    
    

    • What’s it like having Mr. X for a teacher?
    • Did Mrs. M assign a lot of homework?
    • What was your favorite memory this year in Mr. X’s class?
    • What should I know before starting the new school year?
      
      

     Once they conduct the interview, have your students share their findings with the class.
    
    

    Visit the new classroom
    Arrange a time for your students to check out their new digs. It’s always easier to walk into an unfamiliar place when you know where to go and what your surroundings look like. Ask the new teacher to give them a tour and, if you can, try scheduling a follow-up visit.
    
    

    To help prepare your students for the upcoming summer, check out two of our recent blogs, 10 Summer Reading Activities for Struggling Readers and 10 things parents can say to struggling readers.

     

                                                                  

  • Blog post
  • 6 days ago
  • Views: 579

• How will your child suffer? How will your child suffer?

  • From: Jessica_Bohn
  • Description:

    Normally, I am not one to write on controversial issues, but there is freedom in the provocative, and the time is now (or yesterday) for action in education.  Although this speaks to one state's journey through the massive budget cuts and the looming additional injustices, I think that most educators in the nation have experienced a degree of this.  I humbly share my thoughts with legislators considering budgets for next school year and the community of ASCD advocates: 

    How will your child suffer?  We must stop this ridiculous abomination of a proposed budget now.  The incessant and continuous hit that education has taken in the last 5 years has been beyond reason.  However, this year's proposals fall just shy of criminal.  As a voter, a parent of children in the school system and a school principal, I have many perspectives to offer.  First, as a voter:  We elect officials into office who we believe will stand for the things that we hold close to heart.  Public schools are the birthplace of some of the best minds in America.  What does it mean to be American?  Please ask yourself this, as our elected representative.  Americans value critical opinions and diversity but stand united when someone attacks our home or our community.  To my esteemed elected officials, I say: We are under attack.  Make no mistake... this is a war of interests.  We must not let the future of our children and ultimately our country falter to other priorities.  We know that you are under pressure to invest in the political interests that got you into office, but we beg you not to sacrifice our children, your children or the future of our great nation in doing so.  As a parent:   We cannot provide quality schools without adequate funding to do so.  Should we settle for mediocrity?  Would you settle for mediocrity for your own child?  Absolutely not.  I want my children to get access to teachers with skills that will challenge their minds and inspire their hearts. Teachers deserve pay worthy of the countless hours they spend planning. Let Principals hold them accountable to that. I want my children to have adequate support in their classes as they are acclimated to the rigor of public schools. Teacher Assistants provide this support.  They are educators, advocates and probably teach your child in a center or reading group. I want my child to have access to the equipment, books and materials needed for 21st century learning. As a school principal:   Is the public aware that kids in most counties are still using outdated books, so teachers have to develop their own curriculum materials to match the new standards?  And what justice do we pay teachers when they do this with a smile on their face and protect our children from the perils of society?  We cut their support (TAs), cut their pay (furlough), cut their money for supplies (instructional money), increase their class size (class size waiver elimination), increase their insurance premiums and cut their access to resources and support (district funding going to charter/private schools).   Teacher Assistants are not just secretaries for the teacher, and I wonder if the public realizes that.  They are instructional assistants... they help your children and grandchildren learn.  Also, as a school administrator, one of the ways in which we can provide a duty-free lunch for teachers (which is a state requirement) is through the use of teacher assistants.  Similarly, I wonder if the public understands the correlation between effective instruction and the number of students in a class.  There is an inverse relationship between time for critical learning and the number of students in a class.  This state and this nation is in a dire place of certain demise, if we cannot commit to providing safe, quality schools for our children today, so they can solve nationwide and worldwide problems tomorrow. With the proposed legislation about class size, harsh cuts to public schools (again), elimination of Assistants, sequestration at the federal level, and funneling the leftover pocket change to charter/private schools rather than public schools... I must ask the question... how will your child suffer?
    
    

  • Blog post
  • 1 week ago
  • Views: 128

• Is Common Core Evil? Is Common Core Evil?

  • From: Kevin_Goddard
  • Description:

    I have seen a blaze of anti-Common Core sentiment sweep through certain states. These groups that are protesting the Common Core are counting on you not doing your own research and thinking about the Common Core in-depth. There are several FALSE claims you will hear in relation to Common Core that you need to think about. You can verify this at www.corestandards.org.

