|
July 2009
| Featured Content |
|
Translate research into results
Come to McREL this summer for professional development that makes a difference. Choose from among sessions for both teachers and leaders, held in our Denver facilities.
Sessions for teachers
Sessions for leaders
|
| Join Our List |
 |
| Quick Links |
|
|
| Stay Connected |
 |
| Contact Us |
Mid-continent Research for Education & Learning
4601 DTC Blvd., Suite 500
Denver, CO 80237
303.337.0990 (Phone)
303.337.3005 (Fax)
www.mcrel.org
info@mcrel.org
| | |
We can help! McREL offers individually tailored services that can help you integrate technology into the classroom effectively, starting right now. We've combined several of our popular services into customized packages that meet the requirements of the EETT grant program.
Revive your mathematics instruction
July 27–29, 2009
Denver, Colo.
Learn strategies and identify resources that increase student understanding and promote enthusiasm for learning mathematics. Register for all three days, or select the topics that are most relevant to your needs:
- Assessment for Instruction and Student Learning
- Increasing Mathematical Understanding Through Literacy
- Using Technology in the Elementary Mathematics Classroom
|
|
What we know about service learning suggests that it can help keep students in school, although little research has examined the relationship between service learning and graduation rates. Service learning connects community service with the academic curriculum and provides the learning opportunities that students tell us they want to have in school. Despite this, however, only 16 percent of students say that their schools offer service learning opportunities.
The Troops for Teachers program helps former soldiers find a new career in the classroom. The majority of the teachers in the program are men and nearly half are minorities. Studies have shown that students perform better in reading and mathematics when taught by teachers in the program.
A new report from the Carnegie Corporation of New York suggests that mathematics and science instruction must improve drastically for America to compete in the 21st century, and the authors suggest ways to achieve that goal. The keys to success, they say, are establishing high assessment standards in mathematics and science across all 50 states and aggressively recruiting and supporting teachers.
St. Petersburg Times (Tampa Bay, Fla.)
A new report from Stanford University's Center for Research on Education Outcomes finds that, on average, charter school students lag behind students in traditional public schools, with black and Hispanic students performing even worse. Analyzing standardized test results from 2,400 charter schools in 15 states and the District of Columbia, this report is currently the most in-depth look at charter schools available.
Research from Johns Hopkins University, the University of Tennessee, and the University of Virginia finds that almost all students lose 2 months of math skills during the summer months. Students from low-income homes lose two to three months of reading skills, while middle-class students actually improve their reading skills.
|
|
This booklet explains why writing belongs in mathematics classrooms, describes the existing role of writing in a mathematics curriculum, and provides strategies and ideas that can be put into practice immediately.
Using Writing in Mathematics to Deepen Student Learning is available for purchase from McREL in sets of 10 for $40.
|
|
Last year, research was published that implied that Reading First did not have an impact on student achievement. This policy brief from MDRC suggests that the true impacts of Reading First were masked because many schools were beginning to use similar strategies to improve literacy. In addition, the 10 minutes per day of additional instructional time may have been too little to bring about the desired results.
Education Week and the Editorial Projects in Education Research Center
Graduation rates have improved over the past decade, according to a new report from Education Week and the Editorial Projects in Education Research Center. Despite the improvement, however, three in ten high school students do not earn a diploma. The report also notes that there is no agreement on what constitutes college readiness.
Center on Education Policy (CEP)
Contrary to common belief, NCLB does not sacrifice the needs of the high- and low-achieving students to focus on the needs of the average student, according to a new report from CEP. The report found that most states saw improvement in student achievement across the basic, proficient, and advanced levels.
National Center for Education Statistics
Data from the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) shows that the achievement gap between black and white students has declined slightly over the last few decades. The achievement gap still exists, however, and not all states have seen the same level of decline.
|
|
McREL is offering several Webinars this August and September to afterschool practitioners nationwide.
Each Webinar costs $4900 per connection, and there is no limit to the number of people who can participate.
|
|
Changing Schools, the magazine for educators published by McREL, won a Distinguished Achievement Award from the Association of Educational Publishers (AEP).
The magazine offers readers information about current education issues and research. For a free subscription to Changing Schools, please visit www.mcrel.org/free-sources.
| |
| |
