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Some interesting consumer math points that apply to us all -- teachers, students, and broader community.  How can we help our students (and our own minds!) grasp these points?

This is a spectacular posting that could be used with ES or MS students (or possibly HS students, too) to explore square roots.

An Oregon elementary school has improved test scores by integrating math across all subject areas and focusing on teacher training.

If you could "fix" or re-direct math education, what would you do? IMO, Arthur Benjamin NAILS it in this brief 3ish minute video.

"So, learning math is somewhat like learning to read: we can do it, but it takes time and effort, and requires mastering increasingly complex skills and con- tent. Just about everyone will get to the point where they can read a serious newspaper, and just about everyone will get to the point where they can do high school-level algebra and geometry-even if not everyone wants to reach the point of comprehending James Joyce's Ulysses or solving partial differential equations."

why the inertia to making needed changes in pedagogy?

A mathematical focus, but also great commentary on teacher hesitancy regarding math. Reform is NOT about "high-energy teachers [giving] vague tasks to groups of interested students."

A collection of truly insightful musings on assessment, whether you teach math or something else.

Chris, I definitely think this process for assessment could be utilized in other disciplines quite easily. The idea of student ownership is a huge factor for motivating students. The parent involvement seems to be a positive aspect, too. Thank you so much for keeping us all aware of innovative practices happening in education. Karen Anderson

Blog post on Edutopia.

I don't know all the places this could be used, but the graph in this article contains a STUNNING amount of information. I think the math is obvious, but I envision some phenomenal social science lessons, technology insights, the evolution of science, the implied connections to the ability of societies to spread information, the differences in cost of the various innovations and why that matters .... Hope you find something cool.

Wonder if there are parallel implications in math?

There are actually! Come by my office and check out the book: Whistling Vivaldi by Claude Steele who's work these studies are based on. There are also really interesting results that pertain to race and stereotype threat which can inform our teaching practices to cater to students most impacted...

What a great math hook for a middle school class! Thx to John Burk for the lead!

This is so great! What a fun teacher! Great way to talk about proportions. Love the terminology and the kids using the language, "can we rank their mulletude"? Hey, did the better looking mullets have a Business to Party (or Party to Business?) ratio that was, "Golden"?