Overview Back In 2007⋅⋅⋅ In 2007, supported by five of the most prominent textbook publishers in higher education, CourseSmart started out with the simple goal of providing instructors in college and higher education a better textbook evaluation service. We knew that for instructors, getting textbooks for evaluation was a tedious and time consuming task. For publishers, it was just as difficult, spending millions of dollars each year to give away thousands of sample textbooks to faculty across the country, without knowing if an instructor would eventually assign the book for their course. CourseSmart set out to transform this costly and inefficient process by building the world's largest library of eTextbooks and digital course materials that instructors could access instantly – anytime, anywhere. Millions Of Users, Millions In Savings By 2008, students were telling us they wanted a digital option for textbooks too. And we couldn't stop there. More Titles, More Innovation Try CourseSmart today for
The Big List of Class Discussion Strategies Listen to this article as a podcast episode: Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 38:22 — 53.1MB) Subscribe: iTunes | Android | When I worked with student teachers on developing effective lesson plans, one thing I always asked them to revise was the phrase “We will discuss.” We will discuss the video. We will discuss the story. We will discuss our results. Every time I saw it in a lesson plan, I would add a note: “What format will you use? The problem wasn’t them; in most of the classrooms where they’d sat as students, that’s exactly what a class discussion looked like. So here they are: 15 formats for structuring a class discussion to make it more engaging, more organized, more equitable, and more academically challenging. I’ve separated the strategies into three groups. Enjoy! Gallery Walk > a.k.a. Basic Structure: Stations or posters are set up around the classroom, on the walls or on tables. Philosophical Chairs > a.k.a. Pinwheel Discussion > Socratic Seminar > a.k.a. a.k.a.
Mentoring Your Students in Social Media or Vice Versa Email Share November 24, 2011 - by Adam Renfro 1 Email Share Generation Z is moving so fast we can only track their contrails. They have advertisers, marketers, and educators flummoxed with how they operate. What makes the Zs so different from the Boomers, Xs, and Ys? The internet is not technology for them. The Zs, born after 1992, only know life with the Internet. The Zs are also all about social media. Most of us educators are wrapped up in social media, as well, but we’ve managed to keep education itself in a sterile environment, safe from the outside world. Naturally, many educators want to include their students in social media too, but they are not sure how to safely orchestrate an educational integration with networks like Facebook, Twitter, Foursquare, and so on. So let’s get serious about making a social-networking strategy for our classroom. Facebook is a good place to start since it is apparently too big to fail. Fantastic! Don’t discard your professionalism, though.
Touch Press - Our Vision Scientist, author, inventor and entrepreneur; Stephen is best known for creating Mathematica, Wolfram|Alpha®, and for authoring A New Kind of Science. In his early years he made a number of discoveries in physics and cosmology. In the 1980s his now-classic work on cellular automata helped launch the field of complexity theory. Stephen has served as CEO of Wolfram Research for more than two decades, and has provided the technical leadership that has made Mathematica the world's leading system for advanced computing. In addition to his work in technology and business, Stephen is also a world-renowned scientist. He has a longstanding commitment to publishing and communication, having been the author—and publisher—of two bestselling books, and publisher of a leading academic journal for 25 years. MacArthur Fellowship More
5 Highly Effective Teaching Practices I remember how, as a new teacher, I would attend a professional development and feel inundated with new strategies. (I wanted to get back to the classroom and try them all!) After the magic of that day wore off, I reflected on the many strategies and would often think, "Lots of great stuff, but I'm not sure it's worth the time it would take to implement it all." We teachers are always looking to innovate, so, yes, it's essential that we try new things to add to our pedagogical bag of tricks. What Research Says This leads me to educational researcher John Hattie, who wrote Visible Learning for Teachers: Maximizing Impact on Learning. Hattie has spent more than 15 years researching the influences on achievement of K-12 children. 1. When a teacher begins a new unit of study or project with students, she clarifies the purpose and learning goals, and provides explicit criteria on how students can be successful. 2. 3. 4. 5. Collaborating with Colleagues Great teachers are earnest learners.
