Tuesday, I introduced you to the first five of Louis Cozolino’s “Nine Things Educators Need to Know About the Brain.” An article excerpted from Cozolino’s book, The Social Neuroscience of Education: Optimizing Attachment and Learning in the Classroom, appeared at the Greater Good blog. Here, then, are the remaining four insights from Cozolino: 6. The…
Data Driven Decision Making
What, Me Worry?
I may be a bit old fashioned when it comes to my philosophy on education. And while the jury is still out, I do remain uncomfortably curious about what a Common Core future means to young learners. My initial reaction sees a narrowing of the curriculum, and I feel like lodging complaints like an old…
Why Not Talk About Homework?
The debate that never ends: homework. How much is too much? Is it even necessary? Is it effective? Does it cause you too much grief? Have you ever unintentionally used it as a punishment? Does your school or district have a policy that requires you to assign homework? Of course, there are those teachers who…
The Rigors of Math According to CCSS
Regular readers know that math and I get along about as well as oil and water, or perhaps open flames and gasoline. However, I do find it fascinating that the Common Core State Standards have what is called the “Standards for Mathematical Practice.” These are eight types of math expertise teachers should look for in…
Have You Read the Latest?
I may be the last education blogger to write about the 2012 MetLife Survey of the American Teacher. But perhaps you haven’t read the latest results from MetLife’s yearly survey. You may be glad you haven’t. The survey results aren’t exactly a fountain of fabulous news. Here are a few tasty tidbits: Just 39% of…
So Shiny and New
It was a marvel. A toy for teachers. But not just any toy. It was a toy we wanted to play with so badly we were nearly straining out of our shoes. As the salesman demonstrated its marvels, we felt a little like Ralphie in A Christmas Story; we wanted one of those fantastic interactive…
Sleep Patterns
I’ve been delighted so far with the response to my previous blog entry on morning motivation tips and techniques. In fact, it’s been quite a motivator for me, getting me out of the house in the morning to get to work and see what new ideas you’ve left in the comments. Here’s a quick question…
On the Future of Educational Video Games
Okay. I’ll admit it. There have been a handful of occasions in the last four years or so when I have had the luxury of time to play video games. Maybe two handfuls. And I needed plenty of time because I have a steep learning curve with such games as Call of Duty and Halo:…
Happy Birthday to NCLB
Today is No Child Left Behind’s 11th birthday. And while that does not mean that we should also be singing happy birthday to the standardized test, it does mean that we’ve seen a lot more of the standardized test’s face around the classroom in the last 11 years. No Child Left Behind (NCLB) marked the…
Longer and Longer
Thanks to a substantial grant, several school districts in the US are extending their academic calendars. Why? To accommodate all the extra learning required to meet new standards. In districts spanning socioeconomic groups, the effort is being coordinated by the National Center on Time and Learning and the Ford Foundation and is being paid for…