Suggested Readings

This is an example of the chaos theory put into practice. I am presenting this in a state of chaos and you are to put an order to it as it suits you. Have fun playing around on this page as you learn about yourself and your teaching practices.

  • Where we are now: CHAOS Theory A Brief Introduction by Greg Rae
  • Chaos Theory and Fractals By Jonathan Mendelson and Elana Blumenthal

    `The function of the child is to live his own life – not the life that his anxious parents think he should live, nor a life according to the purpose of the educator who thinks he knows best.' A.S. Neill

    As you prepare or continue to use the Internet in your classrooms, you should be aware of the legal and ethical matters concerning the Internet. Ignorance is not bliss. You should explore the links below and following the links therein to subsequent sites to educate yourselves and ultimately your students to correct and proper use of the Internet. This knowledge will help you establish the tone of the class and make your use of the Internet in your class safe & successful. As you read you will want to write your reflections and feelings on these matters, especially for those in your classes and for those who visit your website. Write these essays, reflections, thoughts as documents you post on your website. Your page should be a source for your students and their parents/guardians, other teachers, and administrators. So it is important that your ideas about pedagogy be published on your website. Make your webpage an extension of yourself to serve as a model for your students.

  • Teacher Inquiry is crucial. Perhaps a Metaphor can help us in shaping our Image of ourselves as a teacher, other have.
  • Teachers are as varied as crayons in a Crayola box.
  • The Educator's Reference Desk
  • A sample from Grad School of Ed at Buffalo
  • Writing Oneself in Cyberspace


    Practical Theory is my notion of being a teacher. It is always hard to know when we do something if it is conceived by theory or derived in practice, either new or revisited from our past practices. Hence I see it as "practical theory" one influencing the other and informing the other. They are not separate but joined. Some teachers do not start teaching until they have completed college and earned an advanced degree in education and gatrhered lots ofm theory before teaching a class. Other teachers just jump into the classroom after college. Within a few years both teachers are engaged in "practical thoery" because they are teaching, the practice, and they are engaged in professional conversations either in their school or in a graduate program, the theory. "Practical theory" is the teacher walking the talk of education, first one foot, either practice or theory, then the other foot. "Practical theory" can best be illustrated by one of my favorite quotes:

      One must learn by doing the thing.
      For though you think you know it,
      you have no certainty until you try.

      Sophocles (BC 495-406, Greek Tragic Poet)
    We may know the theory of riding a bike, but we don't know we can ride until we get on that bike. This is the same in teaching. We may have a head full of theory, but not until we get into the classroom can we realize that theory. And similarly, we may be teaching a class, but until we explore some theory we may not know what we are doing or make the proper adjustments in our practice. Practice and theory are the ying and the yang of teaching I call "practical theory."


    LEARNING THEORIES

    Theory Into Practice http://tip.psychology.org/ TIP is a tool intended to make learning and instructional theory more accessible to educators. The database contains brief summaries of 50 major theories of learning and instruction. These theories can also be accessed by learning domains and concepts.
    Some Classifications


    The Velcro Theory

    I use the "Velcro Theory" to refer to information that has a sticking place. When we input information, it must be attched to existing knowledge to make sense. We stick new knowledge in many places as we reassess the bigger picture. When we find new information that can't be stuck to existing knowledge, we know we have a new idea, a new learning environment.

