Volume XXXI, No. 29 | December 4, 2009 The Demand to Measure: Destroying the Bloom of Learning Perhaps the most dominant force in education today is the growing demand for “accountability.” Teachers and administrators are commanded to measure educational successes and failures. But what do we measure? And how do we measure it? [...]

Volume XXXI, No. 28 | November 20, 2009 Teaching Compassion On October 8-9, 2009, I attended the Educating World Citizens for the 21st Century conference in Washington D.C. Panelists included neuroscientists, educators, and contemplatives, with His Holiness the 14th Dalai Lama presiding. For six hours each day, the interdisciplinary dialogue attempted to answer [...]

Volume XXXI, No. 27 | November 13, 2009 Everyone Wins: Nursing Students Gain Honors Track While Returning Veterans Gain Academic Support It didn’t happen often, but, when it did, it was always disappointing…Here’s how it would play out….A nursing student would be registering for classes and would express the need to take just [...]

Volume XXXI, No. 26 | November 6, 2009 Personalize, Actionalize, and Socialize! The Chinese proverb observes: “I hear, and I forget. I see, and I remember. I do, and I understand.” Implementing these three concepts that put the proverb into action can help increase student involvement and engagement in a course—“personalizing” the sessions, [...]

Volume XXXI, No. 26 | November 6, 2009 Physical Education Counts Teaching physical education requires degrees in physical education, exercise science, recreation and leisure studies, as well as minors in nutrition, physical sciences, biomechanics, and/or sports medicine. Those of us who teach physical education (PE) come with a plethora of experiences in sports [...]

Volume XXXI, No. 25 | October 30, 2009 Terrified Freshman Authorities: A Collaborative Learning Experiment In my mind, I must have quit graduate school at least 500 times out of fear and frustration. I longed for a written handbook that went beyond the schedule detailing when drafts of my thesis were to be [...]

Volume XXXI, No. 24 | October 23, 2009 Using Music to Build Community and Promote Student Success Nearly everyone enjoys music, and recently I discovered how music can contribute to creating a positive learning environment in my government classes. Through trial and error, I discovered a strategy to use music to build community, [...]

Volume XXXI, No. 24 | October 23, 2009 Writing Centers: Changing the Culture of a College The Quality Enhancement Plan (QEP) at Itawamba Community College is “Raising the Bar: Improving Student Writing Through Early Intervention.” The primary modes of intervention are Writing Centers—one for each of our two campuses and one online. The [...]

Volume XXXI, No. 23 | October 16, 2009 “INTERACTIVE ERRANDS”: TOOLS TO ENHANCE THE COMMUNICATIVE COMPETENCE OF ESL STUDENTS Rationale We all understand that people who leave their native countries have difficulty adjusting to the language and customs of a new land and are likely to have a difficult time locating and using [...]

Volume XXXI, No. 22 | October 9, 2009 Teaching First-Generation College Students Valuable strategies for getting to know your first-generation college students include making good use of written communication, electronic communication, and roundtable conversations. The syllabus is the contract between instructor and student. A teaching tool of standardized elements and strands carried out [...]