    First, the Common Core is not a national curriculum. The full name of Common Core is “Common Core State Standards” (aka CCSS) meaning they are benchmarks we want our children to achieve, but how to achieve them is left up to individual states and local communities. Many, many companies are competing for schools’ dollars by offering diverse and varied curricula if schools don’t want to write their own. The feds are not driving Common Core for implementation or for assessment.

    Second, the Common Core does not dumb down the curriculum (the same people claiming we are dumbing down the curriculum also gripe that we are introducing difficult concepts too early—which is it?). On average, we see rigorous standards applied 1 year earlier than we were applying them under the Missouri Grade Level Expectations. Missouri has consistently had the 2^nd and 3^rd most rigorous state achievement test (MAP) in the nation and now we see an even more rigorous test coming next year. In fact, we just piloted the Common Core assessment in the district and students and teacher alike commented on how much harder the test was than the MAP. One question I saw was substantially different than the MAP test. On MAP, a kid would be asked a math problem and then given a set of choices: A, B, C, or D. On the Common Core test, I saw a 5^th grader answering questions that went something like this, “Suzy was given the following math problem.” A word problem followed. “Suzy read the problem, formed a plan to answer the problem with six steps.” A numbered list of 6 steps followed. “Suzy got the following answer which was wrong. Find which step in Suzy’s method was wrong, explain why, and correct her answer.” Folks, a kid has to think a lot deeper to answer that type of questions than a multiple-guess test.

    Third, there is a lot of other mumbo-jumbo being tossed around, but opponents keep piling up argument after argument against it until you aren’t even sure what they are referring to anymore. The argument expands to gripe about socialism, anti-Christian movements, abortion, tracking, cost, and I don’t know what else. But those things are other policy and legislative concerns that activists are lumping in with Common Core because they don’t understand it.

    In a nutshell, here is a Common Core kindergarten standard:

    RF.K.2(a): Recognize and produce rhyming words. The standard then recommends “Halfway Down” by A. A. Milne and “Singing Time” by Rose Fyleman although districts can use “Mary had a Little Lamb”, “Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star”, or any other district approved literature. The concept can be further developed through artwork, song, science, math, and vocabulary. The curriculum is developed at the local level while the assessment will be used to determine if a student can indeed recognize and produce a rhyming word.

    Let’s try another one in 3^rd grade:

    RI.3.9: Compare and contrast the most important points and key details presented in two texts on the same topic. The standard recommends “Sarah, Plain and Tall” and “The Storm” although districts can choose any literature they want to have students compare and contrast. By the way, this is something we were trained heavily in during my doctoral program in order to conduct academic research…and here it is in 3^rd grade Common Core!

    5^th grade:

    L.5.5. Demonstrate understanding of figurative language, word relationships, and nuances in word meanings. Exemplar texts include “Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland” and “The Little Prince.” Informational texts include, “Who is Neil Armstrong?” and “Women Explorers of North and South America.”  If we don’t like any of those, we can choose any literature we want.

    Can you feel Obama’s fingertips reaching for your children’s minds yet?  If you are confused where the socialist agenda is, I’m with you. But then again, no one has shown you what the real standards look like. Any standard can be written to reflect local control, with local lessons, local activities, and local formative assessments. The board will approve any curriculum that is generated by our own local teachers and reviewed by our own local administrators, myself included.

    Finally, there are some real nice components of Common Core that I want to point out:

    Reading is broken down into Literature, Informational Texts, and Foundational Skills. Writing, Speaking, Listening, and Language are strands of the standards. Reading and writing aren’t just isolated to classic works, but standards are given for reading to be taught in Social Studies classes, science, and other technical subjects.

    Here is an example of the “Integration of Knowledge and Ideas” in grades 9 and 10. Standard RI.9-10.9: Analyze seminal U.S. documents of historical and literary significance (Washington’s Farewell Address, the Gettysburg Address, Roosevelt’s Four Freedoms speech, King’s “Letter from Birmingham Jail”), including how they address related themes and concepts. These are four powerful, patriotic, truly American pieces of history that our kids should be grappling with. The teacher moves from the “sage on the stage” lecturing about what these pieces mean to the “guide on the side” helping students hold democratic readings and discussions about what these authors may have intended and what they were dealing with from a historical context. Students must “delineate and evaluate the argument and specific claims in a text, assessing whether the reasoning is valid and the evidence is relevant and sufficient; identify false statements and fallacious reasoning.”

