Learning List » LearningList

Introducing Learning List’s Blog

August 19, 2013

We are happy to launch Learning List’s blog. Not surprisingly, our blog will focus on selecting and purchasing instructional materials and online courses. More specifically, we hope our posts will help educators review and select the instructional materials best suited to meet their students’ unique needs. Our blog posts will address such topics as: Understanding the standards; aligning to standards; …

Legislative Summary: The 83rd Texas Legislature – Part 1

August 16, 2013

The Texas legislature appropriated $838.7 million for instructional materials and technology for the 2014-15 biennium. This means that Texas school districts and open-enrollment charter schools can expect $175 per student in instructional materials allotment (IMA) funding over the next two school years. Of the almost 940 education-related bills filed during the 83rd legislative session, several passed that will affect the …

It’s Back to School Time!

August 14, 2013

It seems like school just let out yesterday. “Back to School” sales are everywhere… children are labeling their school supplies, teachers are already in their classrooms preparing for the new school year, and administrators are carefully disaggregating student data. As a teacher and administrator for many years, I know how hard educators work to provide the best instruction possible for …

How We Do Our Reviews

August 12, 2013

Our goal is to save educators time and money! We hire experienced, certified teachers with expertise in standards alignment. We train our reviewers to verify a publisher’s correlation and to assess the products’ key features and functionality. Our editorial reviews draw from our reviewer’s feedback and interviews with the publisher and their customers who have personally used the product with students.

How do We Decide Which Products to Review?

August 9, 2013

We invite publishers to submit the products they want to sell. And we review the products for free. But, since Learning List is designed as a service for educators, we want educators to help fill our library. Think of us as an extension of your curriculum department.

Why we developed Learning List

August 7, 2013

In 2011, the Texas legislature decentralized and largely deregulated the purchasing of instructional materials and technology by school districts. At the same time, school districts nationally were facing the challenge of implementing the Common Core State Standards. Education reformers were touting the cost-saving and academic benefits of online courses.

What is Learning List

August 5, 2013

Learning List is a national online library of professional reviews of K-12 instructional materials and online courses, which will launch in August 2013. For each featured product, we provide an alignment to state standards, an editorial review highlighting the products unique features and key information that educators need to implement the product effectively, and subscriber ratings and reviews.

My Inspiration

August 2, 2013

One day I was walking through a prairie in Kenya accompanied by a guide and two friends from the U.S., when we suddenly came across five kids and an adult huddled under a tree. As we approached, we saw that the adult was teaching the students math. The teacher threw out a question and the kids feverishly calculated the answer …

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