Blogboard
Teacher’s read on news, developments, and blogs. This blog is no longer being updated.
Education
Cookbook 2.0
Scott McLeod announces the creation of blogtweetcook.com, a wiki on which educators who blog and use twitter can share recipes. OK then ...
Education
Freire Fight
Like many ed-studies graduate students, Robert Pondiscio of the Core Knowledge Blog read Brazilian theorist Paolo Freire’s canonical book Pedagogy of the Oppressed in school. The work—which opposes the “banking” concept of teaching—has long been held up as a must-read for educators, but a recent City Journal article by Sol Stern has Pondiscio thinking about why that is.
Education
The Trials of Testing
Testing week just wrapped up in the Washington, D.C., public schools, an experience that convinced Mr. Potter of Harry Potter and the Urban School Nightmare that, “the real problem with education reform is not the kids, it's the adults.”
Education
When Every Test Is a Reading Test
Mister Teacher thinks it's wildly unfair that, on Texas' standardized exams, most students are not allowed to be given any assistance in reading the questions. In some cases, he argues, this means that knowledge of particular subject areas isn't what's being tested:
Education
A Teacher Leader’s Birthday Wish
Happy birthday to Ariel Sacks of On the Shoulders of Giants, who just turned 30! That milestone has got her thinking about her career objectives. There are issues to consider like further schooling and earning a livable wage (tougher to do when you live in New York City). But most of all Sacks wants a position that doesn’t exist.
Education
No Safety Net
Can teaching really be a "fallback" career, as many people who’ve lost jobs in the private sector are hoping? What separates the good teachers from the not-so-good? The New York Times blog, Room for Debate, has gathered several worthy opinions on the subject from ed professionals. Here’s a sampling:
Education
Dance Class
As an educator, Nancy Flanagan is heartened by the much-e-mailed and -posted YouTube video of an ever- expanding collection of people dancing to "Do, Re, Mi" in Central Station in Antwerp, Belgium:
Education
Lessons in Loungin’
Travis of Stories From School reminds teachers that it’s important to get out of your classroom and into the faculty lounge sometimes. He gives three big reasons to visit the faculty lounge:
Education
Heard of Google?
An English teacher's nightmare: Out for a walk recently, Hobo Teacher noticed a sign in front a shop displaying the quotation “To be, or not to be”—signed Anonymous! On inquiry, he discovers that prioprietor just forgot the source of the quote and didn't bother to look it up. Where has he seen this attitude before?
Education
Teaching About the Test
Doug Noon tries to explain to his middle school students—and himself—why they have to take standardized tests. The response he gets when he mentions that all students are expected to pass the tests by 2014 is notable:
Education
Raise Your Own Darn Bar
Running up against motivation issues in the classroom, Assistive Principles wonders why some groups of students are more driven than others.
Education
Texas Power Shift
Robert Pondiscio of The Core Knowledge Blog reports that the drawn-out, nationally-reported battle over evolution and science teaching in Texas has prompted state legislators to consider taking away the Board of Education’s power to set curricula and approve textbooks. Those duties would instead be handled by the state education agency, a legislative board, or the commissioner of education.
Education
Going Public
NYC educator finds it difficult to muster much sympathy for well-to-do families who, because of the recession, are now having to consider sending their children to--the shame!--public schools. Maybe now, he suggests, more people will realize how important good public schools are to a neighborhood.
Education
Transparency for Teachers
Will Richardson writes that, with the growth of interactive technology and virtual communities, kids today will lead lives that are far more transparent than most adults are accustomed to. In light of this, he says, educators need to a better job of modeling effective transparency and public interaction in their own lives: