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But this spring, Johnson will take a practice version of a new performance assessment that goes beyond asking what he knows about his subject. Formally known as the Teacher Performance Assessment, the portfolio-based assessment will be required for anyone completing a teacher-education program and seeking a teaching license in Wisconsin after Aug. 31, 2015, the Department of Public Instruction has decided. Johnson and teacher hopefuls in other states taking the Teacher Performance Assessment, even if for practice, will have to submit lesson plans, reflections of their work and a video of their classroom interactions with students as part of the Web-based program.

All of it is aimed at answering a single, critical question: How well can you teach?

Developed by a team of researchers at Stanford University, the assessment will be administered by international education publishing and technology juggernaut Pearson. Once teacher candidates submit their portfolios online, trained reviewers from around the country will grade them on a scale of 1 to 5. They're looking for evidence of student learning, from the 10- to 15-minute video or teacher reflections. A 3 or higher is typically considered a passing score, though Wisconsin hasn't settled on what its passing score will be.

Yet despite its overwhelming success with exams, China’s education system still lags in a number of areas, not the least of which is its ability to teach analytical thinking. Focusing almost solely on preparation for benchmarking tests and entrance exams, the Chinese classrooms I visited in my previous work in China offered few interactive learning and problem-solving opportunities, and student-led extra-curricular activities remain relatively rare. Students I encountered in both rural and urban areas of China were often extremely bright, yet many struggled to verbalize their own opinions or respond to questions that probe beyond the factual level.

Students I encountered in both rural and urban areas of China were often extremely bright, yet many struggled to verbalize their own opinions or respond to questions that probe beyond the factual level.

The program’s innovative curriculum provides a fresh departure from conventional lecture-based learning, yet it also builds upon the requirements of Chinese university entrance exams to ensure buy-in from students and teachers who know their success depends on exam performance. Within the collaborative atmosphere of these student newsrooms – in which student writing is not graded by the teacher, but is critiqued in peer discussions – students are gaining a rare opportunity to be a part of a cooperative and interactive learning environment and to voice their own opinions about issues in their community.

Reinforce your students' understanding of figurative language with VocabularySpellingCity's figurative language lessons, interactive games, printable worksheets, and powerpoint presentations.

When the only Haitian public teacher training institute collapsed in Port-au-Prince as a result of the earthquake, the once sparse availability of professional development opportunities for Haitian teachers became non-existent. Understanding the importance of continuous teacher training, Fanfan Joseph, an English teacher and President of the English Club of Cap-Haitien, organized a four-day training workshop for 50 English teachers in Cap-Haitien. Focusing on lesson planning, reflexive teaching, and cooperative learning techniques in the English as a Foreign Language (EFL) classroom, Joseph trained participants on practical skills that they could use in their classrooms immediately. The participants of this workshop celebrated Joseph’s efforts and encouraged him to organize another workshop, which he promptly did. This September, Joseph’s follow-on workshop focused on skills for effective teaching and learning in large classrooms. Teachers around the world struggle with large class size; a typical school in Haiti can include as many as 250 students in one classroom. The participants in Joseph’s workshops represent many different schools across northern Haiti, and each of them teaches hundreds of students. As a result of Joseph’s workshops, thousands of students across northern Haiti are engaged in interactive classrooms with teachers who have benefited from this recent and relevant training.

Another English teacher, Abel Mercier of Port-au-Prince, recognized that one of the most important things children need during times of crisis is the permission and space to have fun. “The secret to coping with post-traumatic stress in a community after an event such as the earthquake is to promote recreational activities among the children, teenagers, and adults,” says Mercier. This summer, Mercier organized a “Day of Fun” for over 80 high school students from Lycée Cité-Soleil in Port-au-Prince, the capital city that was hardest hit by the earthquake. Students gathered at the beach for a stress-free day of sports, arts, games, and more. By including a short workshop on the geological forces that cause earthquakes, and another on understanding the effects of psychology trauma, Mercier elevated his “Day of Fun” to a meaningful experience for a community in the midst of recovery.

Jovenal Thomas, another English teacher from Cap-Haitien, collaborated with Red Cross volunteers to deliver CPR training to high school students. “There is no Civil Defense Warning Program here, no 911 telephone number to call, limited ambulance service and very little access to medical treatment,” says Thomas. “Students need to be trained to deal with emergencies when they encounter them.”

The Talking Book is a low cost audio computer that shares knowledge and improves literacy.  It is helping impoverished rural families learn to prevent disease and improve their crops. In overcrowded classrooms, children use it to learn from interactive literacy lessons.

the content and delivery of education and how it can reflect and reproduce gender inequalities. Girls’ and boys’ learning and interaction with each other, and the teacher, are influenced by ways of teaching, the content of the curriculum, and relations within the classroom. The paper considers these aspects of education provision – curriculum, teaching and learning, and the dynamics of the classroom and school. It recommends changes needed to ensure that education provision will promote gender equality

potential of adult basic education with gender equality to be transformatory for individuals, and for groups working to address key issues, such as gender-based violence, and HIV/AIDS

The issues — which include not only ensuring access to education for girls and women, but the completion of a good quality education for both boys and girls so that they can use their education to have a positive effect on their futures

She  said this at the Award of Millennium Development Ambassador (MDA) organised by Teachers Without Borders (TWB),  an international Non-governmental Organisation (NGO) dedicated to advancing human welfare through teacher professional development and community education hosted in Abuja where she was given an award in recognition of her efforts in the foundation.

She stressed that teachers constitute the cornerstone in building a world without borders and other forms of barriers that retard growth, development interactions and integration of thr world.

She however lamented that the society has a lot to do to place teachers on a better pedestal, particularly in developing countries . Africa Regional Coordinator, Raphael Ogar Oko , said TWB works to support the United Nations Millennium Development Goals (MDG) through the Millennium Development Ambassadors (MDA)and Millennium Development Volunteers (MDV) program.