    Current

    • Engaging Kids This means challenging kids with something they want to achieve. We do this by drawing on what leading educators, psychologists, and other experts have learned. Read on!
    • The Reading Brain by Maryanne Wolf, Mirit Barzillai, and Elizabeth Norton from Tufts University. Reading changed the course of intellectual development in our species. Over the span of approximately 5,000 years, we moved from societies in which literacy was extremely rare to a highly technological world in which the ability to read is practically a prerequisite for survival. Although many research paradigms attempt to reveal how the human brain learns to read, few are more interesting and instructive, perhaps, than the methods and questions of cognitive neuroscience.
    • The Atlantic 150 years celebration of Education. For well over a century, two seemingly irreconcilable notions of the purposes and character of American public education have warred against each other.
    • The Motivational Effect of ICT on Pupils This research will identify and where possible quantify the impacts of ICT on behaviour, motivation, truancy and associated crime among pupils (particularly disaffected pupils) in schools. It will also seek to identify what aspects of ICT and content are effective in improving motivation and how this can best be harnessed by teachers and within the curriculum to engage pupils in learning (particularly those who are disaffected with traditional forms of learning). It is anticipated that the research will involve interviews with headteachers, teachers and pupils in a sample of schools including failing schools which have been turned round and schools which have in-house behaviour and support units to investigate how ICT is used and what effect it has on pupils. It will also look at best practice in the use of ICT with disaffected pupils.
    • Critical Friends
      Protocols
      Glossary of Terms
    • Brain Research
      How People Learn Brain, Mind, Experience, and School; John D. Bransford, Ann L. Brown, and Rodney R. Cocking, editors
      Exploring How People Learn
      How to Teach Students About the Brain by Judy Willis
      Willis' classroom tool What You Should Know About Your Brain

    • Essential Questions

    • RAFT


      Is this chart Bogus or NOT?


      Resources for the Classroom

    • The Standards. What they are and more.
    • Fighting the High-Stakes Tests is possible.
    • The Acceptable Use Policy: AUP
    • Issues about Copyright
    • Evaluating WebSites
    • Ethics
    • Netiquette
    • Technology Assessment
    • Staff Development
    • Professional Readings from NCTE listers

    • Articles as they appear

    • National Center for Education Statistics: The Condition of Education 2003 [pdf]
    • Altering the Structure and Culture Of American Public Schools by Wellford W. Wilms KAPPAN, V.84 No.8 PP 606-615/April 2003
    • Students Use Hand Signals to Show Teachers They Are Ready to Learn; Teachers Respond to Subtle Gestures Without Realizing This news story is not produced by the American Psychological Association and does not necessarily represent the opinions of the association.


      The Pedagogy

    • AskERIC
    • SCANS: Secretary's Commission on Achieving Necessary Skills, SCANS has focused on one important aspect of schooling: what they called "learning a living" system. In 1991, they issued their initial report, What Work Requires of Schools. As outlined in that report, a high-performance workplace requires workers who have a solid foundation in the basic literacy and computational skills, in the thinking skills necessary to put knowledge to work, and in the personal qualities that make workers dedicated and trustworthy. http://www.academicinnovations.com/report.html

      John Dewey, Democracy and Education

      World of Education from NewDemocracy.org

      Paulo Freire

      CONSTRUCTIVISM

    • What is Constructivism
    • traditional vs constructivism
    • Constructivism: Vygotsky and the Internet
    • A journey into Constructivism
    • Essays on constructivism and education
    • Constructivism
    • Constructivism as a Paradigm for Teaching and Learning from Thirteen online.
    • Bloom

    • Bloom's Taxonomy
    • Brain Research
    • Brain Research from Cheshire Academy.

    • Holt: Origins of Contemporary Homeschooling

      Emotional Intelligence

    • Consortium for Research on Emotional Intelligence Founded in 1996 with support from the Fetzer Institute, the Consortium for Research on Emotional Intelligence is dedicated to advancing the research and practice related to emotional intelligence in organizations. With 25 current members from a variety of fields ranging from academic appointments to consultants, the Consortium continues to fulfill its mandate to "study all that is known about emotional intelligence in the workplace." First-time visitors seeking to learn about the basic activities of the Consortium will want to spend some time browsing through the Research section of the site, which contains helpful background papers addressing the importance of emotional intelligence and developing standards for the field. The site also contains the detailed and recently updated research agenda of the Consortium, along with profiles of current members. Finally, a detailed reference section contains a detailed bibliography of scholarship that will be of interest to those seeking to read additional material within the discipline.
    • Multiple Intelligence

    • MI Survey Walter McKenzie
    • Theory Powerpoint
    • Information about learning styles and Multiple Intelligence (MI)
    • What Kind of Genius Are You?
    • Internet Guide to Multiple Intelligences
    • Multigenre, Multiple Intelligences, and Transcendentalism from Nov 2002 English Journal.
    • MI
    • How Technology Enhances Howard Gardner's Eight Intelligences
    • Papert

    • Papert Child Power
    • Papert's Home
    • Our Mutual Estate Wanna go deeper with TECHNOLOGY? Try THIS.

