Roxanna Elden's Blog, page 24

Rick Hess, Director of Education Policy Studies at AEI

“This is the kind of no-nonsense straight talk that teachers are starved for, but too rarely get. I sure wish this had been available when I was a new teacher. Roxanna Elden tells it like it is, with a heavy dose of practicality, a dash of cynicism, a raft of constructive suggestions, and plenty of wry humor. I recommend See Me After Class, wholeheartedly and unabashedly.”

-Rick Hess, Director of Education Policy Studies at AEI

Shawn Denight, Florida Teacher of the Year

“A great idea for required reading in teacher education classes.”

NPR’s Tell Me More: Education Special and #NPRAspen Twitter Chat

On Monday and Tuesday, July 1 and July 2, 11Am – 12PM EST, Tell Me More will host a live radio broadcast and Twitter chat from the Aspen Ideas Festival in Aspen, Colo., focusing on education and, even more broadly, on learning. Martin will be joined by major players, thinkers and innovators, including John Deasy, superintendent of Los Angeles schools; Shirley Ann Jackson, president of Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute; Joel Klein, former chancellor of New York City Schools; Shabana Basij-Rasikh, co-founder of the School of Leadership Afghanistan; Pamela Cantor, CEO of Turnaround for Children; Danny Kim, founder and CEO of Lit Motors; Joseph P. Parkes, president of Cristo Rey New York High School; Lawrence Scripp, founding director of the Center for Music-In-Education; Jessie Woolley-Wilson, CEO of DreamBox Learning; and authors Madeline Levine, Meg Jay and Paul Tough.

As is always the case with these events, the really, super-important, mega-major-players such as author Roxanna Elden will not be in Aspen. They will be joining the discussion live from their own couches, via Twitter, at #NPRAspen. Because they are so important.

 

 

 

How to Use Class Time During the Last Two Weeks of School (Edweek: Larry Ferlazzo’s Classroom Q&A)

For teachers, summer’s gentle breeze can feel more like a strong headwind. After all, test-pressure season and other stressful parts of the year are over. Now you’ve got materials to pack, grades to finish, and the occasional bird flying into your classroom window and knocking itself unconscious. You’re also starting to suspect that your school’s breakfast program has started serving energy drinks and candy. The temptation to go on autopilot is strong during the final stretch of the school year, but that doesn’t mean veering off course. It just means that in addition to steering your class toward its destination you also need to prepare for a smooth landing. Here are a few tips from me and fellow teacher-author Donalyn Miller on Larry Ferlazzo’s Classroom Q&A.

Middleweb: All About the Middle Grades

“The value (of this book) for a veteran teacher here is the realization that we are not alone. Not even close. For new teachers, Elden’s book is a valuable insider’s look into navigating the school environment – from dealing with parents, to paying attention to the politics of the administration (and colleagues), to remembering that one of the tenets of teaching is that the next day is a new day, and that can be a good thing.” -Reviewer Kevin Hodgson

-Click here to read the full review and other content from Middleweb

Class Dismissed! Find Professional Development in Unexpected Places (Educational Horizons)

If you’re paying attention, the elements of good instruction can be found in many contexts. My newest Class Dismissed! column shares professionally developing experiences that are already a part of your life and don’t involve a single PowerPoint slide.

Class Dismissed! Six Student Study Habits Teachers Need, Too (Educational Horizons)

That’s right: We’re not good at group work either.

My newest Class Dismissed! column calls out those moments when teachers should take notes from our own lectures about staying on task.

Keynote Speech: New Teacher Center’s 2013 Symposium

 

The New Teacher Center is a national non-profit dedicated to improving student learning by accelerating the effectiveness of new teachers and school leaders. Their programs include professional development and one-on-one mentoring to help new teachers get better, faster. Each year, NTC supports over 6300 mentors to improve the effectiveness of 26,000 teachers across the country.

 

If you work with beginning teachers, are involved in a district or state induction program, are immersed in research or policy, or are otherwise interested in ways to support beginning educators, the NTC symposium is the place to be. You will experience all the professional development, inspiration, and continental breakfast action you can handle…

My keynote was called Stronger Than Chicken Soup: What the Souls of New Teachers Really Need. (Don’t act like you don’t know what I’m talking about.)

Want more information? I thought so.

Class Dismissed! An Unscientific Guide to Interpreting Teacher Nightmares (Educational Horizons)

My newest Class Dismissed column for Educational Horizons interprets that dream where you show up to school late in your bathrobe.

Totally non-research-based, non-data-driven, unscientific. You’ll love it.

Department of Education’s “Learning Matters”

Washington Teaching Ambassador Fellow Dan Brown introduced us to this video of National Board Certified Teacher Roxanna Elden giving teachers advice about the “Myth of the Super Teacher.” Read Brown’s blog and view the video of Elden’s humorous presentation, in which she proposes that teachers need more than “chicken soup” to survive the first year in a profession that “makes you or breaks you” very early on. Elden has a website for her book, See Me After Class, which Brown suggests is a must-read for new teachers.