    The Common Core State Standards are designed to provide a framework of standards that are Internationally Benchmarked, rigorous, and broad enough to allow states and local boards of education create a locally controlled curriculum designed to meet the needs of local children. Go to www.corestandards.org and read through the standards to see for yourself. Nothing is perfect. Education is a practice. Common Core is another step forward in that practice. It isn’t evil, destructive, or anti-American. It is an opportunity for people with an axe to grind to use it as political smoke and mirrors to advance their own agenda. Don’t let the smoke get in your eyes.

  • Blog post
  • 1 week ago
  • Views: 64
  • Not yet rated

• The Kid Business: 2013 8th Gra The Kid Business: 2013 8th Grade Promotion

  • From: Kevin_Goddard
  • Description:

    I would like to share my words of wisdom to the 8^th grade. Every year, I speak to them briefly, but my own daughter, Savannah, was being promoted. She is a strong personality who marches to a different drum. I never know if I am going to see her come down the stairs to go to school in a pink tutu, leather leggings, and a zebra striped shirt; or athletic shorts, dressy blouse, and flip-flops carrying her flute and her archery bow. She inspired this short speech.

     “Welcome to 8^th Grade Promotion. I would like to read you a poem by Robert Frost called The Road Not Taken.”

     Two roads diverged in a yellow wood,

    And sorry I could not travel both

    And be one traveler, long I stood

    And looked down one as far as I could

    To where it bent in the undergrowth;

     

    Then took the other, as just as fair,

    And having perhaps the better claim,

    Because it was grassy and wanted wear;

    Though as for that the passing there

    Had worn them really about the same,

     

    And both that morning equally lay

    In leaves no step had trodden black.

    Oh, I kept the first for another day!

    Yet knowing how way leads on to way,

    I doubted if I should ever come back.

     

    I shall be telling this with a sigh

    Somewhere ages and ages hence:

    Two roads diverged in a wood, and I—

    I took the one less traveled by,

    And that has made all the difference.

     “Today, you face a choice. You can take the road taken by most. Well-worn, easy, and clear. Life may be safe, but not very exciting.

     “Or, you can take the one less traveled by—sometimes rough, sometimes muddy with uneven footing and roots to trip over. But it can be exciting, challenging, and rewarding.

     “I hope for the next four years, you will help me take Sarcoxie down the road less traveled by. And when we come to your Graduation Day, you will say, ‘That has made all the difference.’”

  • Blog post
  • 1 week ago
  • Views: 25
  • Not yet rated

• Complexity: The Structure of C Complexity: The Structure of Complex Systems

  • From: Kevin_Goddard
  • Description:

    Five aspects of complex systems help define internal structure. Internal diversity keeps the system flexible. Redundancy keeps small fluctuations from rippling into chaotic, destructive change. Decentralized control allows innovation and creativity to emerge from the complex interactions between diverse agents. Organized randomness keeps the system moving along cohesively without limiting where it will go. Neighbor interactions keep the system in check in relation to the environment and local fitness peaks (Davis et al., 2006).

    Structure is important to complexity because “a hierarchical, building-block structure utterly transforms a system’s ability to learn, evolve, and adapt” (Waldrop, 1992, p. 169) by giving systems an opportunity to move subsystems around to increase complexity and creativity without having to try out every possible combination of agents and schema. Order is a byproduct of structure through routines and clear structures, rules, and procedures (Marzano et al., 2005). The structure itself is “influenced by social, economic, and political factors; created and socially constructed; learned; and dialectical” (Church, 2005, p. 48). Practices are determined by structures as well as construct structures (Swartz, 1997). Reflective practice gives individuals and groups the iterative vehicles to change complex organizational structures.

    Despite the structures present in complex systems, “it is not possible to separate complex adaptive systems into neat categories based on whether and where selection is operating. In most systems, selection is manifest on multiple interacting scales” (Levin, 2002, p. 4). Structure cannot be permanent because agents reorganize themselves in response to internal and external stimuli so that renewal is continual (Fels, 2006). Complex systems can move along a continuum ranging from order to chaos with complexity sitting at the edge of both simultaneously (Waldrop, 1992).