      Larry Cuban, has written a book, :Computers, Oversold and Underused." Using the new technologies, the whole book is on line. http://www.hup.harvard.edu/pdf/CUBOVE.pdf, don't you just love the irony of it being on line.

      ZINES Lists of online publications.

      1. Academic Exchange Peer Reviewed Journal
      2. NOW ONLINE: HGSE'S ASKWITH EDUCATION FORUMS Selected Askwith Education Forums from the Harvard Graduate School of Education--as well as lectures from a wide range of cultural and educational institutions--are now available online via the WGBH Forum Network.
      3. Assessment Reform Network - a national project created to support parents, teachers, students and others who are working to end the overuse and misuse of standardized testing in public education and to promote authentic forms of assessment.
      4. Center for the Study of Teaching and Policy at the University of Washington The Center for the Study of Teaching and Policy at the University of Washington draws on the scholarly work of four different universities, including Stanford, the University of Michigan, and the University of Pennsylvania. The purpose of their research is "to identify ways that leaders, policymakers, teacher developers, and the reform community can support teachers' work and careers." Researchers will want to look at the ongoing research projects in progress at the Center, which include examinations of the role of unions in the teaching environment and a comparative study on school district investment in the improvement of teaching. Probably the most valuable aspects of the site are the online policy briefs, occasional papers published by the center, and working papers from the past several years. Lastly, visitors have an opportunity to sign up to receive updates on the Center's work via email.
      5. CERAI - SAGE and Direct Instruction Projects. SDIP is a research and information center housed in the University of Wisconsin at Milwaukee School of Education. SDIP conducts original research; analyzes the research and publications of other organizations and individuals; and facilitates the implementation of innovations in areas such as student performance standards, assessment, and curriculum. SDIP disseminates its analyses and reports to policy makers, educators, and the public.
      6. Converge Magazine - The mission of Converge magazine is to foster this new vision of Digital Education while maintaining the Human Touch.
      7. Distance-Educator To search our growing archive of over 8,700+ distance education related articles and references.
      8. ED News - from Department of Education.
      9. EdtechNOT - has been created by Forde Multimedia Consulting to encourage debate on the merits and pit falls of using educational technology in real schools.
      10. The Education Policy Analysis Archives -
      11. Education World - The goal is to make it easy for educators to integrate the Internet into the classroom. With 98 percent of the nation's public schools connected to the Internet, the need for a complete online educational guide is evident. Education World is designed to be that resource for educators.
      12. Edutopia - from The George Lucas Educational Foundation (GLEF) is a nonprofit operating foundation that documents and disseminates models of the most innovative practices in our nation's K-12 schools. Edutopia Online, celebrates the unsung heroes across our nation who are making "Edutopia" a reality. They have shown what can be done, often with the same number of resources as other schools and sometimes with fewer. We recognize that for these innovations to spread, educators and parents, as well as business and community leaders, must first see them and understand them.
      13. EdWeek - providing policymakers and administrators with comprehensive, timely, and objective information during the past 20 years, Education Week has significantly influenced the school-reform movement that has paralleled its existence. But a few years ago, the emphasis of the reform movement began shifting toward teachers.
      14. eLearn eLearn Magazine is published by ACM, a not-for-profit educational association serving those who work, teach, and learn in the various computing-related fields. Founded in 1947 as the Association for Computing Machinery, ACM's stated mission is to advance the arts, sciences, and applications of information technology. It is the oldest and most respected organization of its kind. eLearn is ACM's first Web-only publication. It will build on ACM's reputation by serving as the most accurate and unbiased source for news, information, and opinion on the now-flourishing field of online education and training. It also offers a community hub for e-learning professionals on the Web, providing a wealth of public forums for the free exchange of ideas.
      15. eLearning - Each day you'll find information on building and delivering advanced learning environments for business, government, and higher education for 'breaking' news, real-world case studies, research reports, in-depth technology articles, and expert columns, and to connect with your peers.
      16. Electronic School - chronicles technological change in the classroom, interprets education issues in a digital world, and offers readers -- some 80,000 school board members, school administrators, school technology specialists, and other educators -- practical advice on a broad range of topics pertinent to the implementation of technology in elementary and secondary schools throughout North America.
