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"What Makes a Great Teacher? Image credit: Veronika Lukasova Also in our Special Report: National: "How America Can Rise Again" Is the nation in terminal decline? Not necessarily. But securing the future will require fixing a system that has become a joke. Video: "One Nation, On Edge" James Fallows talks to Atlantic editor James Bennet about a uniquely American tradition-cycles of despair followed by triumphant rebirths. Interactive Graphic: "The State of the Union Is ..." ... thrifty, overextended, admired, twitchy, filthy, and clean: the nation in numbers. By Rachael Brown Chart: "The Happiness Index" Times were tough in 2009. But according to a cool Facebook app, people were happier. By Justin Miller On August 25, 2008, two little boys walked into public elementary schools in Southeast Washington, D.C. Both boys were African American fifth-graders. The previous spring, both had tested below grade level in math. One walked into Kimball Elementary School and climbed the stairs to Mr. William Taylor's math classroom, a tidy, powder-blue space in which neither the clocks nor most of the electrical outlets worked. The other walked into a very similar classroom a mile away at Plummer Elementary School. In both schools, more than 80 percent of the children received free or reduced-price lunches. At night, all the children went home to the same urban ecosystem, a zip code in which almost a quarter of the families lived below the poverty line and a police district in which somebody was murdered every week or so. Video: Four teachers in Four different classrooms demonstrate methods that work (Courtesy of Teach for America's video archive, available in February at teachingasleadership.org) At the end of the school year, both little boys took the same standardized test given at all D.C. public schools-not a perfect test of their learning, to be sure, but a relatively objective one (and, it's worth noting, not a very hard one). After a year in Mr. Taylo

Doing What Works (DWW) is a website sponsored by the U.S. Department of Education. The goal of DWW is to create an online library of resources that may help teachers, schools, districts, states and technical assistance providers implement research-based instructional practice. DWW is led by the Office of Planning, Evaluation & Policy Development (OPEPD) at the U.S. Department of Education. OPEPD relies on the Institute of Education Sciences (IES) at the U.S. Department of Education (and occasionally other entities that adhere to standards similar to those of IES) to evaluate and recommend practices that are supported by rigorous research.

Welcome to the Guys Read Virtual Vault of Good Books. This is the place to come if you're looking for something to get a guy reading. We've collected recommendations from teachers, librarians, booksellers, publishers, parents, and guys themselves.

That it is necessary to shift away from ICT-skills centred PD, towards reflective, pedagogically focused learning, is clear. Unless we, as teachers, can justify using ICT and make pedagogical changes to enhance student outcomes, then efforts to 'teach' ICT will be superficial. Embracing a Communities of Practice model for ICT PD incorporates the ubiquitous recommendations; that ICT PD should be collaborative; ongoing; focused on teacher needs;and facilitate critical discussion amongst colleagues.

Another quite extensive list of iPod/iPhone apps from the Escondido Union School District.

"reparation takes time. Planning slides, arranging them, finding pictures to accompany the messages, and making decisions on color schemes and templates can take hours. That is why I like to plan on the go and with mobile devices and apps, you can sketch out your presentation and rehearse almost anywhere. Here are the apps I recommend."

Review and list of several Apps that you can use for conference and workshop presentations.

"The educator and developer community at iear.org has taken nominations and votes for their 2010 Best App Awards. While nominations and voting is now closed, the list of dozens of nominees is a valuable resource. Nominations were made in early December by those who read I Educational Apps Review's blog. There are nearly 20 categories and each category is divided into elementary and secondary. You can view the 125 apps categorized in a spreadsheet or view their icons in a widget. Clicking an icon will take you to the app's details page in the App Store. The widget was made using Appsfire's Widget Maker."

Free sites for community of learners innovative project useful recommended by librarian group.

This 2009 report from Education.au looks at the current state of play regarding the use of Web 2.0 services across each of the education authorities in Australia. It aims to identify and suggest ways to overcome barriers associated with current site blocking practices in schools with regards to Web 2.0 services. The report draws on a range of survey and other investigations as well as consultation with key stakeholders. It then sets out a number of recommendations aimed at addressing issues related to current site blocking practices in schools place on teachers looking to use Web 2.0 to improve teaching and learning.

Get your class reviewing and recommending books to one another.

"Below is a series of frequently asked questions regarding the capabilities of the iPad and the reasons for our decision to use iPads from Years 5-9, with a strong recommendation they also be used in Years 10-12. Please take the time to browse through as it might cover some of the questions you have been asking yourself."

"Project-based learning is centered on the learner and affords learners the opportunity for in-depth investigations of worthy topics. The learners are more autonomous as they construct personally-meaningful artifacts that are representations of their learning. This article examines the theoretical foundations of project-based learning, particularly constructivism and constructionism, and notes the similarities and differences among implementations, including project-based science (Blulmenfeld et al., 1991), disciplined inquiry (Levstik & Barton, 2001) and WebQuests (Dodge, 1995). In addition, an anatomy of a model case will be considered using a WebQuest example developed by the author, describing seven characteristics common among the various implementations of project-based learning. Finally, practical advice and recommendations for project-based learning are discussed, including beginning slowly with the implementation, teaching students to negotiate cooperative/collaborative groups and establishing multiple forms of performance assessments."

Harold Jarche recommends this 

Developed by the Australian Communications and Media Authority's Cybersmart program, Tagged is recommended for use with students aged 14 and over. Tagged is supported by lesson plans and compelling character reflection interviews. It explores themes of personal and peer safety and responsibility that are crucial to maintaining positive online behaviours and digital reputation into adulthood.

"It is pretty much a given these days that students have mobile phones, tablets, and e-readers. Leveraging what your students already have and already know how to use is a smart idea - even if you aren't implementing a full-on BYOD classroom environment. There are many ways to have students use their mobile devices in the classroom in a format geared towards learning rather than for leisure. The infographic in this post takes a look at ten fairly general ways to use devices in the classroom. The general nature of some of the recommendations makes it a great starting point if this is a newer concept for you or for a particular group that you're working. "

Great tool that can be used for collaboration within a class. It is possible (with proper tagging) to list these bookmarks within students' wikis. Updates delicious accounts automatically as well. Highly recommended.

Today, we are happy to announce the release of Diigo Educator Accounts, a suite of features that makes it incredibly easy for teachers to get their entire class of students or their peers started on collaborative research using Diigo's powerful web annotation and social bookmarking technology.

"Award winning author, Don Tapscott, and award winning global collaborators Julie Lindsay and Vicki Davis (co founders of the Flat ClassroomTM Project) are excited to announce the 2010 NetGenEd Project, another global collaboration to envision the future of education and social action by inspiring today's students to study leading technology trends and create their vision for the future. "

Highly recommended to participate in one of the several projects run by Julie and Vicki.