Teaching

Setting term limits on teachers seems counterintuitive as a way to address a teacher shortage while educators face increasingly transparent public accountability. Considering term limits seems a reasonable way to examine what and maybe how current schooling practices limit student learning and learning rates.In the early 1970s, Carl Calkins, then a special education doctoral student, ran a summer camp for youth with disabilities. He...

As a sometimes contributor to the Contrarian Institute of Educators, it seems useful to explore this proposition: All public school teacher (including administrator) contracts should include a sunset or term limit clause. Contrarianism holds a venerable position in scholarship and entertainment. At its core, it provides scholars with alternative explanations for observations as well as ways to examine relative values of actions before consigning...

After drafting a series of principles and checklists related to learning efficiency, I decided to see if I had enough material to draft a proof of concept (POC) learning efficiency scale (LES). Here is an updated version of that draft. I think enough exists for teachers to conduct mental experiments and informal evaluations of learning efficiency of individual as well as aggregates of learners....

This fourth installment of the series preparing your child with an intellectual disability for college illustrates ways to use assumptions about learning to a student's advantage. I describe more of how I assess teaching-learning processes for that preparation. These descriptions also go along with the learning efficiency discussions.Learning Not ObservableI can only assume that learning occurs. No one sees learning. So, I imagine that...

Vaishali Honawar reports in TPCK - Technological Pedagogical Content Knowledge that more teacher colleges incorporate technology into math and science courses rather than just offer them separately.In his class to train preservice teachers in the use of instructional materials in science, John C. Park, an associate professor of science education at North Carolina State University, in Raleigh, uses a tool that breaks down...

The Tessera Program at Libby Center, Spokane, WA is a one day per week program for highly capable students in grades 3 - 6. These students represent the top 3% of their norm group. Students are selected on the basis of academic, intellectual, and creative ability. Information from parents and teachers combined with objective test data determines eligibility. All students who meet the set...

Pat, an experienced special education teachers, blogs about topics related to teaching procedures. Check out this post that lists steps to take for using Web2.0 with special education students.Before working with the student, write out a list of steps they will need to follow (task analysis). Some students can even check off each step as they finish it. Having written steps to follow is...

Here's a research question that seems important with results unavailable in literature about teaching-learning processes: What relationships exist between teachers using less than the most effective instructional procedures and activation of the pleasure areas of their brains? In other words, which teachers use less effective instruction because they receive some satisfaction, whether because they consider they're doing their best, or for some other reason(s)....

A teacher at Trinity School recently shared online a poignant email from a friend in Kenya. I think you will find her words interesting…“In Nyeri, the school is still functioning as normal. Classes are still held and homework is given out as expected. However, at the moment, we are taking extra precaution by not having students leave the campus for cross country or other...

Michelle R. Davis lists four tips for using advanced technologies with students assigned to special education classes. The federal Individuals with Disabilities Education Act requires districts to consider a special education student’s need for assistive technology during the development of his or her individualized education program, or IEP, says Joy S. Zabala, the project manager for the Accessible Instructional Materials, or AIM, consortium at...