Read About Our Latest Instructional Materials Reviews

How to Use Online Instructional Materials Effectively with Struggling Students

August 12, 2022January 13, 2014

With the beginning of spring semester comes many decisions regarding ways to help struggling students grasp the required standards before state assessments. Teachers often turn to online instructional materials to help reinforce the concepts and skills for these students. Many online materials offer formative assessments, individualized learning paths, reteach lessons, and various reports on student learning. If used correctly, these …

Funding Update: Siemens STEM Opportunities for Teachers, Summer 2014

July 21, 2022January 6, 2014

Siemens STEM Academy is accepting applications for its Siemens STEM Institute and Siemens Teachers as Researchers (STARS) programs through February 4, 2014. Both programs are opportunities for middle school and high school STEM teachers to participate in all-expense-paid professional development activities in summer 2014. The Siemens STEM Institute accepts fifty educators, or STEM Fellows, to attend a week-long institute hosted …

Proclamation 2014 Product Trends: Special Populations

December 30, 2013

Over the past few months, Learning List staff have attended quite a few vendor conferences for products under consideration for state adoption in Texas. These conferences have been hosted by Texas’ regional Educational Service Centers and have given vendors an opportunity to present their products and educators an opportunity to preview the new science, math, and technology applications materials that …

Student Engagement Series (Part 2)

August 12, 2022December 23, 2013

As discussed in our previous post on student engagement, educators hold different views of what it means for students to be engaged in learning. Not surprisingly, research has identified several dimensions of student engagement. These include behavioral engagement, emotional or psychological engagement, and cognitive engagement. When students are behaviorally engaged, they participate in the academic as well as the social …

Funding Update: Lowe’s Toolbox for Education Grants

July 21, 2022December 19, 2013

Lowe’s is accepting online applications for its 2013-14 Toolbox for Education Grants through February 15, 2014. However, once 1,500 applications have been received, no further applications will be accepted. Toolbox grants provide between $2,000 and $5,000 to public K-12 schools to undertake projects that lead to permanent enhancement of school facilities and may be completed within one year. Examples of …

Required Listening: NPR’s “The Long Game”

December 16, 2013

Yesterday afternoon, KERA broadcast Trey Kay’s radio documentary about the culture wars surrounding Texas’ public school curriculum. The Long Game: Texas’ Ongoing Battle for the Direction of the Classroom provides a rigorous and balanced exploration of the controversies surrounding what is taught in Texas public schools. As Kay reports: For more than a half a century, citizens of the Lone …

Online vs. Print in Texas

March 27, 2023December 12, 2013

On November 22, 2013, the SBOE released a list of 405 state-adopted math, science and technical applications products, 303 of which align to 100% of the Texas Essential Knowledge and Skills (TEKS). More than two-thirds of the products on the state-adopted list are online products. According to John Lopez, Managing Director of TEA’s Instructional Materials and Educational Technology division, the …

Student Engagement: A Multifaceted Construct

August 12, 2022December 10, 2013

Most policy makers and educators agree that student engagement is a critical to improving learning outcomes. However, as we have learned, student engagement is a multifaceted construct that lacks a clear definition. In developing Learning List’s editorial reviews, we interview educators who have used featured products with students, and we ask interview respondents to explain how products engage students in …

Building Math Reasoning Through Conversation

August 12, 2022December 5, 2013

Dan Meyer explains why it’s an amazing time to be a math teacher in this TEDtalk, “Math Class Needs a Makeover.” His talk addresses how to develop math reasoning through “patient problem solving.” His approach is to first present students with visual models and then, through conversation, allow students to identify and describe the problem and the math reasoning needed …

The Fishman Prize for Superlative Classroom Practice

July 21, 2022December 2, 2013

Early applications and nominations for The New Teacher Project’s (TNTP) Fishman Prize for Superlative Classroom Practice are due tomorrow (12/3/2014). However, applications will be accepted through January 21, 2014. The prize awards $25,000 to up to five full-time teachers in public schools that serve at least 40% low-income students. Eligible teachers must demonstrate: An extraordinary ability to lead students from …

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