With so much information that we want our students to learn, it seems like our biggest focus should be on effectively giving the information to the students. Although this is important, most of the information will be forgotten quickly if we do not have the students recall the information regularly. Retrieval practice boosts learning by focusing on pulling information out …
How to Learn Math for Teachers by Sarah Gullett I recently had the opportunity to take a professional development course titled “How to Learn Math for Teachers” offered by Youcubed.org. The course was taught by Jo Boaler, Professor of Mathematics at Stanford University. Throughout the course, Boaler explores new research on mathematics learning and student mindsets in an engaging format. …
Several weeks ago, I had the opportunity to attend a workshop at Westfield State University all about teaching writing in the age of Artificial Intelligence. In addition to myself and Mr. Kvarnstrom, the room was filled with English Language Arts teachers from all over Western Mass, everything from second and third-grade elementary teachers to first-year composition professors, all of us …
In “Powerful Teaching”, Dr. Pooja Agarwal and Patrice Bain share their research-based findings about the science of learning. After several years of teaching and research, they provide a list of powerful tools for teachers such as retrieval practice, spacing, interleaving, and feedback-driven metacognition. These practical tools allow teachers to become powerful teachers which allows them to save time and teach …
Engaging Students in Classroom Discussions: Strategies to Address Fear of Failure Student engagement is considered a crucial aspect of a high-functioning classroom. Students should be actively involved in interactions with the teacher, the content being taught, and, most importantly, with each other. However, it is concerning to note that student-to-student engagement is often lacking in classrooms, despite the well-documented benefits …
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Our school’s mission statement: The Hampden Charter School of Science is a top-ranking tuition-free college preparatory school founded in 2009. The mission of the HCSS is to provide a college preparatory-focused education to the youth of every race and ethnic group in Western Massachusetts in a safe, academically challenging, and caring educational environment. Our core values are respect, responsibility, resilience, …
What is Project Based Learning? Project Based Learning: Explained. “Project Based Learning is a systematic teaching method that engages students in learning knowledge and skills through an extended inquiry process structured around complex, authentic questions and carefully designed products and tasks.” (Markham, Larmer, and Ravitz (2003)) At HCSS, Project Based Learning is an approach we take to instruction that engages …
Managing Teacher Workload During the Regular School Day When I first started teaching in 2007, I stayed after school hours grading and schlepped piles of papers home each weekend and school breaks. While my husband watched football on Sundays, I spent the day in our bedroom watching TV surrounded by books, papers, red pens, and highlighters. I also ran the …
In “The Disintegrating Student,” Dr. Jeannine Jannot provides helpful suggestions to parents to understand today’s teenagers’ struggles. She describes the disintegrating student as someone with a lot of potential but who can not succeed due to distractions. A disintegrated student can not focus on schoolwork, procrastinates all the time, and is crushed under high expectations from parents and teachers. In …
Becoming a Massachusetts teacher takes more than caring about children, graduating from college, or knowing your subject matter. To become a certified teacher in Massachusetts you must pass the Massachusetts Tests for Educator Licensure (MTEL). The MTEL are a series of exams which include communication and literacy skills, as well as tests of subject matter knowledge. All paths to teacher …