Mindful Ed

I was recently asked this following question: Can educators / do educators transfer effective literacy strategies to support student achievement in numeracy? My initial response: Of course!   However describing what this looks likes, sounds like, even feels like in the classroom is a more challenging of a task.  As described by Fiore, LeBar, & Scott-Dunne (2014) in the  4 Roles of the Numerate Learner , it begins with building relationships and cultivating a classroom community. This transcends content areas and provides the foundation for learning. Daily community circles where students have the opportunity to share their thinking and perspectives is central. Students begin to recognize that it is a safe place to share and connect. They take on the role of listener and speaker and feel their way through these roles.  In community circle, we share our triumphs and our failures, each equally celebrated knowing that we learn the most through our...

“Students need both content knowledge and skills to apply and transform their knowledge for useful and creative purposes and to keep learning as content and circumstances change”. (Bellanca & Brandt, 2010, forward, xxiii) “Thus, TPK requires a forward-looking, creative, and open-minded seeking of technology use, not for its own sake but for the sake of advancing student learning and understanding”. (Koehler & Mishra, 2009, p.66) "...the development of school leaders is a critical component in system building if schools are to be places in which teachers learn, teaching and learning are powerfully planned and delivered, students achieve and leadership is widely distributed". (Bush and Jackson, 2002, p. 418) "Transformational leaders who collectively develop and share a clear vision may boost followers' innovativeness by serving as role models in the development and implementation of innovations, clarifying challenges for the school's future and t...

Program Goals: 1.  Articulate an advanced and integrated conceptual understanding of the relationship between theory, practice, and reflection. 4.  Make connections among social, personal and community responsibilities and intellectual life in ways that advance knowledge in the area of education. “With 21st century skills, students will be prepared to think, learn, work, solve problems, communicate, collaborate, and contribute effectively throughout their lives.” (Bellanca and Brandt, 2010, p. xx) "Transformational leaders who collectively develop and share a clear vision may boost followers' innovativeness by serving as role models in the development and implementation of innovations, clarifying challenges for the school's future and the importance of developing new knowledge and practice, pointing out opportunities for school improvement through innovation, and motivating team members by envisioning an attractive future for the school." (Moolen...

Program Goal: 3.  Apply an advanced understanding of learning and cognition theories such that diverse learning outcomes and educational needs for all students are addressed. Play is often talked about as if it were a relief from serious learning. But for children, play is serious learning. Play is really the work of childhood. ~ Fred Rogers ~ “Play sessions help children develop the self-understanding, self-acceptance, personal power, self-control, and self-discipline that assist them in accomplishing academic, social, and personal goals.” (Robinson et al., 2007, p.21) "Students who collaborate to solve problems become aware of new ways that knowledge can be used and combined, which forms new synaptic connections. Further, problem based learning is apt to appeal to students’ motivation and engender emotional involvement, which also can create more extensive neural networks.” (Schunk, 2012, p.66) How does the journey of our students take shape?...

Program Goal: 2. Engage in the analysis and dissemination of education-related research. “Theory and practice are inseparable in doing qualitative research. As we have shown, researchers generate theory from their data through a complex process of warranting their claims.”  (Freeman et al., 2007, p. 29)  ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ “Determining why some high-ability students demonstrate low levels of achievement is difficult because underachievement occurs for many different reasons. However, practitioners must explore the causes of students’ underachievement if they plan to help these children.”  (Reis & McCoach, 2002, p. 115)  Twice-Exceptional Learners' Perspectives on Effective Learning Strategies   “The most preferred strategies included choice/flexibility in learning, assessment, and pace; using compensatory strategies and strengths to circumvent...