NEW APPROACH TOUTED AS SUPERIOR TO DIRECT INSTRUCTION

Francesca Duffy discusses a new concept which one educator claims is best suited to providing students “with the skills needed to engage in problem-solving and to work collaboratively.”
http://blogs.edweek.org/teachers/teaching_now/2012/04/is_discovery_learning_the_way_to_go.html

CHANGES REQUIRED FOR PROPER IMPLEMENTATION OF COMMON CORE STANDARDS

Catherine Gewertz reports that a leading champion of the common core curriculum has said that teachers and principals must improve their skill sets in order to ‘deliver’ on the ‘promise’ of the new standards:

http://blogs.edweek.org/edweek/curriculum/2012/04/call_to_states_revolutionize_t.html

NEW BENCHMARKS FOR ASSESSING QUALITY OF SCHOOL SYSTEMS

The Center for Education Policy Research at Harvard has developed a set of new indicators for appraising school performances as it relates to college-going.

http://blogs.edweek.org/edweek/college_bound/2012/04/researchers_propose_new_indicators_for_school_performance.html

STUDY USING MULTIPLE MEASURES REVEALS MUCH CURRENT TEACHER PERFORMANCE

The Measures of Effective Teaching Project’s study of 3000 classrooms illustrates the possible benefits of a “nuanced” approach to assessing teacher effectiveness.

http://blogs.edweek.org/edweek/inside-school-research/2012/04/the_most_and_least_effective.html

DIFFERING VIEWS ON EFFECTIVENESS OF DIGITAL MEDIA IN CIVIC EDUCATION

Justin Reich reviews the argument over whether digital media only provides amplification, or is genuinely transformative. http://blogs.edweek.org/edweek/edtechresearcher/2012/04/digital_media_and_civic_ed_amplification_or_transformation_bjfr.html

THE CALIFORNIA CONTINUATION EDUCATION ASSOCIATION (CCEA) CONFERENCE-IT’S ALMOST HERE!

The event takes place April 27-29, at the Beverly Garland Holiday Inn,

4222 Vineland Avenue, Los Angeles, CA 91602

So please come visit Elaine and me at the table decorated with the Authors & Editors’ banner anytime from 10AM – 7PM, Friday the 27^th, or 7:30AM to 4:45PM, Saturday the 28^th.

EDUCATOR EXPRESSES ANGER OVER EFFECTS OF HIGH-STAKES TESTING ON TEACHER MORALE

Teacher Rog Lucido writes of a meeting with an ex-student who had become a teacher, and how it triggered his “righteous indignation” at high-stakes testing.

http://blogs.edweek.org/teachers/living-in-dialogue/2012/04/rog_lucido_what_do_we_tell_the.html

“ON-DEMAND PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT”

In this piece, educator Peter DeWitt discusses the new opportunities for professional development provided by the Internet and social media. He writes:

This on-site professional development changes the way leaders lead and the way teachers teach. It's closing the gap between educators and their students who used to think they were twenty years behind. Educators are actually using the 21st century skills they preach about in the classroom!

http://blogs.edweek.org/edweek/finding_common_ground/2012/04/virtual_conferences_and_plcs.html

INTEL OFFERS NEW TABLET– THE INTEL STUDYBOOK

The studybook is a less expensive alternative to the i-Pad:

http://blogs.edweek.org/edweek/DigitalEducation/2012/04/intel_unveils_new_200_tablet_f.html

AUTOMATED ESSAY-SCORING AND ITS IMPLICATIONS

Eric Robelen reports a recent study suggesting that software designed for scoring essays is accurate, reliable and cost-effective.

http://blogs.edweek.org/edweek/curriculum/2012/04/computer_v_human_who_wins_the.html

NEW “UNDERSTANDING LANGUAGE” WEBSITE LAUNCHED

Journalist Lesli A. Maxwell reports that Professor Kenji Hakuta of Stanford University and a team of experts have crafted online materials designed to help teachers understand language as it relates to the new standards, as well as the steps to teach it.

http://blogs.edweek.org/edweek/learning-the-language/2012/04/stanford_project_on_common_sta.html

