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"Abstract As teacher-educators we need to embrace practitioner (action) research of our own classroom practice. Such research serves to improve our practice, inform the teaching profession, and serve as modeling for future teachers to become practitioner researchers in support of their efforts to meet the learning needs of the students with whom they work as well as have a voice in policy decisions that impact their professional lives."

 The author is my grandson ,Shane's, advocate. Without her he would be up the creek without a paddle.  Will My Child Grow Out of It written by Dr. Bonny Forrest is an important book for parents, educators and practitioners. The succinct, accurate description of learning differences and mental health issues is based on extensive research as well as personal case study experience. The topics discussed and suggestions given are realistic yet always positive. The expanded appendix provides resources for action, effective therapies for consideration and medications commonly in use. Most importantly there is a direct link to ProjectSkip, http://www.projectskip.com/. A special code is given for use of this tool, a first step in the decision of whether to seek professional help. While this book is an excellent resource for parents, it could also be an important textbook for educators as well as those studying in the field of psychology

This is a "field-book of tools and processes to help readers in all fields develop as researchers, writers, and agents of change." For more details and how to purchase: http://bit.ly/TYS2012. (Printing and distribution in Australia and Europe begins end of March.) Comments on the influence of this book's approach "I was able to get engaged in a project that I was able to actually use in work, which was extremely satisfying. The whole process encouraged me, and I felt very empowered as a change agent, which could be an exhilarating feeling." a healthcare professional and story-teller "I really had not been used to thinking about my own thinking, so learning to do that also helped me to slow down and start to look away from the career path that I had been taking for granted." a biologist-turned-web designer "I found that the experience helped me to accept feedback from other professionals. I am more comfortable with listening to why my own ideas might not work or need further evaluation. This even happens to the point where I find reasons now to seek out this kind of feedback." a teacher "I had viewed research as a process of collecting information into a sort of database and reviewing it effectively. I have now revised my notions to include a more broad understanding of interconnectedness between people and ideas. An important part of research is to keep relationships going." an adult educator "One of the most useful ideas was the use of dialogue, which helps to slow down the procedures used by the company. There's a tension between management's need to make quick decisions and desire to have real dialogue around proposed changes-changes to the internal company operational procedures as well as to evaluating the quality of what the company is doing with its publications." a teacher, currently working in publishing "I was asked to pay attention to what I actually could do instead of what I could not. This enabled me to (1) step back and let go of a huge technic

'A recent article from UXMag.com, geared toward web design topics, caught my attention with the "User Experience Honeycomb" developed by Peter Morville to guide designers in the creation of "useful, usable, engaging content." With its seven related facets, it could be a helpful decision-making resource for instructional designers and instructors creating activities for online courses.'

"@POUSDSupt: Exactly What The Common Core Standards Say About Technology http://t.co/WTRFq2LUTt via @zite #ccss #edtech" Nicely presented.

Tech standards in the common core

The Foreign Relations of the United States series is the official documentary historical record of major U.S. foreign policy decisions that have been declassified and edited for publication. The series is produced by the State Department's Office of the Historian and printed volumes are available from the Government Printing Office.

Spelling made fun with Spellarama playing cards. For all ages, 115 Letter Cards with 24 Sound Bonus Cards... Players will experience problem-solving, decision-making, and cooperative skills.

A free computer game for teenagers created with the help of former Supreme Court Justice Sandra Day O'Connor has made its online debut. "Supreme Decision," the first of several planned web-based games, went online in August as part of a project called Our Courts. In it, students can play a Supreme Court law clerk helping a justice with a tie-breaking vote over a First Amendment case. Backed by the Sandra Day O'Connor College of Law at Arizona State University and Georgetown University, the Our Courts project is designed to teach middle school students about the Constitution and the courts. O'Connor, the first woman to serve on the Supreme Court, has said more people can name an "American Idol" judge than the three branches of government. Besides teaching about civics, she hopes the Our Courts project will help students learn how to analyze problems and develop arguments. In "Supreme Decision," students play a law clerk and must help fictional Justice Irene Waters write the majority opinion on whether a school can ban students from wearing music band T-shirts. Another game, called "Do I Have a Right," will be released soon. In that game, students will play the director of a constitutional law firm who must decide which amendment resolves a problem posed by a client.

