The Massachusetts Teachers Association - MTA calls for “reinventing” state evaluation system The state’s largest teachers’ union has proposed that the Board of Elementary and Secondary Education dramatically change the way teachers and administrators are evaluated. Under the Massachusetts Teachers Association plan, assessments based on observation and instructional artifacts, such as lesson plans, would be validated by two additional sources of information: multiple measures of student learning and evidence of the educator’s contributions to the school, district or profession. Other key changes include: Streamlining the number of standards and indicators on which evaluations must be based. The current system of seven standards and 72 indicators would be reduced to five standards and a recommended 22 indicators, with the exact indicators negotiated locally. Changes in the educator evaluation system are required under the federal Race to the Top grant awarded to Massachusetts and 11 other states plus the District of Columbia. Policy Brief Frequently Asked Questions From the NEA:
Top 11 Educational Video Websites for Teachers The use of multimedia in the classroom is a great way of getting students engaged. One of the biggest challenges we all face today is how to hold students attention for a longer time. It seems like multitasking has taken every bit of attention from our students. No wonder, the visual stimulus they are exposed to is huge : Tv, video gaming, social networking, texting, emailing,are but the emerging tip of the iceber and unless we seriously address this phenomenon it will definetly grow out of control. One of the recommended suggestions in this regard is the use of video materials in your classroom . I am adding this list to the popular 80 Teacher Alternative to YouTube . 1- Teacher Tube This is a great video website for teachers looking for educational videos. 2- YouTube for Schools This is a channel Youtube has created to help educators access thousands of free high quality educational videos in a very secure and controlled learning environment. 3- YouTube for Teachers 4- YouTube Education
20 Incredible TED Talks You Should Show Your High School Students | Online College Courses What makes TED such an appealing web series and organization is its desire to offer up a little something for everyone. This includes high school students and the teachers who love, hate, or tolerate them. Honestly, pretty much any video hosted there boasts its own educational value, but some hold more relevance than others. Whether they empower and inspire, shine a light on social injustices or simply show off some seriously cool innovations, the following 20 videos are bound to make class time just a little more interesting. Viktor Frankl: Why to believe in othersFrom TED’s Best of the Web series comes a fabulous lecture by influential psychiatrist, philosopher, and Holocaust survivor Viktor Frankl.
Teachers TV | Free education videos and resources for professional development EmbedPlus - Video editing, chopping, looping, annotations, slow motion, and chapters tool for YouTube embeds and WordPress video plugins TeacherTube - Teach the World | Teacher Videos | Lesson Plan Videos | Student Video Lessons | Online Teacher Made Videos | TeacherTube.com 12 Useful YouTube Accessories for Teachers and Students If you can access it in your school, YouTube has a ton of useful educational content. Here are ten tools that can make using YouTube in your classroom a better experience for everyone. Removing Related Content and Banner Advertisements. A Cleaner YouTube is a browser extension for Chrome, Firefox, and Safari. View Pure is a simple little tool that strips way all of the distractions of related videos, comments, and promoted videos. SafeShare.tv makes it possible to view YouTube videos without displaying the related videos and associated comments. Quietube is a handy little browser extension that removes all the clutter from YouTube allowing you to view only your selected video. Tools for Cutting and Remixing YouTube VideosDisclaimer: Some of these tools might be interpreted as a violation of YouTube's terms of service. TubeChop gives you the ability to clip a section from any YouTube video and share it. Splicd is a service that lets users select and share a segment of a YouTube video.