    “Since the boundaries of complex systems are difficult to determine, it is impossible to draw tidy lines between these organizational layers” (Davis & Simmt, 2006, p. 296). Fuzzy boundaries in the school as a complex system are especially evident when talking about differences in social class, the curriculum of a school, and the schemas used in the school community (Barr & Parrett, 2007; Lareau, 2000; Weiner, 2006). The unique sociocultural capital of diverse social classes determines alignment of groups of agents with the capital present in a school. “School practices and assumptions emerging from the deficit paradigm often hide student and teacher abilities” (Weiner, 2006, p. 1). Deficit thinking comes from either the recessive schema of the marginalized system or the dominant schema of the legitimate system depending on the context the school currently finds itself. The curriculum itself emerges from and as part of the emerging, iterative structures of the school community with “formal, informal, and even ‘hidden’” aspects (Barr & Parrett, 2007, p. 141).

    The subsystems of complex adaptive systems are the legitimate and recessive systems with agents interacting according to schema with dominant and marginalized parts respectively. Paradox exists multi-dimensionally as well at the system, agent, and schema levels. Ordinary management techniques drive legitimate processes while the recessive system requires extraordinary management. Stacey (1996) claims that the boundaries of the legitimate system are “clear-cut” while the recessive system’s boundaries are “fuzzy”; however, the fact that the legitimate system is aware of and ignores much of the activity of the recessive system makes the legitimate system’s boundaries fuzzy even if they are less permeable than the recessive system.

    The legitimate network in an organization plans enculturation and avoids surprises by using the dominant schema to control interactions keeping them linear (uniform, conformed, repetitive) resulting in proportional response to stimuli, balanced input/output, and in the end, the system equals the sum of its parts. The recessive system, a subsystem of the legitimate system, can also stop renewal and maintaining stability by resisting change; however, changes to the legitimate system are actualized through processes in the recessive system. Efficient legitimate systems are stable with the equilibrium to actualize the mission of the organization. The recessive subsystem’s schemas lead to diversity in the system which is an integral part of complexity and “comprises all social and political interactions that are outside the rules strictly prescribed by the legitimate system” (Stacey, 1996, p. 290). Conversely, power is relative and can exist in either the dominant or marginal ideology. Social change can be brought about by activating power and negotiating interests in the margins (Watkins & Tisdell, 2006).

    In complex systems, team-based units allow for structure without being overly so through redundancy in the form of organic fractals. Teams exhibit characteristics of open systems with permeability and high information flow; nonlinear responsibilities and interests; self-referencing knowledge and redundancy; organic in the self-selection of members; and share vision, culture, and meaning as possible strange attractors (Gilstrap, 2005). Creativity also resides in the redundancy that teams allow “for the repetition of different ideas and experiments in slightly different ways, and…means that the organization will be more resilient in the face of inevitable failures” (Stacey, 1996, p. 280).

    The principal acts as the recognized leader of the legitimate system; however, leaders operate as participants in the recessive system helping contain anxiety in the face of change through urgency and assurance at the boundary while observing processes in the organization. Leadership shifts from ordinary management in structured times to extraordinary management in phase transitions as the school moves along the continuum between order and chaos (Stacey, 1996).

  • Blog post
  • 1 week ago
  • Views: 59

• Complexity: Long-term vs Short Complexity: Long-term vs Short-term Predictability

  • From: Kevin_Goddard
  • Description:

    Long-term predictability. In non-linear systems, a lack of understanding, the smallest miscalculation, or the smallest bit of information missing magnifies throughout the system until predictions are useless (Waldrop, 1992). Unpredictability is key to creativity which emerges from complex interactions and “cannot be intended in any comprehensive way….we are agents in systems that are coevolving into an open-ended evolutionary space” (Stacey, 1996, p. 71, 217). We are not in control of what happens in long-term outcomes.

    The system moves toward a strange attractor like the mission and vision of a school, but never reaches the mission and vision. The system continues to move toward the mission and vision from the given point of the school generated by the sociocultural and environmental contexts driven by the specific interactions of the multitude of agents residing in the school community or any networked systems resulting in the school “orbiting” shakily around this strange attractor as those negotiations are made (Gilstrap, 2005). Long-term outcomes based on these uncertain, complex movements are unpredictable at best (U.S. Department of Education, 1998).

