Monthly Archives: October 2006

Study Report: Confident Students Perform Poorer

Tom Loveless released THE 2006 BROWN CENTER REPORT ON AMERICAN EDUCATION, the latest analysis of The Brookings Institution. Part one reviews the latest data on student learning in the U.S., including American students’ progress in reading, mathematics, and science. Students … Continue reading

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Grant: Presidential Award for Reading and Technology

The International Reading Association announced The Presidential Award for Reading and Technology. The award honors educators in grades K–12 who are making an outstanding and innovative contribution to the use of technology in reading education. All entrants must be educators … Continue reading

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Factoid: Value of College Degree

According to a news release on October 26, 2006, U.S. Census Bureau data underscore the value of a college degree. Adults age 18 and older with a bachelor’s degree earned an average of $51,554 in 2004, while those with a … Continue reading

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Vocabulary Word for the Day: pelf

pelf (pĕlf) n. Wealth or riches, especially when dishonestly acquired. [Middle English, from Medieval Latin pelfra, pelfa, probably from Old French pelfre.] As used in The Man in the Glass by Dale Wimbrow. Many of us grew up hearing references … Continue reading

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Vision of Education: I wonder …

I wonder if I shall ever see/ A poem like a Tab PC/ … This altered plagerized couplet came to mind as I read a tanscript of John Hollander’s February, 1997 Master Class titled A Close Look at Robert Frost. … Continue reading

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Source: Kamran Ince

Teachers who appreciate music may want to point students to the website and sounds of composer Kamran Ince. He offers a rich contrast to popular sounds heard by many youth. Ince offers musical tones that blend classical western progressions of … Continue reading

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Source: Zadie Smith Talks about Writing

Novelist Zadie Smith opens up about writing in an insightful interview about how she views life and turns it into stories other people pay to read. Aspiring 10 year old writers as well as older people looking to get back … Continue reading

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Source: Maxine Hong Kingston Talks about Writing

Literature teachers may find the interview of Maxine Hong Kingston a useful reference for budding writers. Reading the interview reminds me of how creative people take common observations and wrap them into stories I recognize, yet have never met the … Continue reading

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Quote of the Day: The best education …

The best education for the best is the best education for all. Robert Maynard Hutchins (1899 – 1977) Note: Sorry I don’t remember the primary source of this. I used M.J. Adler, The Paideia Proposal, p. 6 (1982) as the … Continue reading

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The Failure of Constructivist, … Teaching

Kirschner, P. A., Sweller, J., & Clark, R. E. argue in Educational Psychologist, 41(2), 75-86 (2006) that minimal guidance during instruction does not work. They analyze “the failure of constructivist, discovery, problem-based, experiential, and inquiry-based teaching.” They find little empirical … Continue reading

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