Learning and Teaching

• A guide to effective team teaching
  Two California teachers share their insights on team teaching in this blog post. High-school teachers Mike Fauteux and Rose Zapata say it's important to give and receive feedback. They suggest constructive criticism based on observation and data -- rather than subjective comments. It also is important to focus comments on the lessons and student achievement, rather than the teacher or a specific student, they say. Edutopia.org/Betty Ray's blog (5/27)

• Activities to celebrate students' reading accomplishments
  Sixth-grade language arts teacher Donalyn Miller offers suggestions for student-driven projects to help close out the school year and prepare students for summer reading. Index cards listing book recommendations -- by students, for students -- are posted on the classroom Recommendation Wall, while student-designed surveys and a Title Tally record how many books have been read and recognize students' reading habits and accomplishments. Education Week/The Book Whisperer blog (5/28)

• Other News

• Students receive hands-on archeology lesson in historic home
  The Times-Picayune (New Orleans) (5/29)

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Professional Leadership

• Teachers to have online resource to implement common standards
  The Council of Chief State School Officers and five states that have adopted the Common Core State Standards will help design and test a resource for teachers implementing the new standards. The free open-source online platform will allow teachers to create and download resources, while also allowing them to access tools and a network of teachers. The initiative was launched amid concerns from teachers that they would not get the support they need to implement the standards. Education Week/Teacher Beat blog (5/27)

• Informal EdCamps draw teachers for professional development
  A growing number of EdCamps -- voluntary, teacher-driven conferences -- are being held across the country, drawing teachers to participate in a less-structured form of professional development than districts typically offer. The camps are free and do not have keynote speakers, or sometimes schedules, but teachers are allowed to sign up and speak about topics that interest them. "They're there to share and to learn. That collaborative spirit of the conference really makes it stand apart from anything else I've ever attended," Philadelphia teacher Meenoo Rami said. The Philadelphia Inquirer (5/30)

Technology in the Classroom

• Can virtual simulations take the place of live dissections?
  A California high school is the first in the country to replace animal dissections with virtual simulations for all of its students. Rancho Verde High School will receive free software -- provided by educators concerned about animal rights -- in exchange for a promise to stop the animal dissections for at least five years. Supporters say the simulations are more cost-effective, safer, allow more student involvement and help protect amphibian species from extinction. However, others maintain that students benefit more from the live dissections. The Press-Enterprise (Riverside, Calif.) (free registration) (5/30)

Hot Topics

Top five news stories selected by ASCD SmartBrief readers in the past week.

• Creating an environment for successful instructional coaching (Edutopia.org)

• A simplified approach to teaching grammar (Edutopia.org)

• Third round of Race to the Top to include nine states (Reuters)

• How to close out the last days of school in a positive way (Edutopia.org)

• Countering 5 misconceptions concerning U.S. schools (The Washington Post)

• Results based on number of times each story was clicked by readers.

The Whole Child

• Researchers to study effects of teacher stress on the classroom
  Researchers at the University of Houston are about to embark on a three-year study looking at how chronic stress among middle-school teachers can affect the classroom, including teachers' well-being and student performance. Results from a preliminary pilot study showed that educators older than 55 were better able to manage their stress, suggesting a scenario where veteran teachers could be paired with newer educators in the classroom. Houston Chronicle (5/30)

• Mobile health clinic serves uninsured, underinsured children
  The Presbyterian Hospital's Community Care Cruiser, a mobile children's clinic that has at least five staff members -- including a nurse, a nurse practitioner and a social worker -- aims to provide care primarily for uninsured or underinsured children from birth to age 17. Since its inception in November 2007, the clinic has accommodated 5,513 patient visits and vaccinated more than 7,500 children. The Charlotte Observer (N.C.) (5/30)

• Other News

• Team sports, exercise reduce use of marijuana, tobacco in teens
  Reuters (5/30)

• Certain computer games may help curb obesity, experts say
  TVNZ (New Zealand) (5/31)

Policy Watch

• Stakeholders debate whether Detroit Public Schools can be saved
  A plan to overhaul Detroit Public Schools by closing 20 campuses and converting up to 45 to charters has some officials asking whether the district's public schools are worth saving. Some say many top-performing Detroit schools are going unrecognized and unsupported. However, others say the school system as a whole is underserving its students, and would like to see public schools replaced completely by independently run charters. Detroit Free Press (5/30)

