Online Scholarship

International Handbook of Research on Children’s Literacy, Learning and Culture

Abigail Angles — Sun, 19 May 2013 00:13:19 +0000

The International Handbook of Research in Children’s Literacy, Learning and Culture presents an authoritative distillation of current global knowledge related to the field of primary years literacy studies.

Features chapters that conceptualize, interpret, and synthesize relevant research
Critically reviews past and current research in order to influence future directions in the field of literacy
Offers literacy scholars an international perspective that recognizes and anticipates increasing diversity in literacy practices and cultures

School groups rally for education funds

Caleb Mort — Mon, 13 May 2013 21:45:04 +0000

HARTFORD, Conn. (AP) — Advocates for charter schools and education reform are holding a rally at the state Capitol, urging Connecticut lawmakers to replenish cuts they’ve made to Gov. Dannel P. Malloy’s education spending proposals.

The Democratic governor, who made education reform the centerpiece of last year’s legislative session, is expected to appear at Thursday’s event on the north steps of the Capitol. Students and clergy are also anticipated to be on hand.

Advocates said the spending plan recently passed by the General Assembly’s Appropriations Committee cuts $47.1 million from Malloy’s education initiatives. For example, the committee included less funding for charter schools and the Commissioner’s Network — an effort to help low-performing schools.

Malloy and legislative leaders are expected to spend the coming weeks negotiating a final agreement on a new, two-year budget.

Q&A with Murphy Hicks Henry, author of Pretty Good for a Girl

Abigail Angles — Sun, 12 May 2013 10:32:30 +0000

Murphy Hicks Henry is a professional banjo player and writer who founded the Women in Bluegrass newsletter and has written regularly for Bluegrass Unlimited and Banjo Newsletter. She answered our questions about her book Pretty Good for a Girl: Women in Bluegrass.

Q: You’re a professional banjo player. Growing up, did you encounter those who dismissed your playing because “you’re a girl.”

Henry: Oh, yes! I don’t think many women in bluegrass have escaped hearing the phrase, “you’re pretty good for a girl.” I know for me, since I was a girl, I felt like I had to play louder, harder, and better than any of the guys around me to be accepted—and respected. That was very important to me. In no way did I wa

Colleges Still Accepting Applications

Alison C. Neese — Fri, 10 May 2013 06:18:12 +0000

The National Association for College Admission Counseling has just released their list of colleges that still are accepting applications for Fall 2013. There are currently 210 colleges around the country with openings for freshman and/or transfer students.

If you are a senior and still have not found a college to attend for Fall 2013 head on over to the list. It provides not just the name of the college and what state they are located in but also whether they have openings for transfer students, have housing available and states if they have financial aid available. However, get over there quickly because as colleges fill up, your options will be much more limited.

Preservation Task Force plans Castle on the Hill memorial

Caleb Mort — Thu, 09 May 2013 04:24:09 +0000

A memorial commemorating the iconic Castle on the Hill is planned for the Alva campus of Northwestern Oklahoma State University by the Northwestern Historic Preservation Task Force.

The Castle on the Hill was built and dedicated in 1898 as attendance and faculty increased at the newly established Northwestern Territorial Normal School, now Northwestern Oklahoma State University. The building’s turrets, battlements and towers gave it its castle-like character, and it was said to be one of the largest and most beautiful normal school buildings west of the Mississippi River.

The Castle burned March 1, 1935, in an uncontrollable fire, which destroyed the building and its contents: library books, historical documents, treasured pieces of art, band instruments and uniforms, museum relics, government publications, pictures and unique furnishings. H

College Grads, Unemployment & More than a Resumé

Alison C. Neese — Sun, 05 May 2013 04:37:30 +0000

While the economy is slowly recovering, some recent college graduates are still struggling to find work.

Last month, Curran Consulting Group analyzed Bureau of Labor Statistics data on unemployment and college graduates. The report stated that 6.4% of young college graduates were unemployed in March 2013. It is true that those with a college degree experience a better chance of being employed , but young college grads are “the group with the greatest debt burden.” And, according to the Economic Policy Institute’s brief The Class of 2013, over ”the next 10 to 15 years, those in the Class of 2013 will likely earn less than if they had graduated when job opportunities were plentiful.”

The context for college graduates and their struggle to find suitable, well-paying work that can help alleviate their student debt provides a fascinating backrgound for a recent study from More than a Resumé.

Read more…

CK School Board set to pick superintendent, board member

Abigail Angles — Sat, 04 May 2013 21:43:56 +0000

The board met Wednesday to go over candidates for the temporary job and picked three finalists: Hazel Bauman, of Coeur d’Alene, Idaho; Larry Parsons, of Roseburg, Ore.; and Stephen Rowley, of Tukwila.

The interim position became available when Greg Lynch asked to be released from his contract July 1 when he takes over as superintendent of the Olympic Educational Service District 114.

The board position opened when Christy Cathcart resigned April 10. Two applicants, Jeanie Schulze and Victoria Crescenzi, applied for the vacancy.

In February, Bauman had her superintendent contract extended by a year by the Coeur d’ Alene School Board, keeping her under contract through June 2016. She was credited by the board with developing safety measures following the shooting at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Connecticut and focusing on data to improve student achievement, according to the Coeur d’Alene Press.

