Free Resources on Educational Issues and Teaching Trends
Pre-teach before Assessment
Even though we teachers like to think that we are “kings and queens of our own castles,” we are not immune to outside influences. As public servants, what we do in the classroom is impacted by political, economic, and social change. For better or worse, we live in a democracy.
In addition to our roles as public servants, we are also research scientists. More precisely, we are social scientists with a complex and evolving laboratory of students, parents, administration, and teaching colleagues.
As servants and scientists, educational issues and teaching trends affect who we are and how we teach more than many of us like to admit. The veteran teachers who roll their collective eyes and say “What comes around, goes around” know a thing or two. They know that sometimes the tail wags the dog-that things go on that determine what we do as professional educators. Now, change is good. But change with perspective and judgment is better.
Following are articles and practical resources regarding educational issues and teaching trends from the Pennington Publishing Blog. Also, check out the quality instructional programs and resources offered by Pennington Publishing.
Educational Issues and Teaching Trends
Have you heard of this new font, developed to increase reading comprehension? Check out my take on this latest and greatest gimmick from the University of Melbourne.
Don’t Rely on Rigor and Relevance
https://blog.penningtonpublishing.com/reading/don’t-rely-on-rigor-and-relevance/
As a precursor to the current economic crisis, the educational leadership trend was the Rigor and Relevance Movement. Popularized over the last decade by Bill Daggett and the International Center for Leadership in Education, with concurrent support from the Institute of Education Sciences (the federal research agency arm of the U.S. Department of Education), the movement has swept the nation. Largely as a result of historical timing, the Rigor and Relevance (and now, relationships) Movement has become the de facto solution to the ills of public education. A critique of this movement points out a few noteworthy deficits in philosophy and pedagogy.
Curricular Maps for Grades 4, 5, 6. 7, and 8
https://blog.penningtonpublishing.com/grammar_mechanics/curricular-maps-for-grades-4-5-6-7-and-8/
Common Core Literalism
https://blog.penningtonpublishing.com/reading/common-core-literalism/
Some educators are taking the Common Core State Standards (CCSS) in a wooden literal sense: not at all in the ways that the Common Core authors intended the Standards to be used. The CCSS authors trust administrators, teachers, and publishers to exercise some judgment regarding the implementation of the Standards. This is especially true with necessary prerequisite skills and with remediation. The Standards were not intended as educational straight-jackets.
Misleading Educational Malpractice
https://blog.penningtonpublishing.com/reading/misleading-educational-malpractice/
Response to Intervention and the Common Core
https://blog.penningtonpublishing.com/reading/common-core-di-rti-and-ell/
RTI (Response to Intervention), ELL, ESL, and ELD (English Language Development), and DI (Differentiated/Individualized Instruction), instructional strategies are all validated in the Common Core State Standards. Common Core writers have clearly gone out of their way to assure educators that the Standards establish the what, but not the how of instruction.
School Absence Excuses
https://blog.penningtonpublishing.com/reading/school-absence-excuses/
Teacher Hygee
https://blog.penningtonpublishing.com/reading/teacher-hygge/
Summer Mindfulness
https://blog.penningtonpublishing.com/reading/summer-teacher-mindfulness/
Crazy Reading Fads
https://blog.penningtonpublishing.com/reading/crazy-reading-fads/
As an MA reading specialist, I’ve seen some strange remedial reading fads come and go over the years. Much like new weight loss products, each new fad looks enticing and promising. Let’s face it. Everyone wants the magic reading pill that will transform poor readers into skillful readers overnight.
Strange, but True: “Stuffed Animals Increase Reading Levels”
According to Riddering, students were given a stuffed animal as a “reading buddy” and were encouraged to read to their buddy. Because of this method, reading scores increased greatly.
“One school in particular saw their sixth grade reading levels go from just 47 percent to 93 percent,” Riddering said. “That’s huge success!”
Teacher Talk
https://blog.penningtonpublishing.com/reading/teacher-talk-top-60/
Educational Fads: What Goes Around Comes Around
https://blog.penningtonpublishing.com/reading/educational-fads-what-goes-around-comes-around/
Teaching is, by its very nature, experimental. We teachers are just as susceptible to snake-oil sales pitches, fads, and cultural pressures as any professionals. Educational fads seem to come and go. Teachers need to learn to “crap detectors” to avoid some of the pitfalls of educational bandwagoning and experimentation.
Assessment-based Re-teaching
https://blog.penningtonpublishing.com/reading/assessment-based-re-teaching/
- It just hit me. I cared more about the quality of what I taught and how I taught it, than what the students needed to learn and if the students learned it. The focus isn’t a distinction without a difference. It’s a game-changer. If you are willing to re-teach what you’ve already taught (and not yet taught) this year, check out my 14 FREE diagnostic ELA and reading assessments with recording matrices. These quick, comprehensive, whole-class tests will give you teachable data to re-teach students what they need.
Mastery Learning in RtI
https://blog.penningtonpublishing.com/reading/mastery-learning-in-rti/
What if a shaky foundation is what we’re dealing with now? We can’t do anything about the past. Teachers can start playing the blame game and complain that we’re stuck teaching reading to students who missed key foundational components, such as phonics. All-too-often, response to intervention teachers are ignoring shaky foundations and are trying to layer on survival skills without fixing the real problems. Instead, teachers should re-build the foundation. Teachers can figure out what is missing in the individual student skill-sets and fill the gaps… this time with mastery learning. Get Pennington Publishing’s set of diagnostic reading assessments absolutely FREE with the link in this article.
Pre-teach before Assessment
https://blog.penningtonpublishing.com/reading/pre-teach-before-assessment/
Call it what you wish: summer brain-drain, poor retention, a learning disability, problem with learning styles, developmental delay, or lack of motivation or practice… some students just seem to forget what they have learned before. Good assessments catch students at their best. That’s why it makes sense to pre-teach before teachers assess to help students retrieve prior knowledge and get the assessment results that will help us design efficient instruction.
More Articles, Free Resources, and Teaching Tips from the Pennington Publishing Blog
English-Language Arts and Reading Intervention Articles and Resources
Bookmark and check back often for new articles and free ELA/reading resources from Pennington Publishing.
- English-language Arts Standards
- English-language Arts Instruction
- Essay Strategies
- The Writing Process/Writers Workshop
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- Independent Reading
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- Educational Issues and Teaching Trends
- Developmental Characteristics
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- Close Reading
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Pennington Publishing’s mission is to provide the finest in assessment-based ELA and reading intervention resources for grades 4‒high school teachers. Mark Pennington is the author of two Standards-aligned programs: TEACHING ESSAYS BUNDLE and Grammar, Mechanics, Spelling, and Vocabulary . Mark’s comprehensive Teaching Reading Strategies and the accompanying Sam and Friends Guided Reading Phonics Books help struggling readers significantly improve their reading skills in a full-year or half-year intensive reading intervention program. Make sure to check out Pennington Publishing’s free ELA and reading assessments to help you pinpoint grammar, usage, mechanics, spelling, and reading deficits.
Grammar/Mechanics, Literacy Centers, Reading, Spelling/Vocabulary, Study Skills, Writing