INCREASING THE POTENTIAL OF OER (OPEN EDUCATIONAL RESOURCES)

Justin Reich envisions a situation “where students, teachers, curriculum designers, and technology developers can come together to shape learning opportunities drawing upon a rich wealth of existing resources and emerging media production platforms.”

http://blogs.edweek.org/edweek/edtechresearcher/2012/04/when_teachers_demand_to_be_co-creators_not_consumers.html

PEARSON EXECUTIVE DICUSSES HIS COMPANY’S MATERIALS AND COMMON CORE

Peter Cohen, the CEO of the publishing-and-services company’s K-12 division, says that its materials are ‘coherent with’ the new standards: http://blogs.edweek.org/edweek/curriculum/2012/04/publisher_addresses_common-cor.html

BROOKINGS INSTITUTE STUDY FOCUSES ON IMPORTANCE OF INSTRUCTIONAL MATERIALS

The white paper asserts “that instructional materials affect student achievement as much as any key factor, including effective teaching, and yet the research base is weak or nonexistent for most of the materials used in classrooms. That, they argue, must be remedied by changes in policy.” http://blogs.edweek.org/edweek/curriculum/2012/04/a_call_for_research_on_effecti.html

ACHIEVING PERFECT PRONUNCIATION UNLIKELY OUTCOME FOR ADULT LEARNERS, EXPERTS SAY

According to writer Leslie Maxwell, many language acquisition specialists believe that older learners shouldn’t focus on perfect pronunciation:

http://blogs.edweek.org/edweek/learning-the-language/2012/04/perfect_accents_not_realistic.html

COMPANY ENABLING OPEN EDUCATION CONTENT FOR COLLEGE STUDENTS SUED FOR COPYRIGHT INFRINGEMENT

The outcome of this suit against Boundless Learning, a company headquartered in Boston, could have far-reaching implications.

Read the full story here: http://blogs.edweek.org/edweek/marketplacek12/2012/04/higher_ed_open_textbook_provider_sued_by_publishers_k-12_implications.html

LATINOS AND COLLEGE COMPLETION – RESULTS AND IMPLICATIONS OF NEW STUDY

Journalist Caralee Adams reports: “About 20 percent of Latino adults have a postsecondary degree compared with more than 35 percent of all adults in the United States, but attainment varies by state. And new research out today shows just where the most strides are being made.”

Read the whole story here:

http://blogs.edweek.org/edweek/college_bound/2012/04/new_report_chronicles_latino_college_completion_by_state.html

HIGH SCHOOL GIRL FEELS HER TIME SPENT IN ESL CLASSES WAS A WASTE

In this piece, the writer, an 11^th grader who came to this country in 2006, maintains that “the ESL program not only defeats it original purpose, it also delays the opportunity for foreign students to catch up with their English-speaking classmates.”

http://www.linkedin.com/news?viewArticle=&articleID=5590183474129543177&gid=1824973&type=member&item=103664001&articleURL=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.gainesville.com%2Farticle%2F20120326%2FOPINION03%2F120329859%2F1109%2Fsports&urlhash=-WMD&goback=.gde_1824973_member_103664001

CALIFORNIA CONTINUATION EDUCATION ASSOCIATION CONFERENCE, APRIL 27-30.

Elaine and I will be attending the California Continuation Education Association Conference, which takes place April 27-30, at the Beverly Garland Holiday Inn,

4222 Vineland Avenue, Los Angeles, CA 91602

. Come visit us at the table decorated with the Authors & Editors’ banner to receive your free teaching/learning resource.

CATESOL 2012 IS UPON US!

And Elaine and I will be there. Come visit us at Booth #113 – looking forward to seeing you!

IT'S OFFICIAL: AUTHORS & EDITORS RESTARTS – AND REINVIGORATES - ELL PUBLISHING COMPANY

For Immediate Release

March 8, 2012 - LOS ANGELES - Arthur and Elaine Kirn Rubin, Partners at Authors & Editors, the publisher of educational materials founded in 1982, announce their return after time spent away coping with parental end-of-life issues.