    Short-term predictability. In complex systems, themes and archetypes are recognizable (Stacey, 1996; Waldrop, 1992). In fact, understanding the history of a complex system to look for patterns allows educators to plan within a short-term time frame, sometimes simply the next move to be made. This almost total lack of control causes the behavior of the system to emerge. Short term, general predictions are possible since tiny fluctuations take time to build and the momentum of the system is rooted in the past (Kieren, 2005; Stacey, 1996). “Patterns emerge at higher levels as a result of adaptive dynamics at lower levels of integration…prediction is limited, and…we must develop statistical mechanical methods to extract the knowable from the unknown” (Levin, 2002, p. 15).

  • Blog post
  • 1 week ago
  • Views: 41
  • Not yet rated

• Complexity: Unpredictability Complexity: Unpredictability

  • From: Kevin_Goddard
  • Description:

    When analyzing their school’s organizational context, principals cannot underestimate the unpredictability of the long-term future of the system. Marginalized populations within the school act as a recessive system undermining the efforts of the dominant, legitimate system. The future of the school emerges from interactions within and between the recessive and the dominant systems. A new paradigm that recognizes and makes meaning of the dynamic, nonlinear versus linear nature of the processes and interactions of these two subsystems would help protect principals from unreasonable long-term planning, unproductive and unmanaged conflict, innovative but misguided agents, and wasted time due to superficial work and restructuring efforts not based on emergence (Bower, 2006; Stacey, 1996).

    The dominant paradigm rosily sees success in stability, predictability, and carefully strategic plans (Stacey, 1996). “Predictions are nice, if you can make them. But the essence of science lies in explanation, laying bare the fundamental mechanisms of nature” (Waldrop, 1992, p. 39). Educational complexity is not different. Researchers have to look at explaining how education works with the knowledge that it may not result in predictability since education is emergent based on too many factors to mathematically analyze.

    History and past pedagogy is important to creating effective high-performing, high-poverty schools (HP2S), but vast changes in the sociocultural capital available to students in this decade make research of previous decades null or irrelevant. Even within the same time period, findings in one context will not be generalizable to another setting. Failing schools that are trying to transform cannot hope to perfectly implement what other successful schools have accomplished because of the unpredictability of complex systems (Barr & Parrett, 2007; Berliner, 2002; Brady, retrieved October 22, 2007; Church, 2005).

    Strategic planning in complex environments results in rigid processes such as goal setting and action plans that restrict emergence. Educational institutions should allow for a more flexible process that takes into account causal relationships (Gilstrap, 2005). Small fluctuations would have a harder time permeating multiple boundaries within similar structures across a flattened hierarchy. This redundancy provides stability, robustness, and resilience against small environmental fluctuations (Stacey, 1996).

  • Blog post
  • 1 week ago
  • Views: 52

• Highlighter: a free reading as Highlighter: a free reading assessment app for teachers

  • From: Ryan_Thomas1
  • Description:

    There are a number of ways to work through assigned readings with our students, but we’ve always gravitated towards open-discussions. Though we prefer these over delivering lectures, seminar-style classrooms are not entirely unproblematic. Here are a few of the challenges we regularly encounter:
    
    

    • Not everyone feels comfortable speaking in front of the class
    • Not everyone actually reads the assigned text
    • The same five or six students (whether they done the assigned reading or not) end up carrying the discussion
    • Assessing student understanding is challenging
      
      

    Recently, one of our colleagues told us about Highlighter, a free web application that actually addresses all of the challenges we mentioned above. Here’s how it works:
    
    

    • Teachers upload course materials to highlight —PDF files, Word docs and webpage links—and students access them on their computer, laptop, iPad or smartphone
    • Teachers assign students to virtual groups
    • Students read the uploaded documents, highlight and bookmark important sections, and make comments directly on them. Each group will only be able to see what other students in their group are highlighting.
    • Teachers receive email notifications when students make notations
      
      

    Highlighter lets teachers know exactly what sections of the course material is most engaging—or most confusing. Knowing this allows teachers to plan accordingly, clarify confusing sections, or expand on key concepts. No longer will you wonder if students have read the course material — now you’ll see they have highlighted, commented, shared and saved.
    
    

    To learn more about Highlighter, you can watch a video by clicking here.
    
    

     

                          

  • Blog post
  • 1 week ago
  • Views: 61