If you’ve read my book It’s Not What You Teach But How, you’ll know I promote focusing on the ends over the means of standards. It’s easy to focus on the means, or the effort, without focusing on the end, or the results. Let’s not make this mistake with educational technology. People in the business world use technology […]
What does engagement sound like? Allowing students to have a say in their work is not enough to build engagement. Adam Fletcher writes a great blog on engagement, including this entry: voice and engagement are not the same. In the Learner-Active, Technology-Infused Classroom (#LATIC), engagement refers to the state in which students are thoroughly engrossed […]
Imagine teaching a short lesson to introduce students to the concept of a preposition: Prior to the lesson, on the whiteboard, write the same sentence four times: The book is _____ the desk. Stand by a desk and hold up a book, asking students to identify the desk and the book. “These are two things, or […]
Whether in the classroom or teachers’ professional development, the instructional goal should be transformational learning rather than transactional learning. According to the Merriam-Webster Dictionary: Transaction: “an occurrence in which [something] is passed from one person . . . to another” Transformation: “a complete or major change in someone’s . . . appearance, form, etc.” Much […]
For too long, executive function has been a term used primarily among special education professionals to discuss deficits, ignored by mainstream educators as the path to achievement for all. Simply put, academic rigor refers to academic engagement that focuses on higher-order thinking and application. It is a door-opener for students! If students can thrive in […]