Authors & Editors’ English-as-a-Second-Language division, 2learn-english.com, offers books, games and activities in context, most of which are the creation of Elaine, an educator whose 40-year teaching career culminated in a position as Professor of English-as-a-Second-Language at West Los Angeles College. Now back in business, the Rubins are focusing on the U.S. Western States market, while preparing for entry into that of the Rocky Mountain and Midwestern states, with their growing multilingual populations.

Author & Editors’ new division offers over 100 titles, aimed primarily at teachers, administrators, coordinators and students, ranging from middle schoolers to adults. The business philosophy underlying 2learn-english.com can best be summed up by the phrase, “Give a man a fish and you feed him for a day. Teach a man to fish and you feed him for a lifetime.” Their mission is simply to provide students with opportunities to gain self-sufficiency through the mastery of English; specifically, to provide the English language learning tools required to meet the requirements of today’s workplace, become and remain informed citizens, and deal effectively with the routines of day-to-day living.

Engaging and effective games, activities and books that motivate and assist learners in improving their English language skills are offered at their online book store, which can be found at http://2learn-english.charityfinders.com/,or visit them on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/?sk=welcome#!/profile.php?id=100001593784791, on LinkedIn at http://www.linkedin.com/in/2learnenglish, or at their blog, http://eslgamesactivitiesbooks.blogspot.com/. In the near future, information about them will also be available on Twitter and YouTube.

Contact:

Arthur Rubin or Elaine Kirn Rubin

Partners

2learn-english.com

Phone: (310) 836-2014

FAX: 310-836-1845

http://2learn-english.com

10736 Jefferson Blvd., #604
Culver City, CA 90230

TWO QUESTIONS FOR ADMINISTRATORS AND TEACHERS IN ADULT EDUCATION PROGRAMS

The Los Angeles Unified School District (LAUSD) appears to be on its way towards cutting funding for adult education. To all educators, wherever you are, what do you think about the future of adult education in your community? How do you view your own futures in the adult education field?

STUDENTS INCREASINGLY REQUIRED TO SUBMIT INDIVIDUAL LEARNING PLANS

Currently more than half the states require students to create plans in which they identify their interests and attempt to translate them into career plans. Journalist Caralee Adams explains the thinking behind it: “When students understand the relevance of what they are learning – how it fits into their lives and long-term plans – experts find they are more likely to get exited about school” http://blogs.edweek.org/edweek/college_bound/2012/03/individual_learning_plans_help_students_chart_career_paths.html

PAUL RYAN’S BUDGET PLAN AND AMERICAN EDUCATION

Secretary of Education Arne Duncan warns that the Ryan plan could have disastrous effects on K-12 education:

http://blogs.edweek.org/edweek/campaign-k-12/2012/03/duncan_blasts_ryan_budget_plan.html

INCREASING INTEREST IN DUAL-LANGUAGE IMMERSION PROGRAMS

Elaine and I want to share this story about the growing number of such programs, and the different approaches adopted by educators.

http://www.edweek.org/ew/articles/2012/03/23/26duallanguage_ep.h31.html?tkn=UOYFwCZn88e1rEM0d6te%2BOfLl3FuSrmoWNqO&cmp=clp-edweek

THE NATIONAL EDUCATION POLICY CENTER VS. THE FORDHAM INSTITUTE

Journalist Ian Quillen discusses the implications of a recent tussle regarding the effectiveness of virtual learning: http://blogs.edweek.org/edweek/DigitalEducation/2012/03/the_ever-growing_debate_over_t.html

QUALITY OF SCIENCE EDUCATION IN CALIFORNIA MIDDLE SCHOOLS SUBPAR, SAYS NEW REPORT

Journalist Eric Robelen quotes the following from the study:  "Across the state, middle school teachers confront large class sizes, limited access to equipment and necessary materials for science experiences, and students who all too frequently have lost interest in science....”

