Teaching

Harvard Business School assistant professor Anat Keinan and Columbia marketing professor Ran Kivetz write about their new study, When Virtue is a Vice.“Our findings suggest that marketers of luxury products and leisure services could benefit from prompting consumers to predict their feelings in the future if they forgo the indulgent choice. (Bold added.) For instance, a travel company might ask customers to consider how...

Cara W. F. Hyson contributes to discussions of grading by explaining her seven (7) principles for grading students in her history classes:Principle #1- Grades are always about percents.Principle #2- Grades indicate a teacher's ability to teach the material.Principle #3- Students should not be allowed to share grades in the classroom.Principle #4- The role of a teacher is not to stump the students.Principle #5- A...

QuickStart Learning (QSL) refers to activities that provide a person with prompt changes in behavior. Some have called this eons old practice learning-by-doing. It is a generic category of immediate, efficient behavior change activities. QSL is to learning what instant gratification is to the learner. They define engaged learning. Once the person starts the activity, measurable learning occurs. QSLs increase a learner’s behavior repertoire...

Zig Engelmann published a provocative article titled Curriculum as the Cause of Failure with this topic sentence:"When children do not learn it is evident that they have not been taught." It's a good read for any parent or educator interested in knowing what learning is possible in schools.I'd ask any teaching applicant to describe how he or she would instruct students in light of...

Drew Kim, a top drawer public policy strategist, asks the provocative question, "Why are we still letting education malpractice take place? To borrow and then modify a famous political campaign mantra, "It's the teacher, stupid!"Great teachers focus and deliver on one core mission: consistently improving student achievement. He asks, Armed with data and understanding, why do we still allow the equivalent of education malpractice...

Ken DeRosa describes tested results of student mathematics performance in a constructivist and a direct instruction class in mathematics. DI students outperformed students in the classroom of the more experienced teacher's constructivist class. This study was not definitive, but it illustrates a possibility for students to increase learning rates by teachers adjusting instruction.

Nancy Flanagan asked in response to a comment on one of her posts about a month ago, if anyone really thinks teachers restrict learning. She's a thoughtful writer, an experienced teacher, and an education policy wonk (that's a kudo). Jane, a parent, admonishes teachers, in response to a considered post by Mathew Needleman, for not offering enough learning for her daughter.I've thought about Nancy’s...

Minnesota State Colleges and Universities System students support SMARTHINKING online tutoring, according to a Fall 2007 survey. The survey explored the satisfaction of Minnesota State Colleges and Universities system students enrolled in the Minnesota Online gateway system who use SMARTHINKING online tutoring. 91.7 percent of students surveyed agreed or strongly agreed they enjoyed a positive experience with SMARTHINKING. Exit surveys also showed that 93...

Judith Sotir offers an excellent Internet hotlist of links about diagramming English sentences. This link is worth a bookmark. Teachers will find it useful as a reference for teaching diagramming sentences in middle school for those students who missed it earlier. Students at all levels will find it a useful reminder source as they develop the habit of mentally diagramming sentences while they write...

Education Sector, a national independent nonpartisan education think tank, has released a new report Waiting To Be Won Over: Teachers Speak on the Profession, Unions and Reform.American public education is in the midst of intense change, and teachers, in particular, are facing pressure to produce better outcomes for students.Ann M. Duffett, Steve Farkas, Andrew J. Rotherham, and Elena Silva examine teachers' opinions and attitudes...