• Mathews: All students could benefit from honors courses
  Despite a national trend toward fewer academic tracks, parents in Fairfax County, Va., are seeking to preserve a three-track school system that allows students to choose from basic, honors and Advanced Placement/International Baccalaureate classes. However, education journalist Jay Mathews advocates a scenario where just the basic option -- rather than the honors option -- is eliminated, and all students are held to a higher standard and given a better chance to succeed in school and life. The Washington Post/Class Struggle blog (5/29)

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In the Field

• Some students receive special lessons on Memorial Day
  School was in session Monday for a few districts in the Dallas area, where bad weather days necessitated a make-up day for students. One middle school dedicated the day's lessons to the commemoration of the Memorial Day holiday, decorating the halls and classrooms in red, white and blue, and one teacher who served in the Marines wore his fatigues to school. "It's a great opportunity for our students to learn the true meaning of Memorial Day," principal Susanna Ramirez said. The Dallas Morning News (free content) (5/30)

ASCD News

• ASCD Summer Boot Camp webinar series commences June 14
  Join Lisa Dabbs, education coach and founder of the Twitter #ntchat for new and pre-service teachers, as she kicks off ASCD's summer webinar series at 3 p.m. EDT on June 14. Find out which strategies for success belong in your new teacher's toolkit and learn how to mold any classroom into an environment fit for 21st-century learners. Continue your back-to-school training throughout the summer months with a full lineup of webinar programs intended for educators of all experience levels.
  
  • Register for Dabbs' The New Teacher Tool Kit webinar. 
  • View the full ASCD Summer Boot Camp webinar lineup.
  

• Enjoy the perks of volunteering at ASCD's Summer Conference in Boston
  Take a deep dive into top approaches to teaching and learning -- differentiated instruction, Understanding by Design, What Works in Schools and curriculum mapping -- and reap all the benefits of being an ASCD conference volunteer at this year's ASCD Summer Conference, July 1 to 3. Learn more about volunteer duties and benefits -- like vouchers that can be applied toward any ASCD Professional Development Institute or conference in the coming year -- on the ASCD.org website. Visit the volunteer page.

PK-12 Jobs in Private/Independent Schools in the South Southern Teachers Agency Multiple Locations, United States Principals Grande Yellowhead Public School Division No. 77 Edsosn, Alberta and Hinton, Alberta, Canada Head of Instructional Systems Bridge International Academies Worldwide, NY K-12 School Teacher The International Educator Worldwide, DC Teachers - Think Global School - Mandarin, Science, Creative Arts Think Global School - International Schools Services Princeton, NJ Manager of Curriculum and Instruction VOICE Charter School Queens, NY Instructional Coaches - English, Math, Special Ed and ELD San Francisco Unified School District San Francisco, CA Elementary Principal Vacancies (2) Charlottesville City Schools Charlottesville, VA Program Administrator for Virtual Education Charlottesville City Schools Charlottesville, VA District Superintendent Oxnard Union High School District Oxnard, CA Chicago Area & Southern CA - Account Executives MIND Research Institute Chicago, IL Assistant Principals Green Dot Public Schools Los Angeles, CA Vice President of Curriculum & Instruction Connections Education Baltimore, MD Principal Southwest Leadership Academy Charter School Philadelphia, PA Director of Research and Assessment Connections Education Baltimore, MD Administrators-in-Residence (2011-12) Green Dot Public Schools Los Angeles, CA Area Superintendent Fulton County Schools Atlanta, GA Turnaround Principals-Elem/HS Academy of Urban School Leadership Chicago, IL Principal, Lewis Elementary Dual Language Magnet School Red Clay Consolidated School District Wilmington, DE Dean-Milwaukee Scholars Charter School (School Leadership) National Heritage Academies Milwaukee, WI

SmartQuote

If you have no confidence in self, you are twice defeated in the race of life. With confidence, you have won even before you have started." --Marcus Garvey, Jamaican publisher, journalist, entrepreneur and orator