Author Archive

Failure of the Standards Movement – Research and Opinion by Larry Stedman

Tuesday, June 21st, 2011

The Standards Movement: Success or Failure? Two articles from Critical Education by Lawrence C. Stedman

How Well Does the Standards Movement Measure Up? An Analysis of Achievement Trends and Student Learning, Changes in Curriculum and School Culture, and the Impact of No Child Left Behind – V1 No.10 Dec. 20, 2010. http://bit.ly/muBrDO
Why the Standards Movement Failed: An Educational and Political Diagnosis of Its Failure and the Implications for School Reform – V2 No.1 Jan. 20, 2011 http://bit.ly/mN6vMe

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Leading School Change: 9 Strategies to Bring Everybody on Board

Tuesday, May 31st, 2011

Leading School Change: 9 Strategies to Bring Everybody on Board by Todd Whitaker provides excellent general advice for education leaders who need to guide their cultures through meaningful changes with the goal of improving the quality of instruction. Todd draws on his wealth of experience as a leader and as an author to provide a book that every school principal and superintendent should add to their shelves.

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A New Culture Of Learning: What will define the 21st Century

Wednesday, April 27th, 2011

In this book by Douglas Thomas and John Seely Brown, we find that the kind of learning that will define the 21st century will not take place in a classroom. It is happening all around us and it is powerful The growing digital network gives us nearly unlimited resources, while is connects us with others. Learning often takes place without books, teachers, or classrooms. Classrooms and teachers may not be obsolete, but the authors make a case that they must change.

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Better By Mistake – Improve your life and performance by Alina Tugend

Thursday, April 14th, 2011

This eye-opening book features the big idea that embracing mistakes can make us happier and more productive in every facet of our lives. It examines the tension between the idea that we must make mistakes to learn, and the fact that we often get punished for them. © 2011, Riverside Books: New York, New York

Another Way of Learning

My teacher said I learn by making mistakes. Since I didn’t make any today, I guess I didn’t learn anything. This story is followed by the notion that when people think they must do everything perfectly, they can spend energy blaming each other rather than finding a solution. It results in defensiveness and accusations rather than apologies and forgiveness. Mistake prevention gets in the way of daring and innovation. Most of us think that mistakes make us look stupid.

(Re)Defining Mistakes

My teacher said I learn by making mistakes. Since I didn’t make any today, I guess I didn’t learn anything. This story is followed by the notion that when people think they must do everything perfectly, they can spend energy blaming each other rather than finding a solution. It results in defensiveness and accusations rather than apologies and forgiveness. Mistake prevention gets in the way of daring and innovation. Most of us think that mistakes make us look stupid.

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The World Is Open – Curtis Bonk

Wednesday, March 30th, 2011

The World Is Open: How Web Technology Is Revolutionizing Education by Curtis Bonk tells the story of the ten openers that allow the Internet to change the face of education. Bonk builds on the work of Thomas Friedman’s The World Is Flat to explain how anyone can learn anything, anytime, anywhere. He uses abundant stories and examples to make his point. As you read you will want to check out places on the Web he mentions. Any educator, parent, student, or citizen should be familiar with Bonk’s Ten Openers. © 2009, Jossey Bass: San Francisco, CA.

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