Perfecting the Practice

By Mariah Lucas
Posted on 4/8/2019 - 4 minute read

There is a divided stance between teachers when it comes to social media. Some teachers choose to avoid it altogether, while other teachers use it to connect with family, friends and former students. Social media is a taboo subject that seems to surface in a negative light.

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By Thomas Cooper
Posted on 3/22/2019 - 4 minute read

Something I still well remember from an early methods class was a professor lamenting schools being forced to devise too many guidelines, policies, and regulations to monitor student behavior.   Her contention was schools were losing what was the essence of their focus – providing an engaging and rich learning environment – in lieu of coming up with too many rules to control student behavior.

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By Lori Jaeger
Posted on 3/14/2019 - 3 minute read

Teachers seek a wide variety of information about their students in the first few weeks of the school year. This information relates to student characteristics such as content knowledge, cultural and linguistic background, social, emotional and physical development, interests, and overall health. Information about these and other characteristics may come from a variety of resources or practices such as surveys, observations, conferences, prior teachers and other assessments. The role of pre-assessment whether formal or informal to gain an understanding of what your students know, understand, and are able to do, is crucial in preparing for instruction. It enables teachers to modify learning activities based on differences and special needs of students. Pre-assessment practices set the stage for how well students will behave, attend, and learn throughout the school year.

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By Dr. Jake Hollatz
Posted on 3/14/2019 - 3 minute read

Take a good look at the faces in your classroom.  Will one of those bright-eyed students be a teacher or principal?  Our state faces a dwindling number of individuals who desire to pursue educational professions. Difficult circumstances, lack of adequate resources and the rising cost of living all put strains on the education profession pipeline. Though the need for competent teachers is evident, the simple truth is as a teacher you can create a classroom environment and support a school culture to spur others on to the noble profession of teaching!

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By Blanca Quiroz, Ed.D.
Posted on 3/14/2019 - 4 minute read

Conversations strengthen the bond of your loving relationship and this is the best way to help them develop roots and wings to succeed in the new society. As immigrants, sometimes we lose our history, our traditions, our culture, even our language and extended families, but we can’t afford to lose our relationship with our children. Talk with them!

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By A.Y. “Fred” Ramirez, Ph.D.
Posted on 3/11/2019 - 6 minute read

The student teachers were told to think about this same question as they wrote out their lesson plans, “So what?” I told them I would be asking each of them “So what” after observing their teaching practices with students.

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By Michael Schulteis
Posted on 3/10/2019 - 5 minute read

As a part of my sabbatical project from Concordia University Irvine, my family and I had the opportunity to live and teach for one year in Shanghai, China.  It is from that experience and continuing study that I will be speaking. Because one year is a short time, I cannot say with any confidence that I am an expert at expatriate living, but I can give you a glimpse into a possible avenue for teaching.

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By Thomas Cooper
Posted on 3/1/2019 - 4 minute read

As a lifelong educator with experience as a classroom teacher in grades K – 8, a site administrator, an adjunct faculty member, and now a program director, there have been a wealth of valuable insights that have given me a greater breadth and depth of understanding, which I will collectively call–This Much I know Is True.  In essence they are the core foundations instrumental in shaping my pedagogical practice and leadership philosophy.

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By Tim Brooks, Rich Montgomery and Robert Miller
Posted on 2/27/2019 - 2 minute read

Think of your day as a leader. Break it down. What do you spend most of your time doing? My guess is the ratio is similar to mine. You have multiple meetings scheduled where you will collaborate with colleagues around a variety of challenges or proactive strategies for the success of the organization. You will will spend time returning phone calls and responding to more emails than you realize or ever thought possible (if we actually counted them). And the day blows by. Your efforts contributed to the greater good and provided a high level of customer service to those who contacted you.

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By Tim Brooks, Rich Montgomery and Robert Miller
Posted on 2/26/2019 - 6 minute read

Think of your day as a school personnel administrator. Break it down. As a Human
Resources leader, where are you spending the majority of your minutes, hours and days?
Hopping from one meeting to the next; responding to a plethora of email requests; constantly navigating difficult conversations; investigating this; negotiating that… all the while, making literally a thousand decisions before 5:00pm.

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