August 2009 Blog Posts (124)

642 Hours to Complete Race to the Top Application

Wow. Is this normal? Anyone know?

Education Week: Heavy Lifting Ahead for ‘Race to Top’ Applications

Added by Jacqui Murray on August 20, 2009 at 11:29am — No Comments

The Real Test of a Highly Qualified School Administrator Is...

So how do we create stronger bonds in our schools? I mean relationships are everything, right? Without camaraderie, without trust, without believing truly in the heart, soul, and good intentions of the people for whom we work, how can a school really be expected to function?

So I have a proposal. I say the only people who should be allowed to work as administrator in public education must pass the test of the wife as seen in this clip.

You wanna be principal of… Continue

Added by Alan Sitomer on August 20, 2009 at 6:30am — No Comments

Move Over Netbooks!

There’s a new laptop on the market, and it might challenge the popularity of netbooks, particularly in public schools. Wal-Mart is selling the new Compaq Presario for only $299. Since July when the retail giant began carrying the new laptop, stores throughout the country have had a difficult time keeping them on the shelf. MORE...

Added by Shawn Roner on August 19, 2009 at 9:46am — No Comments

Best Sites For Labor Day, Copyright, Online Safety & More

Hi, Everybody,

Here are some of the latest "The Best..." lists:

The Best “Practical” Ed Tech Blogs

(http://tinyurl.com/lk2pbq)

The Best Ways To Create Online Content Easily & Quickly 2009

(http://tinyurl.com/kswjt3)

The Best Sites To Learn About Advertising

(http://tinyurl.com/l3f89y)

The Best Sites For Learning About Nelson Mandela

(http://tinyurl.com/ktfe74)

The Best Twitterers For Sharing Resource… Continue

Added by Larry Ferlazzo on August 19, 2009 at 7:33am — No Comments

Smashing Through Our Problems Head Through Glass First

This is interesting... an engineering student (yes, a graduate student in engineering) not understanding the concept of an automatic sliding glass door.

And so he SMASHES THROUGH THE THING HEAD FIRST!!

Now at first, I thought, well, the guy is just an idiot. Except, then I realized, don't we often try to solve a lot of our problems in schools in much the same manner -- especially in the realm of NCLB. I mean when they don't know the… Continue

Added by Alan Sitomer on August 19, 2009 at 6:30am — No Comments

The true sundial of my life.

New Year's Eve is -- and always has been -- one of the most over-rated holidays on the calendar for me. Perpetual disappointment. (Actually, is it even an official holiday or is it just riding the coattails of Christmas in some way?) And while I am totally a night owl and will happily stay up chatting about most anything with folks until 3:00 a.m. if the topic/company warrants it -- yep, been know to do it on school nights, too -- getting obliterated, counting backwards from 10 to 1… Continue

Added by Alan Sitomer on August 18, 2009 at 6:30am — No Comments

Web based resources for Physically Handicapped students (and other special needs students)

Final post in a series on Internet resources for Educators working with Special Needs students.

This week’s post is a bit of a mixed bag. I’ll wrap up this 5 part series with some information on resources for students with physical handicaps (other than… Continue

Added by Kelly Walsh on August 18, 2009 at 6:00am — No Comments

Box.net - A Collaborative Tool for Professional Networks

Reposted from Meg's Notebook

The cloud / desktop relationship and the desired "seamless" bridging of content between the two is still a bumpy one, that is why any foray into cloud computing and online collaboration by a professional community requires a communications understanding and agreement by all participants for the selected collaborative tool to work. Many of us will use… Continue

Added by Meg H on August 17, 2009 at 4:08pm — No Comments

US Navy Hospital Ship Provides Humanitarian Assistance

I have to share this blog. I posted it yesterday on my blog Sizzle in Science, and it is the most-visited site of any I have ever posted. I don't understand why. Read it and let me know if you have any ideas why?

The United States military has a program called ‘Humanitarian Assistance’ whose objective is not war. It encourages peace by strengthening the health and welfare of people throughout the world through the use of American know-how. This includes all active and reserve… Continue

Added by Jacqui Murray on August 17, 2009 at 10:51am — No Comments

Teaching with Edmodo

I'd like to thank Oliver, Merle, and Matt for their helpful suggestions and responses to my previous blog! It's so great to be teaching again and have this great resource.