      17. eSchool - is a monthly newspaper developed to provide the news and information necessary to help K-12 decision-makers successfully use technology and the Internet to transform our nation's schools and achieve educational goals.
      18. FromNowOn
      19. Horizon - The Technology Source, a peer-reviewed bimonthly periodical published by the Michigan Virtual University, is to provide thoughtful, illuminating articles that will assist educators as they face the challenge of integrating information technology tools into teaching and into managing educational organizations.
      20. International Journal for Instructional Technology and Distance Learning This Journal was established to facilitate collaboration and communication among researchers, innovators, practitioners, and administrators of education and training programs involving technology and distance learning.
      21. JEP - is for the thoughtful forward-thinking publisher, librarian, scholar, or author -- in fact, anyone in this new business -- facing those challenges. We aim to range widely in our coverage, but the emphasis will be on the broader issues that should shape policy, and on professional, scientific or academic publishing, both books and journals.
      22. Kairos - is a refereed online journal exploring the intersections of rhetoric, technology, and pedagogy. Each issue presents varied perspectives on special topics.
      23. KAPPAN - the professional print journal for education, addresses policy issues for educators at all levels. An advocate for research-based school reform, the KAPPAN provides a forum for debate on controversial subjects. Published since 1915, the journal comes out monthly, September-June.
      24. Mutligenre, Multiple Intelligences, and Transcendendalism from Nov 2002 EJ.
      25. MMS - MultiMedia Schools (MMS) is a practical how-to magazine sharply focused on the needs of school practitioners. Articles, reviews, and columns address issues associated with using electronic information resources in K-12 schools—Internet, online and multimedia databases, CD-ROM technology, computer hardware and software.
      26. New Curriculum - was started in the spring of 2001 by John Raymond, an educational technology consultant living in Connecticut. The site is designed to provide essential resources to help teachers integrate technology into their classes, including annotated links and a bi-weekly column or two on practical techintegration ideas.
      27. Perspectives on Urban Education from Penn GSE
      28. Progressive Policy Institute
        Archives: Newsletters
      29. Welcome to Reading Online Edited by a team of scholars and practitioners, Reading Online is a peer- reviewed journal established by the International Reading Association in May 1997. The journal primarily focuses on literary practice and research in classrooms serving students aged 5 to 18. The journal is also deeply concerned with actively supporting professionals as they integrate technology in the classroom. From the site's main page, visitors can peruse the latest articles from the most recent issue, which in past months have included titles such as Technology for Engaged Learning in a Literacy Methods Course and Literature Discussion in Cyberspace. All of the articles from the past seven years are archive here as well, with many of them also filed into different themes, such as New Literacies, International Perspectives, and The Electronic Classroom. Along with these materials, visitors may also elect to join the diverse online communities and discussion forums offered here as well.
      30. Substance - A monthly investigative newspaper devoted to in-depth reporting on the major issues facing public education. Our focus has been on Chicago in particular. Since the advent of high-stakes testing and the “standards and accountability” attack on democratic public education, we have broadened our coverage. We now include news of the growing national resistance to the dictators who would destroy the democratic traditions of public education in the USA.
      31. Syllabus
      32. Teacher - became the magazine of record for professional teachers who were anxious to help shape the future of American education.
      33. Teacher's Mind Resources Newsletter Archiives
      34. TechNews - Published three times a week, ACM TechNews is a comprehensive news gathering service, scanning the headlines to bring topics of interest to the IT professional.
      35. Technology & Learning
      36. Technology Source
      37. Scholarly Electronic Publishing Bibliography
      38. SyllabusWeb
      39. WCE - The Well Connected Educator

      For Fun

    • Microsoft to schools: Give us your lunch money!
    • According to this new report from the National Academies' Center for Education at a time when a high school diploma is becoming a minimum credential for gainful employment, keeping a better count of drop-outs and addressing student needs early on are key to helping students at risk of school failure.
    • Waka Waka. With a name like that, how can you resist?
    • Book Review: Elizabeth Gold's Brief Intervals of Horrible Sanity