Click here for whole story:

http://blogs.edweek.org/edweek/curriculum/2012/03/most_california_middle_schoole.html

GREAT NEWS ABOUT CLIMBING HIGH SCHOOL GRADUATION RATES NATIONALLY

Please click here: http://blogs.edweek.org/edweek/state_edwatch/2012/03/forty_states_improve_hs_graduation_rate.html

TEACHER PREPARATION IS CRITICAL

Educator John Wilson has some interesting things to say about the importance of the right approach to teacher preparation. Such an approach, he maintains, increases teacher retention and performance, as well as boosting the prestige of the profession. For the full article, please read: http://blogs.edweek.org/edweek/john_wilson_unleashed/2012/03/teacher_preparation_matters_a_lot.html

QUESTIONS FOR ASPIRING TEACHER LEADERS TO PONDER

Educator Patrick Ledesma recently took part in a panel presentation regarding teacher leadership, in the course of which participants identified key questions emerging teacher leaders should ask themselves. Please click here to read the whole story:

http://blogs.edweek.org/teachers/leading_from_the_classroom/2012/03/three_questions_to_begin_transformation_to_teacher_leadership.html

NEW STATE EDUCATION TECHNOLOGY TASK FORCE

In this piece, writer Ian Quillen announces the creation of a task force designed to address the issue of technology availability in California schools. Read the story here: http://blogs.edweek.org/edweek/DigitalEducation/2012/03/california_launches_ed-tech_ta.html

THE IMPLICATIONS OF UNIVERSAL COMPUTER ACCESS FOR STUDENTS

In this piece, Robert Slavin of Johns Hopkins University discusses some of the ways in which “ubiquitous computer availability at home” will have a transformative effect on education: http://blogs.edweek.org/edweek/sputnik/2012/03/when_every_student_has_a_computer_at_home.html

PARENTS SHOWING MORE INTEREST IN IMPROVING EDUCATIONAL PROCESS

“While teacher satisfaction has declined to its lowest point in more than two decades, parent engagement is climbing to new heights across America, a new survey reports,” writes journalist Michele Molnar. For the full story go to: http://blogs.edweek.org/edweek/parentsandthepublic/2012/03/trending_up_new_study_finds_parent_engagement_on_rise.html

HIGH SCHOOL AND COLLEGE STUDENTS ENTHUSIASTIC ABOUT TABLET TECHNOLOGY

Elaine and I were intrigued by the news of this survey, conducted in January, which shows that tablet ownership is increasing by leaps and bounds among college-bound high school seniors and college students, and that they “say they actually believe the prevalence of tablet technology will lead to a digital takeover of the textbook industry.” Read about it here: http://blogs.edweek.org/edweek/DigitalEducation/2012/03/perhaps_it_should_be_no.html

WHITHER COMMON STANDARDS?

Reporter Catherine Gewertz notes that a lot of work is going into implementing the Common Core State Standards, but what the upshot will be, nobody knows: http://blogs.edweek.org/edweek/curriculum/2012/03/preparedness_for_common_standa.html

SOME TIPS ON RESUME AND COVER LETTER PREPARATION FOR EDUCATORS

We think you will find valuable this advice on resume and cover letter preparation from two career services professionals:

http://blogs.edweek.org/topschooljobs/careers/2012/03/one-page_resume_you_must_be_ki.html

http://blogs.edweek.org/topschooljobs/careers/2012/03/cover_letter_tips.html

DIGITAL AND PRINT BOOKS: ADVANTAGES AND DISADVANTAGES

This piece by Francesca Duffy deals with some recent studies with possible implications all teachers should be aware of: http://blogs.edweek.org/teachers/teaching_now/2012/03/remembering_what_you_read_print_vs_digital_books.html

RESULTS OF JOINT MIGRATION POLICY INSTITUTE AND VANDERBILT UNIVERSITY STUDY

Elaine and I wish to share this piece by reporter Lesli Maxwell, which reports the results of a study which suggests that students who complete ESL courses within 3 years tend to do better academically: http://blogs.edweek.org/edweek/learning-the-language/2012/03/english_learners_who_complete.html

CONFUSION AMONG CALIFORNIA TEACHERS OVER COMMON CORE STANDARDS

Reporter Lesli Maxwell reports that the English-language development teachers in California she has spoken react with bewilderment: http://blogs.edweek.org/edweek/learning-the language/2012/03/common_core_standards_and_ells.html

