By David Glenn in the Teaching section, Chronicle of Higher Education, Feb 7, 2010. This is an article about new research from the CUNY Graduate Center that looks at "self-regulated learning." With this method, math students work with their instructors to analyze their errors, reworking problems to be sure that they understand how to solve them next time. The article is available by subscription. For the full text, check with your local library.
The Strategy Institute, Feb 2-5, 2010, had the theme Equity and Excellence. This document is a PDF of the conference program, which included a plenary presentation by Uri Treisman.
From BM: "I also enjoyed hearing Uri Treisman speak on the "joyful conspiracy" he and the Carnegie Foundation are engaged in. This "joyful conspiracy" is just a little project....a complete overhaul of mathematics at the community college level. I encourage all math faculty to read and learn as much as you can about the Carnegie work here. I am certain that it will dramatically affect what you do for a living in the future."
This program is offered by the Association of American Colleges & Universities, as part of its Liberal Education and America's Promise (LEAP) initiative, and is a contribution to the national dialogue on assessment in education.
By the Council of Writing Program Administrators (WPA) and the National Council of Teachers of English (NCTE). This document is jointly endorsed by both organizations.
By the Conference on College Composition (CCCC) Committee on Assessment, November 2006 (revised March 2009). This document outlines the CCCC's position on writing assessment, noting that "given the high stakes nature of many of these assessment purposes, it is crucial that assessment practices by guided by sound principles..."
This page links to the all podcast offerings from the 2010 annual meeting. The opening plenary (first podcast listed) was given by Martha J. Kanter, Under Secretary for the U.S. Department of Education, Jamie P. Merisotis of the Lumina Foundation, and Ronald Crutcher, president of Wheaton College.
Dr. Vincent Tinto is a professor in the School of Education at Syracuse University. His most recent book, Leaving College (also tagged), "lays out a theory and policy perspective on student success that is considered the benchmark by which work on these issues are judged."
Dr. Constance (Connie) Weaver is a professor of English at Western Michigan University. In the coffeeklatch, she was attributed with popularizing the idea, "grammar needs to be taught in context." Librarians have not verified the quote or determined from which book it might have been taken.
By Amanda Ripley in The Atlantic, January/February 2010. This article looks at effective teaching in several ways: it profiles several highly effective teachers, and also discusses over ten years of data about effective teaching that the organization Teach for America is preparing to release.
The Faculty Inquiry Network (FIN) "is comprised of community college faculty from across California, working in teams to investigate a complex problem in basic skills education..." (from Info page). Together, they have produced this beautiful blog which describes faculty inquiry ("a form of professional development") and includes resources and a toolkit. There is also an email subscription available, to better keep current with this project.
Like GSCC, NCAT was also the recipient of a Gates Foundation emerging technologies grant. NCAT will redesign developmental math courses in community colleges integrating technology and learner-centered pedagogy.
Part of Carnegie Mellon University, the Open Learning Initiative is, like GSCC, the recipient of a Gates Foundation technology-related grant. The grant is "for the collaborative development, use, evaluation, and continuous improvement of web-based open learning environments for high-demand "gatekeeper" courses" (from Gates Foundation press release).
This site offers a searchable database of materials in a variety of subject areas, from Arts to Social Sciences, in all grade levels (Primary, Secondary, Post-secondary). As the site notes, "OER content is made free to use or share, and in some cases, to change and share again, made possible through licensing, so that both teachers and learners can share what they know."
Along with the GSCC project, the Monterey Institute was also awarded a Gates Foundation technology-related grant. The Institute's grant is to produce developmental math materials that will be released as Open Educational Resources (OER).