A visual rubric in the multicultural classroom.

This visual rubric is obviously a bit elementary but I think it is a clever way to offer assessment on a visual basis (and it is certainly appropriate for the elementary level). For the secondary level it could be useful in communicating how you are grading a student with a language barrier.

Source: This image came from a great art education website I found. Check it out.http://www.thesmartteacher.com/

Adult education vs. adolescent education

As some one transitioning from young adult to adulthood - looking at the info-graphic below has left me wondering if there is any real difference between how an adolescent learns and how an adult learns. The following suggestions seem like good pedagogical practice for any age.

Source: http://flirtingwelearning.wordpress.com

Interdisciplinary cooperation and the graphic novel.

Do you remember how tedious and painful it was to read Shakespearean texts in a high school level English & Literature class? After finding a graphic novel of Macbeth, I began wondering if students might be able to glean some sort of enjoyment of the literature by creating their own imagery from a chosen excerpt.

Links to said graphic novel on Amazon:

Macbeth: The Graphic Novel

Macbeth: The Graphic Novel (Unabridged)

Transitioning to new common core standards.

Just an article I found regarding some of the reasoning behind the education standards overhaul.


Transitioning to the Common Core Standards

http://teacher.scholastic.com/products/scholastic-achievement-partners/ccss.htm

http://k6educators.about.com/od/professionaldevelopment/a/Common-Core.htm

Check out this amazing teacher tool!

https://www.remind101.com/

Can you blame dentists for their patients' cavities?

We have been talking a lot about assessment in my Theory and Practice class. The following article discusses/examines factors which are highly influential on teacher/student performance, yet are not mentioned or considered in any circumstance of the educational profession. The article:
What we should be evaluating.

How much is a good teacher worth? A different aspect of quantitative vs. qualitative.

While reading through some teaching blogs on Wordpress I stumbled upon this interesting post about the monetary worth of a teacher. The post describes how teachers who save communities money when keeping students from dropping out and potentially engaging in destructive/criminal behavior (there is additional author/research information in the post for those who are interested). Initially I thought - Great! What an interesting way to consider the relevance of a teacher in a community. Soon after I became uncomfortable with the idea of placing a monetary amount on good teaching, or even the effects of good teaching. After a bit of thinking I had deconstructed my distaste for the idea to be rooted in the age old discussion of "the perils of quantitative assessment". Do we really want to place a dollar amount on teaching, is that the only language we now understand? If we can not separate the value of critical thinking from the principles of our monetary world, how can we motivate our students to believe what we are teaching has value. Isn't any quantity of a quality learning experience the most desired feature in the classroom? Ultimately, the idealist in me wants to separate the learning environment from money and numbers altogether (unless of course we are talking about mathematics). This whole idealistic thought process sort of took me by surprise, and I chuckled to myself as my "wisdom" of the inner workings of the "real world" mocked me. Regardless, I stand by the notion that the learning environment needs to maintain a component of idealism that is entirely separate from the language of our consumerist economy. It is a realistically attainable idea.