Parsons was named superintendent of the Roseburg School District in 2008. He ha

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Brilliant Blogger of the Week: Peter Richardson

Caleb Mort — Wed, 01 May 2013 17:12:05 +0000

Peter currently teaches Year 3 at a primary school in Preston, having previously taught in years 1, 2, 3 and 4. His blog, PrimaryPete.net is about innovation, classroom teaching and learning, leadership all with an occasional technological slant.

Peter decided to start blogging because he felt that thought that the things that he was doing in his classroom might be of interest to others. He also thought that it would be an interesting record of my teaching career over time.

Peters most popular post is about using Evernote (one of my favourite tools) as a way of recording evidence.

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Reading for Pleasure – Students make their own word games

Abigail Angles — Wed, 01 May 2013 12:33:18 +0000

You have set up the class library and . First of all, congratulations. Next, we need to keep them reading.

Having played Bingo and made some posters, I now ask my students to make some word games based on the stories they are reading. Students usually expect activities around words in a language class, so word games are no surprise. However, games like word search puzzles or crosswords are usually provided by the teacher. In this case, I am going to ask my students to make the games themselves, and more importantly, I am going to show them that the games they make are for their friends to solve.

You can follow the instructions for the word game here. I would like to focus on why we are doing word games and how this is helping our students learn better.

My students have played Bingo and made some posters for their stories.

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Come to Venezuela, learn Spanish and discover the Amazon forest

Alison C. Neese — Wed, 01 May 2013 04:10:21 +0000

A BIT ABOUT THE COUNTRY…

Language

Although Venezuela is mainly monolingual, there are approximately thirty other languages spoken in the country. Immigrants speak their own languages and there are large communities of Portuguese and German people too. English is the most widely spoken foreign language and there are a number of private Italian institutions. Other languages spoken my large areas of people are Chinese and Galician.

Miss Venezuela

Dayana Mendoza won the title of Miss Venezuela 2007 and Miss Universe 2008. Mendoza had to outshine 27 other contestants in order to win Miss Venezuela on the 13^th September 2007 and on the 13^th July 2008, she was crowned Miss Universe at a pageant in Vietnam. M

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How Does Vinegar Kill Candida

admin — Tue, 30 Apr 2013 10:23:41 +0000

There are many differing thoughts on this subject, and it’s quite controversial as to which vinegar to use. Some people claim only raw, unfiltered apple cider vinegar should be used for Candida, while others claim white vinegar is just as good for Candida.

The vinegar works because Candida can only live within certain pH levels, and vinegar regulates the pH of your body. Many foods in the American diet make your blood acidic, foods such as animal protein, dairy such as cheese and milk. I Read more…

Positive Academic Leadership: How to Stop Putting Out Fires and Begin Making a Difference

Abigail Angles — Sun, 21 Apr 2013 14:04:13 +0000

The alternative to negative academic leadership is a style that is essentially positive, taking its cues from the movement known as positive psychology. Rather than devoting all of one’s attention to solving problems, it emphasizes strengthening what’s working well. The difference between negative and positive leadership may be best understood by contrasting why one goes to a doctor and why one goes to a personal trainer. The former tries to heal what’s ailing; the latter tries to strengthen what’s healthy. Positive academic leaders are equivalent to personal trainers for the programs they lead, and the result can be a truly transformative academic experience. This new Read more…

SynergiCity at the Chicago Architecture Foundation

Abigail Angles — Fri, 19 Apr 2013 05:32:54 +0000

If youre looking for something to do in Chicago this month, the Chicago Architecture Foundation (CAF) has an exhibit called SynergiCity: Reinventing the Postindustrial City which roughly coincides with our publication of the book by the same name, edited by Paul Hardin Kapp and Paul J. Armstrong. The Chicago Architecture Foundations online mini-exhibit has information about Midwestern towns featured in the exhibit (and in the book): Chicago, Milwaukee, Minneapolis, St. Paul, St. Louis, and Peoria.

On a related note, the CAF also posts time-lapsed videos of exhibit change overs, including the SynergiCity installation. Youll have to create your own background music.

Selective College Admissions Rates 2013

Alison C. Neese — Wed, 17 Apr 2013 12:53:16 +0000

The New York Times has a chart listing the 2013 College Acceptance Rates for many of the most selective colleges.

The chart lists the name of the college, the number of 2013 total applicants, the number of 2013 applicants accepted, the number denied, the number waitlisted as well as the admit rate for any early admissions program the college has, the regular admit rate and the overall admit rate.

Beneath the 2013 chart are the charts for 2012 and 2011 so that you can compare application and acceptance numbers from the past 3 years.

I am bringing this to your attention because I think it important to understand how competitive college admissions is at some of the most well known colleges.

HOWEVER, do not forget that despite the dismal numbers reflected in these charts, most colleges in the US actually accept most of the students that apply.

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English Teaching Graduate Scheme

Abigail Angles — Tue, 16 Apr 2013 19:08:28 +0000

This new scheme from the British Council will help provide unemployed graduates (from the last three years) with a gateway into an exciting and dynamic career which gives an insight into other cultures and communities while also helping people around the world to meet their own goals and aspirations.The British Council will subsidise successful applicants to study an intensive or part time Trinity CertTESOL or Cambridge CELTA course at a UK training centre which will give them the necessary basic qualifications to go abroad and work as an English teacher.

Successful applicants will receive a British Council training grant of 50% of the course fee (tuition only) of a Cambridge CELTA or Trinity CertTESOL course, to be undertaken in the UK only.

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