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How John Gets All Students to Speak English In High School
I have been working with high schools with high percentages of English Learners. In many classrooms, lessons were being taught in English and then retaught in Spanish. The English Learners did not participate in the English lesson as they waited for the Spanish version, and they ended up using any English while in class. I…
All Students Speak English
I have been working with schools with very high percentages of English Learners. Classes were being taught in English and then retaught in Spanish. Were the English Learners using any English? No, they sat and waited for the Spanish translations. When I started my rounds of K to 12 Explicit Direct Instruction demo lessons, I…
A New Take on Classroom Observations
“There are two types of Principals. One who focuses on Operations or one who focuses on Instruction. You want to be an Instructional Leader if you want to change instruction and ultimately classroom results.” –John Hollingsworth, Co-Author of Explicit Direct Instruction Administrators Can Become More Effective Instructional Leaders Instructional Leadership programs usually involve a series…
The Death of Homework
How Chat AI will end homework and make classroom instruction more important Let’s begin with the purpose of homework; Educators assign homework for different reasons and purposes. Homework is assigned either as practice, preparation, extension, or integration of grade-level skills and concepts. Practice Homework reinforces learning from the skills and concepts already taught in the classroom.…
Learning Objectives vs Standards
Learning ObjectivesvsStandards Standards are often confused with Learning Objectives. Standards are the content and skills students need to know by the end of a school year. Learning Objectives are the content and skills students need to know by the end of a lesson. Perhaps most importantly, a Learning Objective defines the purpose of the lesson,…
Expert Teachers vs. Experienced Teachers: What’s the Difference
Expert Teachers vs. Experienced TeachersWhat’s the Difference? In John Hattie’s 2012 book, Visible Learning for Teachers, he makes the statement that Expert Teachers are different from Experienced Teachers – and he backs it up with some research. Let’s take a look at the differences and then point out ways to develop more expertise. Schools ValueInspired…
The Left and Right Hand of ELD Instruction
Designated and Integrated ELD – the Left and Right Hand of ELD Instruction Since a high percentage of students in American schools these days are English learners, there has been an ongoing debate about how to meet their educational needs. One state, California, adopted its ELA/ELD Framework for instruction in 2014. It recommends a comprehensive…
Distant Learning Do’s and Don’ts
Distant Learning Do’s and Don’ts Today we invite teachers to explore online learning possibilities. This is the first in a series of messages to help teachers and administrators do just that. There are many web-based tools and apps available, and admin/teachers are encouraged to investigate what they offer. Of course, we particularly recommend using Educeri…
Remote Learning
Closed Schools Need Remote Learning Due to concerns about the coronavirus, many teachers are searching for ways to help students learn at home. This means many of you right now are making photocopied worksheets for packets (or units of study) to be sent home with your students. However, there is a critical component missing — First-Time…
The EL Roadmap
The California EL RoadmapNavigating the EL Roadmap through your use of Instruction The English Learner Roadmap was adopted by the California State Board of Education in July 2017. It is a document that encompasses many needs of the English Learner. The Roadmap consists of 4 main principles, each of which forms a pivotal part of…
The Secret to Differentiation with EDI: Making Better Decisions at Choice Points
The Secret to Differentiation with EDI:Making Better Decisions at Choice Points Explicit Direct Instruction (EDI), an interactive teaching strategy developed by Ybarra and Hollingsworth, involves the use of specific lesson delivery and lesson design components. The goal is for teachers to develop automaticity with the teaching strategies so they can focus more on how students…
EDI and Hattie’s Visible Learning
EDI Activates 18 of the Top 30 Influences on Student Achievement, As Measured by Hattie John Hattie, a professor of education from Australia and New Zealand, published Visible Learning in 2009 (with additional books in 2012 and 2015). The purpose of his research was to identify what works and what doesn’t in education in statistical…