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People Need to Know: Confronting History in the Heartland
I am pleased to announce that my book is now available for order from Amazon. From the back cover: People Need to Know follows a group of students as they study the defining event in their community’s history – a 1930 lynching that was captured in one of the century’s most iconic and disturbing photographs. With ambitions of contributing to … Continue reading
Musical composition as public service
You might not typically associate music composition classes with service-learning. Here’s a fascinating example, though, from East Carolina University, of music students composing in a way that makes a lasting contribution to the region. Public Radio East, the local NPR affiliate, needed a new theme song for the program Down East Journal. Host Jared Brumbaugh presented his needs to a composition master class at ECU, solicited … Continue reading
ELA Unit for ELLs and the Common Core
This week, my colleagues and I at the Understanding Language initiative launched a refreshed version of our website, with a new look and easier-to-find resources. The real star of the show, though, is a new instructional unit in English Language Arts. This is a major piece of work. The unit, to be taught over 4 to 5 weeks, features more … Continue reading
Beyond the Bubble
In history education, multiple choice tests are still the dominant mode of assessment. Document based essays have established a position in the field as well, but we lack assessments at a medium grain size that teachers can implement quickly to gauge students’ developing understanding of complex historical skills and concepts–not just their recall of facts–and build on this in planning … Continue reading
Understanding Language
I’m currently working for a project at Stanford Ed School called Understanding Language. Co-chaired by Professor Kenji Hakuta and MarÃa Santos of Oakland Unified School District, this initiative focuses attention on the role of language in subject-area learning, with a special focus on helping English Language Learners meet the Common Core State Standards and Next Generation Science Standards . We’ve … Continue reading