WHEN AND WHY YOU CHOSE THE TEACHING PROFESSION

If you wish to share the story of the moment when you decided to become a teacher with others, Elaine and I suggest you take a look at the following: http://blogs.edweek.org/teachers/teaching_now/2012/03/when_did_you_know.html

DIGITAL EDUCATION – GO SLOW

By Elaine and Arthur Rubin

We agree that there is much to be said for digital education, but we still think that educators shouldn’t embrace it uncritically. Our reasons:  

1. It has been shown that the 5 senses are a critical component in the learning process and digital tools do not utilize them optimally.  The benefits of holding a book, physically manipulating cards, playing an educational game with, or reading aloud to, others, seeing and hearing facial and vocal clues; these are lost or significantly diminished in the digital classroom.
2. Schools provide environments where the interaction of teachers with students is key to transferring information and skills, and digital education by its very nature reduces the amount of interaction between teacher and student.
3. The various types of spontaneous interaction (i.e., cooperation, collaboration, conversation), are minimized or vanish altogether in the digital classroom.
4. Quality and ease of use are simply missing in too many digital education products.

In short, whatever its merits, technology cannot replicate what a student gains from face-to-face communication.

JOHN SHINDLER ON THE ADVANTAGES OF COOPERATIVE LEARNING

By Elaine and Arthur Rubin

In my last post I discussed the section on competitive learning from John Shindler’s book, Transformative Classroom Learning. Just as interesting is Chapter 12 of the same book, “Effectively Managing the Cooperative Classroom.”

As I’ve already pointed out, the author believes that competition has its place in the classroom, but in this chapter he asserts that cooperative learning “offers a series of benefits that are impossible to achieve by other means…” He lists what he views as its principal advantages: 1) research shows that cooperative learning is better at facilitating student learning than either competitive or independent learning; 2) properly handled, it can “meet more learning style needs more of the time than individualized direct instruction;” 3) it can teach students collaborative skills useful to them later on in their personal and professional lives; 4) as a motivator, it is superior to other types of learning; and 5) it is more effective than other kinds of learning in “building communal bonds, learning conflict resolution skills, learning to consider other’s needs and learning to be an effective team member…”

Shindler cautions, however, that for students to get the most out of cooperative classroom learning, a number of criteria must be met. These are: 1) students must be made to see that the cooperative process has a purpose, “that they [the students] are ‘going somewhere;’” 2) the teacher must emphasize “the quality of the process,” not “the quality of the final product;” 3) cooperative learning activities must be structured in such a way as to maintain group cohesion; 4) expectations must be clear in order to keep students focused and their anxiety levels low; 5) teachers must adopt a long-term approach, not just deal with problems on a day-to-day basis; (6) the teacher must steer his or students in the direction of either increased self-reliance or efficiency; and 7) to increase their feeling of self-worth, students must be allowed to share their accomplishments with their peers.

GAMES AND ACTIVITIES, COMPETITION AND THE AFFECTIVE FILTER HYPOTHESIS

By Elaine and Arthur Rubin

A few decades ago, psychologist Stephen Krashen, Professor Emeritus at the University of Southern California, formulated what he was subsequently to call the Affective Filter Hypothesis. Simply put, this theory holds that factors like anxiety and lack of self-confidence have the potential to hinder language acquisition.  

What is the relationship, if any, between the Affective Filter Hypothesis and competitive games and activities?

John Shindler, in his recent (2009) book, Transformative Classroom Management: Positive Strategies to Engage All Students and Promote a Psychology of Success, distinguishes between what he calls “healthy” and “unhealthy” competition.  Among the characteristics of healthy competition: (1), “the goal is primarily fun;” (2), the competitive aspect is not presented or perceived as “valuable” or “real”; (3), the emphasis is on learning; (3), the competition is brief and high-energy; (4), the competitive exercise has no enduring effects; and (5), all participants believe that they have a plausible chance to win.

Unhealthy competition, on the other hand, is the exact opposite of the healthy variety on each of these points, and can cause anxiety and/or fear of failure. You can see that without mentioning the Affective Filter, Shindler has pointed to some of its components.