I decided to go with edmodo.com as recommended by Oliver. It was so easy to set up and I was able to test it opening a teacher and student accounts on Firefox and Safari without any problems. Students will probably find it as user-friendly because it resembles Facebook, and it's just as intuitive if not simpler and… Continue

Added by Antoinette Go on August 17, 2009 at 9:32am — No Comments

The Weekly Update: August 10 - August 16

Some great blogs from last week...

Added by Shawn Roner on August 17, 2009 at 9:26am — No Comments

Is it Mr. Danza or will he be, "Yo, Mr. D!"?

So I see that former TV star Tony Danza is thinking about starring in a reality show called TEACH. That's right, a reality show. Currently, according to highly placed sources at some internet tabloid drivel I ran across while mindlessly surfing the web, I came across this story.

Yep, the guy from Who's The Boss is gonna tackle the classroom. An inner city high school classroom… Continue

Added by Alan Sitomer on August 17, 2009 at 9:00am — No Comments

Back to Teaching

My bachelor's, master's and doctorate degrees are all in education, and I have explored all other fields especially when I shifted to computers and information technology from mathematics, English and the humanities. ICT encompasses all other fields, and to be hooked on it means spending lots of time to refresh my knowledge and skills and ride each new wave coming.

As a teacher, I have taught at different curriculum levels and have trained many teachers in the pedagogical aspects… Continue

Added by Josephine Cacdac on August 17, 2009 at 4:36am — No Comments

When you leave teaching...

From: http://sarahbsd.wordpress.com

When you leave teaching, beware. You are more powerful, capable, and resourceful than you could have ever imagined possible. Though we endeavor every day as teachers to be the super human beings who sacrifice sleep, sustenance, and hydration, hurtling ourselves at the massive challenges facing our schools and students, we doubt our own efficacy. Suspended in the motion of moments too intense and important to be anything other than 100% present, we… Continue

Added by Sarah Benis Scheier-Dolberg on August 16, 2009 at 12:31pm — 2 Comments

Website for Students to Upload Homework

I don't want students to e-mail their assignments, so I'm looking for a site that allows me to not only post homework and share handouts, but also for students to submit/upload files. In the past I've used Edline and Turnitin, which my former school has accounts with; but the disadvantage to this arrangement is I lose access to my lessons and calendar when I leave school. So now I'm trying Google Sites and wikis like Wikispaces and Wetpaint. But I'm still not sure if I really want students to… Continue

Added by Antoinette Go on August 16, 2009 at 10:20am — 2 Comments

Mealy Hands, Anyone?

This is a Mealy Hand. It is dry corn meal and flour mixed together and poured into a vinyl glove. Once filled, the student should lightly tap the glove to pack the mixture into the fingers and to release pockets of air. A well packed glove is key to creating a realistic hand for the student to successfully master filing techniques and correctly hold the finger while filing and shaping the nail. A rubber banded is used to close the glove.… Continue

Added by Mary Jean Hernandez on August 16, 2009 at 9:59am — No Comments

Getting Away from the “Traditional Test” Format

Most teachers like to use multiple choice, T/F, and matching on tests. It may be easier for teachers to create; however, this does not really tell us if students really understood the concepts. Most look for answers that student have seen in the same section in their text/notes. The T/F questions leave students with a 50% chance of getting it right or wrong. Using short answers and essays, where students actually describe a process or how something works will show exactly what students know or… Continue

Added by Christina on August 15, 2009 at 11:47pm — 1 Comment

The Need for Change in Teaching Strategies

In past and present generations, many or most teachers have used the “traditional” teaching method. This method usually includes lectures, worksheets, and testing, which creates a passive learner. I remember how teachers have taught middle and high school classes, usually via lectures. Even some college professors do the same thing.

This leaves most teachers and students bored out of their mind.

More teachers need to put students in more active role of learning not only… Continue

Added by Christina on August 15, 2009 at 11:45pm — No Comments

feedback welcome

First week of school went well. 'would love to hear ideas for language arts 5th and 6th grade levels, how to juggle all the curriculum!

Added by Lois Lantz on August 15, 2009 at 9:53pm — No Comments

What are the Most Pressing Problems that Preoccupy the Thinking of Novice (First Year) Teachers?

As a mentor or mentor teacher there is a body of knowledge about learning to teach that a staff developer needs to understand in order to provide constructive assistance to their mentees. Beginning with this post, we will share some of that knowledge base.

For example, when working with novice or fist year teachers it is important to understand the kinds of instructional and classroom management problems that preoccupy their thinking.

Fortunately, *Simon Veenman (1984) did… Continue

Added by Richard D. Solomon, Ph.D. on August 15, 2009 at 5:17pm — No Comments