PBL Problem-Solver: Enhancing Student Responsibility (With FREE Resources!)
Project-Based Learning (PBL) is an educational approach where students actively explore real-world challenges and create meaningful solutions. This hands-on methodology not only engages students in deeper learning but also equips them with essential workplace readiness skills, such as collaboration, time management, and problem-solving. By integrating PBL into the classroom, educators help students develop the accountability […]
Signature Pedagogy Series, Part 7: Essential Pedagogies of Reading to Learn (ELA for Established Readers)
The following article is a part of our Signature Pedagogies in the K-12 Classroom series. “Signature pedagogies,” as defined by Schulman in 2005, are “the types of teaching that organize the fundamental ways in which future practitioners are educated for their new professions” and they include three critical aspects: how to think, perform, and act […]
Signature Pedagogy Series, Part 4: Essential Signature Pedagogies in Math
The following article is a part of our Signature Pedagogies in the K-12 Classroom series. “Signature pedagogies,” as defined by Schulman in 2005, are “the types of teaching that organize the fundamental ways in which future practitioners are educated for their new professions” and they include three critical aspects: how to think, perform, and act […]
Are You a True Instructional Leader? The Specific Actions of Building Leaders Who Raise Student Achievement
Strong instructional leaders make big impacts on student achievement outcomes (Marzano et al., 2005). They help lead the work to ensure a guaranteed and viable taught curriculum that is aligned with how students will be assessed. In schools with high numbers of students in gap groups (such as economically disadvantaged, English language learners, students receiving […]
Engaging Classrooms: Rethinking Instructional Time in Education (AbCD Learning Cycle)
by Kate Wolfe Maxlow In this age of screens and 30-second clips, it’s vital that educators keep abreast of the current research on student attention spans and how we leverage our instructional activities so that they’re developmentally appropriate. There’s both an art and science to stretching students’ attention spans successfully. Enter then: the AbCD Learning […]
Engaging Classrooms: Are Students Engaged…or Just Compliant? Here’s how to tell and what to do about it.
by Kate Wolfe Maxlow Picture it: you’re teaching your heart out with your carefully crafted slideshow. MacKenzie, as usual, sits in the front of the room, nodding along eagerly. As you make another brilliant point, you see her furrow her brow thoughtfully and write it down. William, meanwhile, sits in the back row, digging through […]
Engaging Classrooms: Why We Need More Arts in Every Classroom, Every Day
By Kate Wolfe Maxlow I can still sing the entire jingle from a Milky Way commercial that played non-stop on TV when I was five. I remember all of King Henry VIII’s wives from a coloring page activity I did when I was eight. I can name all of the states in alphabetical order because […]
Leadership Matters: Growth Mindsets…Do Our Actions Match our Words?
by Kate Wolfe Maxlow The term “growth mindset” is a well-worn phrase in education. Yet, sometimes we see schools where the staff talks a good talk about growth mindset, but certain actions or beliefs undercut the philosophy. It turns out, this can actually negatively impact the growth mindset of students. Why does this happen? Let’s […]
SIE: 5 Key Elements for a Meaningful Walkthrough
The main objective of using eObservations walkthrough tools is to improve instruction by providing formative feedback to teachers. If your teachers are only accustomed to observations that are evaluative, it is essential that you do some work prior to beginning walkthroughs. 1. Communication: Many teachers comment that they have either never been observed or the observations they […]