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Praise and Feedback occupy significant spaces in the lives of our learners. It should not be surprising then that the language we use to communicate praise and feedback can enhance or hinder our efforts.

"How Not to Talk to Your Kids: The inverse power of praise."

"Everyone makes mistakes and children are no exception. What's important is how we learn from them. Yet, children grow up in a society that pressures them to be perfect and intelligent - to achieve the highest SAT scores, land prized scholarships, and get into the best universities. Parents reinforce this pressure at home when they cover up children's mistakes, correct homework to improve grades, or drill knowledge into kids until they get it right. Stress is increased when children are constantly praised for their intelligence. How does this focus on perfection and IQ affect learning? And how can we help children and teens believe in themselves by accepting their mistakes and learning from them?"

"I was teaching a math class probably about 10 years ago, and I remember one of my top students (academically) goofing around and distracting others. I talked to her about her behaviour, and how although she understood the material, others were having issues and she was disturbing their work. During the same class, I remember one of my struggling students, who was often a distraction in class, doing extremely well on an assignment. I went on to praise the student for the effort and how well he worked on this particular assignment. After class, the "high flyer" in my math class came up to me and said something that has stuck to me for awhile."

"It's a golden age of education podcasts. Teachers, professors, education innovators, and tech skeptics have switched on their microphones to share their insights and analysis-and you'll find plenty of lively characters and fresh voices via your earbuds. After all, let's face it, teachers can be great talkers (we mean that in a good way), and they're also seasoned storytellers. Check out the latest reboot of the EdSurge On Air podcast! Take Michael Wesch, for instance. Inspired by the long-running radio show This American Life, he tags along with his students to better understand their lives and struggles on his Life101 podcast. (That includes crashing a frat party-you'll want to check out that episode). Other education podcasts take a more Socratic approach, drawing out their guests through dialogue. When asking around, several folks we talked to praised Teaching in Higher Ed as a podcast with particularly engaging discussions. Below are our favorites (including our own podcast, which relaunched this week), organized by topic. Please share your own picks in the comments section below."

"Readability is an outstanding, free web-service and mobile app for iOS and Android which permits users to read advertisement-free web content offline on multiple devices. In this post, I'll describe how to use Readability to send a web article you want to read later to your Kindle eReader. Hat tip to Bob Sprankle who first showed Readability to me and sang it's praises!"

"Technology has altered human physiology. It makes us think differently, feel differently, even dream differently. It affects our memory, attention spans and sleep cycles. This is attributed to a scientific phenomenon known as neuroplasticity, or the brain's ability to alter its behavior based on new experiences. In this case, that's the wealth of information offered by the Internet and interactive technologies. Some cognition experts have praised the effects of tech on the brain, lauding its ability to organize our lives and free our minds for deeper thinking. Others fear tech has crippled our attention spans and made us uncreative and impatient when it comes to anything analog. "

"We've talked about the definition of intrinsic motivation in the past. We've also talked about some basic ways to improve student motivation. This time, it's Mia MacMeekin's turn to speak to you about the same, but through gridded, blocked, and easy to read infographics. The graphic starts with a definition for both intrinsic motivation and extrinsic motivation, then offers 27 verbs that can help promote that magic stuff that is characterized by curiosity, effort, engagement, and academic success. Some were a little iffy-"praise" and "milestones" seemed a little closer to extrinsic motivation. But the vast majority are useful to consider as you design units, lessons, and activities this school year."

"Much has been written about the detriments of praise in recent years, particularly the kind that focuses on inherent intelligence. It was Carol Dweck who inspired me to consider the unintended consequences of over-celebrating my students' smarts, and as this conversation continues within and beyond the field of education, everyone seems to be a bit more sensitive when it comes to reinforcing learners. Wondering how you can motivate and inspire in ways that build confidence, stamina, and perseverance? Take a few of these statements for a test drive."

"The tables in bookstores can be overwhelming: Every book cover looks appealing, every blurb glows with praise. Sometimes, you just need a recommendation from a human, someone you trust. Below, 10 members of the TED community - with very different points of view - share the books they think you'll enjoy this summer. Their selections are wonderfully untethered to new releases and bestsellers, with a little something for everyone."

"All it takes is a quick look at one of the extensive comment threads of an iPhone-eccentric post to see that people have different opinions on iOS. But what you rarely see debated are its accessibility features."

"National Geographic's 50 Places of a Lifetime is one of my favorite coffee table book type iPad apps. It's a superb introduction and guide to 'the world's greatest destinations', chock full of amazing photos, excellent companion essays from great writers, and lots more. It's now on sale, with its price dropped from $1.99 to just $0.99. I did a review of 50 Places of a Lifetime recently and of course sang its praises:"