Systems for Instructional Improvement

Systems for Instructional Improvement
Author: Paul Cobb
Publisher: Harvard Education Press
Total Pages: 425
Release: 2020-01-15
Genre: Education
ISBN: 1682531791

In Systems for Instructional Improvement, Paul Cobb and his colleagues draw on their extensive research to propose a series of specific, empirically grounded recommendations that together constitute a theory of action for advancing instruction at scale. The authors outline the elements of a coherent instructional system; describe productive practices for school leaders in supporting teachers’ growth; and discuss the role of district leaders in developing school-level capacity for instructional improvement. Based on the findings of an eight-year research-practice partnership with four large urban districts investigating their efforts to enhance middle school math instruction, the authors seek to bridge the gap between the literature on improving teaching and learning and the literature on policy and leadership. They look at the entire education system and make recommendations on improvement efforts with a focus on student learning and teachers’ instructional vision. In particular, the authors offer insights on the interplay among various supports for teacher learning, including pullout professional development, coaching, collaborative inquiry, the most instructionally productive uses of principals’ time, and the tensions that tend to emerge at the district level. They provide a guide for district-level leaders in organizing their work to support significant teacher learning. Systems for Instructional Improvement provides an invaluable resource for school and district leaders, while outlining a clearly focused agenda for future research.

Memory at Work in the Classroom:

Memory at Work in the Classroom:
Author: Francis Bailey
Publisher: ASCD
Total Pages: 237
Release: 2014-03-04
Genre: Education
ISBN: 1416618996

Why do some students struggle to understand and retain information, while other students don't? The answer may well lie in the memory system, which is the root of all learning. In Memory at Work in the Classroom, Francis Bailey and Ken Pransky expertly guide you through the aspects of human memory most relevant to classroom teachers. Real classroom examples help to deepen your understanding of how memory systems play a central role in the learning process, as well as how culture plays a sometimes surprising role in memory formation and use. The memory systems covered in the book are * Working Memory: the gateway to learning * Executive Function: the cognitive skills children need to independently orchestrate their memory systems in service to learning *Semantic Memory: the storehouse of a person's knowledge of the world, including academic concepts, and the part of the memory system most affected by culture * Episodic Memory: rich, multisensory personal memories of specific events * Autobiographical Memory: one's sense of self, tied directly to student motivation Although the techniques described apply to all students, the authors concentrate on explaining the source of struggling students' academic challenges and provide effective strategies for helping students become better learners. Whether you're a new or a veteran teacher, this book will offer fresh insights into your students' learning difficulties and move you to explore classroom practices that align with the functioning of memory and the ways students learn.

Classroom Assessment & Grading that Work

Classroom Assessment & Grading that Work
Author: Robert J. Marzano
Publisher: ASCD
Total Pages: 203
Release: 2006
Genre: Education
ISBN: 1416604227

Robert J. Marzano distills 35 years of research to bring you expert advice on the best practices for assessing and grading the work done by today's students.

Making Classroom Discussions Work

Making Classroom Discussions Work
Author: Jane C. Lo
Publisher: Teachers College Press
Total Pages: 257
Release: 2022
Genre: Education
ISBN: 080776664X

For the past 2 decades, the field of social studies education has seen an increase in research on the use of discussions as an essential instructional technique. This book examines the importance of using quality dialogue as a tool to help students understand complex issues in social studies. This edited volume provides a collection of well-known, evidence-based discussion techniques, as well as classroom examples showing the methods in use. While using discussion as an instructional method is widely considered a best practice of civic learning, actual high-quality discussions are rare and notoriously difficult to facilitate. Making Classroom Discussions Work is designed to guide teacher educators and classroom teachers in facilitating equitable and productive discussions that will boost learning and democratic engagement. Book Features: Emphasizes the rationale for using discussion in social studies teaching. Collects strategies that have been proposed in disparate journal articles and books in one convenient volume. Presents research-based challenges and supports for conducting and assessing discussions in the social studies. Includes methods and tips to help teachers make discussions more equitable in their classrooms.