Educational Technology uses technology tools to support data driven decisions, curriculum, instructional strategies, and assessment throughout the district in alignment with the State Standards.

This map marks the cities, towns, communities, and states that have made the decision to either eliminate certified school library positions (indicated in blue) or require one school librarian to work with two (2) or more school library programs throughout the week (indicated in red).

Do you think Shakespeare understood in some way that the adolescent brain may not be as strong at decision making as an adult brain? View the Film "Teenage Brain" Online NewsHour with Jim Leher. Think about the possible implications of this research.

iMoot is an annual event where the Moodle community of over 32 million users are provided the opportunity to join together on a global scale. This web based event engages a global audience of Moodle practitioners, administrators and decision makers in one event for an online e-conference with a difference!

Here is a Moodle event to add to your 2011 online calendar. :-)

CIA world factbook can be used to compare countries when studying the effects of economic and political decisions

Data should "inform" decision making in schools, not "drive" it.

James O'Keefe is back in the news with his expose on NPR. What motivates the citizen journalist? Why choose one target over another? If we study the decisions made during the trips to the ACORN offices, we get a sense of the difference between creating the news and reporting the news. We also learn what 20-somethings understand about the US tax structure.

How many children do you have? I am an educator and I have 6 children who are all different. My second child, a son, was never told to study, never had a spelling word called out to him, and strieved to make all A's and B's since the 2nd grade. His older brother with an IQ of 128 in the 5th grade didn't care about grades and passing. His younger brother almost graduated high school before him even though they were 3 years apart in age. The oldest son has ADHD. His grandmother was a math teacher and I am a math teacher, but yet that was the subject he failed almost each year and had to go to summer school. He had the same parents and the same environment as his younger brother, but he was lacking the drive that is born in you. I won't go into the differences of the other 4 just to say that the good Lord gifted me with 3 ADHD children when not much was known about it (the oldest is 44). Every child is different and parents must learn not to judge one by the others, just like teachers must not assume that about siblings they teach. A parent can be their to help and try to point them in the right direction with the right work ethics in school, but the bottom line is how much the child cares and wants to achieve. The envolved parent can help the child that sits on the fence and can go on either side, but the ultimate choice is going to be the child's. It is the same with church. You can take the child to church every Sunday, but when they get older it is their decision how to direct their life. I am not saying that a parent shouldn't try every day to give the guidance their children need and deserve, but you can't beat yourself up when things don't go the way you think they should. All a parent can do is standby their child and give them all the love they can and to know that sometimes that is not enough for the child.

I sent you the history to show that no two children are alike and not to judge one child by the behavior of another. In education we teach all types and there is no one way to approach all children. Sometimes it is not the parent that can make a difference, but someone else and not always a teacher.

"THIS year Christian Brothers' College in St Kilda East did something radical: overturned its long-standing ban on students bringing mobile phones to school. The decision was not made lightly. Principal Gerald Bain-King recalls agonising over the risks when a trial was first mooted several years ago."

This is a beautifully made resource which is a virtual game of life. Design an avatar and guide them through every tricky decision, like which career to have and what to do to make it happen. Find teacher resources at http://metycoon.org/resources.html. http://ictmagic.wikispaces.com/PSHE,+RE,+Citizenship,+Geography+&+Environmental

A game where players must make decisions to balance the environment with power needs. http://ictmagic.wikispaces.com/PSHE,+RE,+Citizenship,+Geography+&+Environmental

The high volume of research on different programs, products, practices, and policies in education can make it difficult to interpret and apply the results. We review the research. Then, by focusing on the results from high-quality research, we try to answer the question "What works in education?"  Our goal is to provide educators with the information they need to make evidence-based decisions.