Moreover, he writes that having one’s students play a “friendly” game like Jeopardy, Trivia, or Knowledge Bowl can be an interesting and fun way to review content and/or reinforce skills in preparation for a test.  “But,” he writes, “If the outcome of the game becomes part of what is formally graded, the competition goes from the healthy to the unhealthy column.”

In the next blog, we will briefly describe Shindler’s views regarding cooperative learning.

THE CHALLENGE POSED BY ELLS IN SEVEN STATES

A new report has been released by the research arm of the Department of Education, designed to help teachers in Rocky Mountain and Midwestern states  who are unaccustomed to teaching ESL.

You can read the article here: http://blogs.edweek.org/edweek/learning-the-language/2012/02/as_the_number_of_students.html

ARE SUPPORTERS OF COLLEGE EDUCATION ELITIST?

Republican Presidential Candidate Rick Santorum suggests that President Obama’s encouraging young people to pursue a college career has its origins in intellectual snobbery and a desire to indoctrinate them with liberal ideas.

To read the article in its entirety, please go to: http://blogs.edweek.org/edweek/college_bound/2012/02/santorum_claims_obama_college_agenda_is_elitist.html

”STUDENTS LEARN DIFFERENTLY. SO WHY TEST THEM ALL THE SAME?”

In this piece, educator Arthur Goldstein complains that Common Core and other assessment tools fail to take into account the distinctive needs of English language learners. He writes, “Children are not widgets, and not only teachers, but also educational leaders and test designers, need to differentiate.”

To read the article, please go to: http://www.nytimes.com/schoolbook/2012/02/17/students-learn-differently-so-why-test-them-all-the-same?scp=1&sq=Arthur%20Goldstein&st=cse

TOO MUCH EMPHASIS ON HIGH STAKES TESTING

Why We Need to Differentiate Between Assessment & Testing

Posted by Peter DeWitt on December 8, 2011

Educator DeWitt maintains that assessment, both formal and informal, formative and summative, is a necessity to differentiated instruction. It goes on every day, and is needed to understand student strength and weaknesses. On the other hand, high stakes testing, intended as summative testing, receives a disproportionate amount of attention nowadays, focuses only on the subjects being tested. It can have a number of negative effects, the worst perhaps being that it attempts to put all students on a path that they simply cannot handle. Says Dewitt bluntly, “Our high stakes testing era is ruining education.”

To read the article, please go to: http://blogs.edweek.org/edweek/finding_common_ground/2011/12/why_we_need_to_differentiate_between_assessment_testing.html

WANTED: LATINO TEACHERS

By Sandra Lilley on December 05, 2011

Lilley reports that Teach for America believes that the presence of more Latino teachers in the classroom can help close the achievement gap.

For article go to: http://www.educationnation.com/index.cfm?objectid=1B04C9EE-1F57-11E1-8E80000C296BA163

UPCOMING ANNUAL CATESOL CONFERENCE

By Elaine-Kirn Rubin and Arthur Rubin

We at Authors & Editors want to announce this year’s annual CATESOL Conference, which will meet from April 12 to April 15. The event will be held at the Marriott City Central and the Convention Center in Oakland. (To learn more, please go to www.catesol.com  and click on “conference” or “annual”). 

We plan to attend and make a presentation, in which we will discuss our company’s unique philosophy, goals and product offerings.  

If you click on the link below and submit your email address and name, you will have the opportunity to obtain at no cost a sample of our educational materials (e.g., a Little Book of Big Ideas, a lesson, or a handout from a previous presentation).

WHAT’S REALLY WRONG WITH OUR SCHOOLS?

By Elaine-Kirn Rubin and Arthur Rubin

In a nutshell:

Many of our teachers are simply OVERWHELMED – some even driven to distraction - and thus unable to deliver the high quality education they desire to provide, and are capable of providing, to their students.

What's going on here? Too many initiatives - initiatives that come and go faster than they can be integrated into school programs. Constantly changing policies, with more and more forms to fill out. The introduction of new educational technologies that may or may not be ready for prime time.  Excessive weight placed on test results. All this results in less time and energy spent on providing each child with a learning experience suitable to his or her distinctive needs.  So much for the Whole Child approach!