The Total Classroom Management Makeover

The Total Classroom Management Makeover
Author: Michael Linsin
Publisher:
Total Pages: 72
Release: 2019-09-24
Genre:
ISBN: 9781088754320

"Michael Linsin is the Shakespeare of smart classroom management, and his 18 lessons can transform American public education." --Eva Moskowitz, Founder and CEO of Success Academy Schools The Total Classroom Management Makeover is a condensed shortcut to effective classroom management. Presented as simple dos and don'ts, the 18 lessons you'll learn have been boiled down to the bare essentials and written in the most accessible way possible. Together, they form an innovative approach to teaching and managing behavior that is specifically and uniquely designed to create within each student strong intrinsic desire to listen, learn, and behave. The result is a tough-minded, hardworking, well-behaved class and the satisfaction of knowing that you're making a lasting impact on your students, your community, and the wider world.

Becoming Young Thinkers

Becoming Young Thinkers
Author: Judy Harris Helm
Publisher: Teachers College Press
Total Pages: 145
Release: 2015-04-28
Genre: Education
ISBN: 0807773352

Continuing the exploration of project work in the author’s bestselling book, Young Investigators, Second Edition, this book is designed for preschool through primary grade teachers who know how to do project work but are ready to move to the next level. Focusing on how children become young thinkers, the book begins with mind, brain, and education science and instructional guidelines for all learning experiences, and then connects these to the rich foundation of the project approach. Helm provides specific strategies for deepening project work, including how to select meaningful topics, plan for projects, integrate standards (including the Common Core), support children's questioning, create provocations to promote engagement, and help children represent their ideas. This practical resource will extend practitioners’ knowledge about project-based learning so they can move beyond the basics to create project work that is more engaging, meaningful, and productive. Book Features: Vivid examples of deep project work from real classrooms (pre–K through 2nd grade). An analysis worksheet for applications of Dewey's vision of child-centered learning. Charts for integrating CCSS for English Language Arts and Mathematics in kindergarten projects. A teacher reflection form for evaluating the depth of project work. “Throughout the book, examples and suggestions make clear the important distinctions between the deep investigations involved in project work versus the fairly common superficial theme activities too often seen in preschool and elementary school classes.” —From the Foreword by Lilian G. Katz, past president, National Association for the Education of Young Children (NAEYC) and professor emerita at the University of Illinois, Urbana–Champaign

Action Research in the Classroom

Action Research in the Classroom
Author: Mary Ann Jacobs
Publisher: Rowman & Littlefield
Total Pages: 193
Release: 2016-04-06
Genre: Education
ISBN: 147582095X

Action Research in the Classroom: Helping Teachers Assess and Improve their Work guides teacher-researchers through the process of using action research in their practice to improve students’ learning and teachers’ teaching. The book uses actual classroom examples to assist aspiring, new, and veteran teachers and those who support them (administrators, department chairpersons, and mentors) in using a six-step process L.E.A.D.E.R. to successfully accomplish and share research conducted by actual classroom teachers. Each step in the L.E.A.D.E.R. process -- (1) L=Look at the Problem, (2) E=Examine what we know; (3) A=Acquire knowledge of school problem-solving; (4) D=Devise a plan for improvement; (5) E=Execute the plan; and, (6) R=Repeat steps and processes as needed -- can guide teachers, administrators, and even parents – and students – in solving their own problems and improving their learning and teaching.

Classroom Instruction that Works

Classroom Instruction that Works
Author: Robert J. Marzano
Publisher: ASCD
Total Pages: 187
Release: 2001
Genre: Education
ISBN: 0871205041

Describes nine different teaching strategies which have been proven to have positive effects on student learning and explains how those strategies can be incorporated into the classroom.

English Language Learners in Your Classroom

English Language Learners in Your Classroom
Author: Ellen Kottler
Publisher: Corwin Press
Total Pages: 217
Release: 2007-12-06
Genre: Education
ISBN: 1452298092

This third edition of the best-selling Children With Limited English offers connections to current research, new strategies for building communication skills, and instructional adaptations for ELL students.