No Zeros… Until Part II It has been almost a year since I made the statement to my staff that I do not want them to assign a zero to any student until they intervene in some way (ask the student why the work wasn’t turned it, call the parent of the student, do something besides assigning a zero and moving on…) Since I made that now infamous statement, various reactions have occurred among staff, students and parents. Here is a summary of such reactions: I. Teacher Perspective Some were doing this long before I made the statement because they philosophically don’t agree with academic punishment for a behavioral problem.Some were confused because they believe I said, “No zeros. II. For some, it has increased their work ethic because they know their teachers will stay on them until an assignment is turned it. III. This is a polarizing topic and there are no easy solutions. A zero is very damaging and may not truly reflect what a student knows. Be Great, Dwight
National Hands-on Science Institute ADA:Fast Facts for Faculty - Writing in the University Writing in the University By Brenda Brueggemann. Introduction The General Education Curriculum (GEC) Course Guidelines for the second and third (required) courses in writing at The Ohio State University state that: The abilities to read and listen with comprehension and critical acuity are requisite to the gaining of knowledge in a university setting. The ability to express oneself with clarity, both orally and in writing, provides the deepest proof of understanding. Further, we recognize that writing especially is a primary tool in learning itself, not just a means of expressing learning that has taken place. Many students, however, may often experience difficulties with writing that are not caused by a lack of understanding or critical ability. For students with disabilities there may be even greater obstacles to college writing. In-class Writing Activities Examples: Challenges: In-class writing may be challenging for many students. Lack of Technology: Time: Environmental Distractions:
Flipping Out – Reflections on the Flipped Classroom | Mary's Blog If you are an educator who pays attention to current trends in education, you will most certainly have heard the term “Flipped Classroom” being thrown around a lot lately. I myself heard about it last March at the EARCOS annual conference. So what is a ‘flipped classroom’? Is it just another educational fad that is destined to live a short life or is it a real way of changing education for the future? To learn more about the flipped classroom, I first visited the article Reverse Instruction: Dan Pink and Karl’s “Fisch Flip” on the Connected Principals blog. As the Internet revolution continues to build and increasingly influence everything under the sun, so too it is going to have a massive impact on teaching and learning in K-12 schools. I happened to be reading the article in the presence of a friend and teaching colleague and read the line aloud to her. We live today in a world of content. Pink ends the article by saying: “Here’s your homework for tonight. My brain is churning.
The eLearning Guild: A community of practice for eLearning designers, developers, and managers ADA: Partnership Grant - Fast Facts for Faculty Guided Notes Improving the Effectiveness of Your Lectures Developed by William L. What Are Guided Notes? Guided notes are instructor-prepared handouts that provide all students with background information and standard cues with specific spaces to write key facts, concepts, and/or relationships during the lecture. Some Pros and Cons of the Lecture Method Lecturing is one of the most widely used teaching methods in higher education. Advantages of lecturing. Although some educators consider the lecture method outdated and ineffective, it offers several advantages and reasons for its continued use (Barbetta & Scaruppa, 1995; Michael, 1994). Lecturing is an efficient use of the instructor's time. A good lecture can be presented from one semester to the next, reducing subsequent planning and preparation time to review and update. Lecturing is versatile. It can be used with large or small groups, for any curriculum area, and can last from a few minutes to several hours. Lectures can be personalized. 1.
The Best Sites For Getting Some Perspective On International Test Comparison Demagoguery release of test scores from 65 countries, and Shanghai’s top-ranking results, has already begun to be used by “school reformers” to further their agenda. (Also, see The Best Posts & Articles On 2012 PISA Test Results) I thought I’d put together a short list of articles and blog posts that put these test results in perspective: High Test Scores, Low Ability by Yong Zhao in The New York Times Do international test comparisons make sense? by Valerie Strauss at the Washington Post. Hysteria over PISA misses the point, again by Valerie Strauss at the Post. Economic and social failures blamed on schools by Walt Gardner in The Atlanta Journal Constitution. On Those ‘Stunning’ Shanghai Test Scores by James Fallows at The Atlantic. Poverty has a huge impact on American PISA scores by Stephen Krashen A True Wake-up Call for Arne Duncan: The Real Reason Behind Chinese Students Top PISA Performance by Yong Zhao Remember: Not Everyone Prioritizes Achievement by Corey Bower U.S. Relax, America. L.A.