| The “go to the website” icon appears throughout the book. Click on the icon to learn more: |  |
“This book is the missing link… the Rosetta Stone.”
At a book discussion and signing at Borders in Pleasanton, CA, a seasoned teacher perused the book and said, “This book is the missing link. It’s the Rosetta Stone.” This is a big complement coming from a person with years of experience working with under-served students, helping them to succeed on tests.
The teacher, Steve Shramko, works at the Eastside Adult Education Program in San Jose, and has, over the years, recognized the need for material– “a curriculum” — that addresses the test taker, not just the test content. “This is exactly what we need,” Steve said, referring to the book.
Teachers are going to be tested
The calm, confident and focused teacher
As the health care debate nears some resolution (at least for the time being), the legislative agenda is already setting its compass to point towards education. A lead article in the New York Times titled “Obama Calls for a Major Change in the Education Law,” the President and his Secretary of Education Arnie Duncan are calling for a re-visioning of No Child Left Behind.
(see referenced article link to ‘Major Change in Education Law’)
One of the key features of the new policy is the focus on teachers and how they teach.
Quoting the article: The administration’s proposals would also rework the law’s teacher-quality provisions by requiring states to develop evaluation procedures to distinguish effective instructors, partly based on whether their students are learning.
I read this to mean: teachers are going to be tested. Big time. I don’t mean…
How did Obama do it?
Calm, confident, focused
On November 4, 2008, 66 million people elected Barack Obama the 44th president of the United States.
How did he, a young man with a brief resume, make this dream come true?
Lunchtime activity to balance test prep
In a most interesting article in yesterday’s Washington Post, reporter Nelson Hernandez covered a story at a local middle school. He wrote, “Schools these days focus mostly on preparing students for tests of reading and math, but during lunchtime at Kenmoor Middle School in Landover, the youngsters sitting in a small circle were tackling the really deep questions: Ethics. Fairness. How to split dessert.”
First Ladies and performance anxiety
This is the third in a series of posts sparked by an article on Michelle Obama, written by Lynn Sweet, about a talk Mrs. Obama had with high school students, telling them about her struggles with test anxiety.
In the article, Ms. Sweet also referenced two other First Ladies and their performance anxiety. For Laura Bush it was about public speaking. Hillary Clinton recalled that at age 4 she came home crying to her mother because a girl was pushing her around. Her mother taught her to stand up for herself: “My mother was afraid that if I gave in to my fears, it would set a pattern for the rest of my life.”
Test prep tip: keep your mind positive
I came across an article about a successful program designed for at-risk students and dropouts working toward their GED. It’s an 18 month program in which students learn academic, personal, leadership and vocational skills through hands-on-activities.
Karen Bryant, who mentors students even after graduation, said she credits the success of the program to a relationship built on trust and respect with her students. Many of the students have remained friends of Bryant over the years.
In the ‘confidence’ leg of my 3-legged stool performance model I explore into the relationship between ‘trust’ and ‘confidence.’
Test stress: you are not alone
A review of THE WORKBOOK FOR TEST SUCCESS just got posted on Amazon from an individual preparing for a licensing exam. It’s titled, “The Best Investment I Made.”
The highly enthusiastic review has a line in it I’d like to share. By using the book the reader said “I was able to open up to my study group about what I was experiencing. Consequently we have turned into a real support group.”
Follow Us!