As if all of this weren’t bad enough, we’ve added more students per classroom:  20, 30, sometimes even 40 more, many of whom are not native speakers, vary widely in their preparedness for learning, often come from troubled homes and communities – and without enough professional and support staff to adequately help them.

Is it any wonder that policy-makers, educators, parents, and students themselves have been throwing up their hands in despair?  For the two of us, however, what’s even more amazing is that the schools are performing as well as they are.  

Our advice? Reduce the number of initiatives. Create stability. Allow time for everyone involved to catch their breaths, only moving forward in baby steps - in other words, what we all refer to as the “continual improvement process.” Numerous public agencies have succeeded in doing this. Why not the schools?

WRITER DISCUSSES THE ROLE OF FAMILIES IN ADDRESSING THE DROP-OUT RATE

In this piece, Nora Fleming draws attention to a new toolkit, the work of the Harvard Family Research Project and United Way Worldwide, which describes how to identify students at risk of dropping out and suggests ways to involve parents and the community in matters related to academic achievement. The toolkit also provides case studies of efforts to involve parents and community members, as well as listing the obstacles to such participation; examples include language and insufficient information.

http://blogs.edweek.org/edweek/beyond_schools/2011/12/family_engagement_key_in_preventing_high_school_dropout.html

CALL FOR A CRUSADE

Educator Anthony Cody suggests that teachers, with their strength in numbers and influence, should ally themselves with the rest of the middle class in defending the nation’s beleaguered educational system. The writer lists the principles which he believes should unite such a crusade. He asks, “Can we, as teachers, raise our voices together so as to create some accountability for those who claim to represent us?”

 http://blogs.edweek.org/teachers/living-in-dialogue/2011/12/teacher_power_the_one_percent.html

TEACHING, LEARNING AND IMPROVING LANGUAGE SKILLS (continued from the preceding blog).

By Elaine-Kirn Rubin and Arthur Rubin

Below are more ways to teach, learn, or improve language competence:

Interact with others who have the same or complementary educational goals. If you can afford it, by all means hire a tutor or mentor; if not, find ways to learn from other learners.  Join—or drop in and out of—real-world and/or virtual meet-ups, as well as chat sites that engage speakers, teachers, and/or learners of your targeted language. In addition, forming relationships with participants who live/work nearby or in locations you travel to can be mutually conducive to learning more about a language or language ed. Relax, focus, and enjoy the relevant processes and their benefits.

Listen to the experts on how best to learn or teach a language. Below are some of the recommendations most frequently offered on the most valued and valuable language-education websites:

• Don’t make excuses for yourself (e.g., perceived limitations such as  age, lack of time, embarrassment). Adopt a positive attitude about language learning and draw on it for the benefit of yourself and other learners.   

• Do all you can to immerse yourself in the language that you are trying to master.

• Try to learn pronunciation, sentence structure and vocabulary not only through formal study, but from what you see and hear around you.  Be sure to check the accuracy of what you have learned with those proficient in the language you are studying.

• Don’t rely on teachers to force you to learn. Instead, take responsibility for your own language growth by choosing content of interest to yourself and others. Again, relax and enjoy yourself; try to get the optimal benefit from your own innate motivation or passion and use it to connect with, and help others.                                                                

TEACHING, LEARNING AND IMPROVING LANGUAGE SKILLS

By Elaine-Kirn Rubin and Arthur Rubin

Are you a professional educator – teacher, administrator, or program coordinator? Or are you just someone who wants to help others – your children, parents, or relatives – with their language skills? Or do you want to improve your own proficiency?

Whichever it is, you should know that there are many ways, ranging from the formally structured to the casually intuitive, to teach, learn, or improve language competence. And they are endlessly adaptable to individual circumstances.  

