TWO TYPES OF PEER COACHING: THERE'S SOMETHING FOR EVERYONE There are two general ways to participate in peer coaching, specific and non-specific. For specific participation, the teacher wants help with certain, pre-determined issues. If they are uncertain about where they most need help, such participants may want to first get videotaped and view the tape critically to help them identify their problem areas. Even teachers who can't get videotaped should try to think about what they would like to improve about their teaching. The peer coaches should pay particular attention to these issues while observing their partner's classes. In non-specific participation, the teacher wants an outsider to come and (1) help determine areas for improvement and/or (2) comment on the teacher's general approach. This form of participation may be ideally suited to experienced teachers who merely want general comments or for those who seeking help in a more general sense. In some ways, non-specific participation is like the "teaching consultants" discussed earlier.

Peer coaching is an innovation that helps teachers improve their teaching. It is intended to be a mutually reciprocal process where two peers attend each other's classes and help each other enhance and enrich their methods of instruction. Because it is not based in formal evaluations, program participants have reported making more long-lasting changes than those based on more evaluative approaches. Peer coaching is a program that can be implemented in a variety of educational settings from elementary to collegiate levels.

But the biggest message is that our education system is not necessarily offering children what their developing brains need. We know for certain what good teachers have often said: learning is more profound when it is active rather than passive, and that is that it is vital for education to be tailored to individual pupils' needs.

The other key message, he says, is that motivation and a positive attitude are crucial for learning - it is now possible to measure how fear and discomfort can impair a child's ability to learn. It is also possible to see the different neural circuits the brain uses for "extrinsic" learning - which is motivated by a concrete goal such as a good mark - and "intrinsic" learning, which brings its own reward.

One of our problems in education is that we constantly have to balance our images of traditional success with the possibilities in our evolving knowledge of scientific development," he said.

The real world is full of groups working on project teams, and part of the solution to fixing the disconnect between 21st century skills which employers say they want, and the skills emphasized in our schools, is operationalizing a learning culture in our classrooms which regularly involves project-based learning.

“Together we are even better: Great things happen when my class is like a community”. The goal of this essay contest is to promote discussion in Ontario classrooms about the meaning of a sense of community and the ways that students and teachers can create a positive classroom community of learners.

Now, I know from personal experience that the thought of creating a musical composition can overwhelm a “purr”son. (Oops!) In the past, I have tried too hard and nothing musical ever developed. So, since Al is a relaxed and laid-back composer, I will follow his example and listen for musical ideas in the world around me.

Now after this mornings shower, I heard the annoying but rhythmic beat from my leaking bathroom faucet. In the kitchen, the whirring and pulsing sounds of the food blender were jazzy and invigorating. When turning on the TV, the first few notes that I heard became the beginning of a song. Fire engines and ambulance provided ALARMING possibilities. At last I was composing!!