Written by Dr. Lawrence Olson
“Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.” (Matthew 28:19-20)
Making disciples: that’s the mission that God has given us. What a sacred responsibility! What a glorious privilege! Continue reading
Written by Dr. Alan Spurgin
Differentiation components are content, process, and product. The fourth component is environment and how differentiation looks in the classroom. How does your classroom stack up to differentiation of content, process, product, and environment? Maybe taking a look at differentiation and implementing the components would give your teaching a boost. Read on to find out how your classroom can look using differentiation. Continue reading
Written by Alan Spurgin
The way teachers were instructed how to teach, even as little as ten years ago, followed this line of thinking: Teachers were to teach to the middle, and those who were very bright (high cognitive ability) would learn in spite of the teacher. The child with low cognitive ability, or the emotionally and behaviorally disturbed child, would do menial tasks. Continue reading
Written by John Meyer
In an earlier blog article, I wrote about a gap that exists between the culture of WELS schools and that of society (see Is It Too Late for WELS Schools?). I propose that one aspect of that gap is the difference between the educational paradigms of 21st-century parents and that of many teachers. A paradigm is a perception of reality based upon one’s experiences and beliefs about a given topic, and it serves as an orienting framework to interpret the world (Kuhn, 1962; Mezirow, 1991). Continue reading
Written by Rebecca Berger
Homework assigned by teachers is an imposition on family time that has not been proven to benefit elementary school (kindergarten through grade 5) students. Educators in the United States have been researching homework for over 80 years without arriving at definitive conclusions about its purpose or efficacy. Continue reading
Written by Rachel Timmermann
Are current classrooms barren of Western heritage? If so, is this lack of classical recognition worth changing? Classical education, with roots in time-proven skills, is an option to successfully educate the next generation of responsible citizens. Continue reading
Written by Timothy Payne
Spanning the globe to bring you the constant variety of grading . . . the thrill of excelling . . . and the agony of failing . . . the human drama of academic competition . . . This is the wide world of grading! Continue reading
Written by Drew Kock
Why do students do homework?
It’s a question that can have a few different angles.
Written by Allen Labitzky
“What is the best way to teach?” It is a question teachers think about frequently. Though lecture remains an effective way to give students information (Berrett, 2012; Clayton, Blumberg & Auld, 2010; Schwerdt & Wuppermann, 2010; Struyven, Dochy & Janssens, 2010), there are limitations (Ernst, 2008; Welker & Berardino, 2005), including problems with the pace of a class (Goodwin & Miller, 2013) and an inability to accommodate different learning styles (Lage & Platt, 2000). In contrast, online classes offer students flexibility, convenience, and differentiated learning strategies (Clayton, Blumberg & Auld, 2010) but lack of face-to-face interaction, fluidity, and immediate feedback (Daymont, et al., 2011, Ernst, 2008). As are result, most students still prefer lecture (Tawil, et al., 2012). Continue reading
Posted on October 15, 2013 Edited September 9, 2017
Written by Andrew Willems
The position of this post is not to pit WELS Lutheran elementary schools against one another, but as the title simply states, to ask the question, “Why should schools move to Google Apps?” Traditionally, human nature resists change. No doubt many people will push back and resist the change to Google Apps. It’s different. Today it offers many features but it isn’t the same as Microsoft/Adobe/whoever. While many high school and colleges across America use it and there is a Google Apps for Business, it’s not industry standard in all institutions. It’s free and sometimes you get what you pay for. Continue reading