• Enroll in a language or teacher-training course or program. Such opportunities are available at a public or private school, or community site with a physical location.  Try hard to be regular in your attendance, participate fully—including getting your questions answered and requesting whatever you need.  Complete ALL assigned tasks and homework, study the available materials and strive to make the most effective use of the related resources, both hard copy and online.  REMAIN COMMITTED UNTIL THE END OF THE COURSE OF STUDY.
• Purchase or borrow standard textbooks or perhaps experimental materials – preferably accompanied with audio, visual, video and/or online ancillaries. Use them as instructed, step by step; make note of how the suggested procedures work for you and others.
•  Alternatively, devise your own methods or techniques for presentation, comprehension checks, logistics, individual and interactive practice, communicative expression and assessment of progress or mastery.  Be sure to cover the essentials, either at optimal speed for everyone involved, or at a customized pace for each person or group, depending on the circumstances. Draw on other aspects of the curriculum and materials to keep everyone engaged, motivated and moving forward. Value face-to-face learning; resist wasting time on petty procedural matters. Pay careful scrutiny to how each experiment serves educators and students alike, then make the necessary tweaks.
• Make effective use of the endless variety of free or low-cost language curricula and materials available on the Internet. Among them: informational articles and “how-to” advice; comprehensive, sequenced courses at specified levels of difficulty; self-contained skills lessons; visual worksheets to print out, copy, and distribute; audio segments accompanied by pictures/text; streaming video episodes with story lines; hands-on, multi-media or interactive activities; instructional aids such as vocabulary lists or talking glossaries; puzzles to solve and games to play; and reference lists of language items to teach or learn.  These may be samples/demos of commercial programs, archived collections from public-domain or government sites, originally televised public broadcasting serials, freebie language-learning content and tools; and so on.  Try out some suggested links, too.

We have more to say on this topic but have run out of space. To learn more, please read our next blog.

FORMATS AND MEDIA TO SUIT DIFFERENT LEARNING STYLES AND KEEP STUDENTS INTERESTED

By Elaine-Kirn Rubin and Arthur Rubin

In contrast to didactic, teacher-centered classroom methodologies, experiential education encourages and enables students to become actively involved in the learning process. Variety is critical to the success of this approach because individuals differ in their primary learning styles, the modes of receiving or processing stimuli that work best for them. Using materials and techniques designed to fit auditory, visual, kinesthetic, and/or tactile learning styles, whether simultaneously or sequentially, make it much more likely that the learning process will be successful.  

Of course, introducing variety can also help prevent learners from tuning out. There are a number of available product formats that have been shown to work optimally in almost all teaching/learning scenarios, e.g., for individuals and groups, short or long-term study sessions.

Practically-oriented student textbooks, worktexts and workbooks not only tell readers what they need to know but also guide them in putting what they learn to best use. These materials tend to begin with pedagogical explanations and examples, then provide controlled exercises to illustrate salient points, move on with communicative or expressive practice exercises, and end with summaries and “beyond-the-text” suggestions. Manuals that target specific sub-skills such as pronunciation, spelling, or vocabulary usually contain tasks to complete, get feedback on and review.

LANGUAGE FOCUS – SIMPLE TO COMPLEX

By Elaine-Kirn Rubin and Arthur Rubin

Infants produce language at its most elementary - crying sounds like “neeeh,” “owhh,” “hhhe-e-e-h,” “eairrr” and “waaaaa!”  Little by little, they learn to understand the sounds made by others, then the sounds combined into actual words and finally, can grasp the meanings of phrases and sentences in their native language; by their very nature, human beings begin with the basics, gradually rising to levels of ever greater complexity.  

Language education usually follows this pattern. Subject to the limitations and/or requirements of its overriding philosophy or approach, a language course or curriculum designed for beginners is likely to begin with aural/oral lessons regarding sounds - phonemic awareness and pronunciation of commonly used words.  Vocabulary acquisition begins early and continues throughout the language-learning process. Progressing from basic through intermediate to advanced levels of fluency requires attention to grammatical forms, patterns, and rules, as learners come to comprehend and produce connected discourse in conversations, discussions, presentations and other forms of oral communication.

Instruction in written English can start with the English alphabet, usually with the names and order of the 26 letters. The next step would be phonics, (the correlations between the printed letters and the 40 or more sounds they represent), followed by decoding when reading and spelling when writing, and then by learning to read for meaning and to write with clarity. The process doesn’t, however, end there. For most people, language acquisition and improvement never ends.