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"Larry Ferlazzo's Websites of the Day…" - 5 new articles
Sentences Of The Week Darkmoon_Art / Pixabay I thought readers might, or might not, find this new weekly post useful. I’m planning on highlighting several sentences, with links to their sources, that I found interesting/concerning/useful. And they may, or may not, be directly connected to education. I may also include my own comments or related links. This regular post will join my other regular ones on teaching ELLs, education policy, Artificial Intelligence, infographics, and Pinterest highlights, not to mention sharing of my regular Education Week posts. Here are this week’s sentences: During his kid’s hybrid class, a kid’s apt building was raided onscreen. “Remember your why” … are the three worst words any administrator or professional development trainer has uttered in the past decade. A family’s bank account matters more than a wedding ring. (also see The Best Articles Questioning The View That Single Parents Are A Problem) “I want to be able to play on the team with my friends, and that’s all I’ve wanted to do,” she said. You’re not allowed to take teenagers out of their car and detain them when they are in fact American citizens. (see my Ed Week series on what’s happening in Minnesota) At Lenape High School in Lenape, N.J., teachers can choose their own PD and find experts on campus to teach them new skills. Student and teacher survey measures most strongly connected with attendance included relationships with peers and teachers; finding value and meaning in classes; sense of safety; and teacher-parent relationships. (see The Best Resources On Student Absenteeism) Try to teach something to someone who doesn’t really want to learn it, who doesn’t really think they can learn it. (This is why continue to “teach” in my retirement, albeit as a volunteer tutor in Juvenile Hall and with ELLs at an elementary school) Schools can be places where students understand one another, or they can become places of intense surveillance. “Before it was always just about putting out the fire, but now it’s about celebrating wins.” (also see The Best Resources For Learning About How Class Size Does Matter) Several of Minnesota’s largest school districts, including those of Minneapolis and St. Paul, are offering students the option to learn remotely amid a federal immigration crackdown that has left many families on edge. (I saw that a fair number of “Open School” fanatics who are still complaining about distance learning during COVID were having a fit over this over social media. They don’t understand what a nightmare hybrid learning is for teachers, and the sacrifice they are making to support their students. Or, maybe they understand it, and just don’t care?) I miss believing that we Americans could never be led by a fearmonger to commit atrocities he claimed were necessary and good. When I speak about making our city more affordable, my vision is not limited to the homes that we live in or the child care that we’re making universal — it’s also a vision where we make it possible for working people to afford lives of joy, of art, of rest, of expression.
     SEL Weekly Update
I’ve begun this weekly post where I’ll be sharing resources I’m adding to The Best Social Emotional Learning (SEL) Resources or other related “Best” lists. Also, check out “Best” Lists Of The Week: Social Emotional Learning Resources. Here are this week’s picks: Moms Demand Action Founder on What It Takes to Lead Change is from The Harvard Business Review. I’m adding it to The Best Posts & Articles On Building Influence & Creating Change. The Conflict Intelligent Leader is from HBR. Here Is the Science of Why You Doomscroll is from The NY Times. I’m adding it to The Best Resources On Helping Students Make Good Decisions. How to Help Kids Succeed is from Freakonomics. I’m adding it to Best Posts On “Motivating” Students.
 A Look Back: How Much “Content” Knowledge Do You Really Need To Be An Effective Teacher?For the next several months, each week I’ll be republishing posts from the past that I think readers might still find useful. This post first appeared in 2016. Several years ago, I wrote a post that received many comments titled How Much “Content” Knowledge Do You Really Need To Be An Effective Teacher? I think it’s worth checking out, and here’s how I ended it: The dictionary says the definition of power is “the ability to act.” Some say that information is power. I don’t agree. I think it’s what you do with that information is what determines if you have power — what actions you take. And, in the context of being an educator, it’s not the information I know that determines how much power I have — it’s my ability to share it, to help others want it, and to help them figure out how they can also get it on their own so they can be life-long learners. A study that came out last week seems to have reinforced my position. You can read about it at Education Week’s post, Study: Improving Teachers’ Math Knowledge Doesn’t Boost Student Scores. Here’s an excerpt:
As I said in my original post on the topic, I don’t think it has to be an either/or decision, but I continue to be concerned about “alternative credentialing” programs that put a primacy on subject knowledge and a lower priority on instructional skills. What do you think?  Five AI-Created Infographics Sharing Info On AI Research & My RecommendationsEarlier today, I published Excellent Summary Of Research On AI & Learning, But Recommendations Are Pretty Weak. In addition to critiquing the report’s recommendations, I shared my own. For the hell of it, I had AI create five different infographics sharing the contents of that post. The first four are from ChatGPT and the final one is from Infography. Do with them what you will!
 Ed Tech Digest
Ten years ago, in another somewhat futile attempt to reduce the backlog of resources I want to share, I began this occasional “Ed Tech Digest” post where I share three or four links I think are particularly useful and related to…ed tech, including some Web 2.0 apps. You might also be interested in checking out all my edtech resources. Here are this week’s choices: This seems a little odd, but maybe useful: PDF Link turns your PDFs into url links. Geowordle has a lot of geography games. I’m adding it to The Best Online Geography Games. Timdle is a game where you have to put historical events into chronological order, sort of like a less well-designed Flashback (a NY Times game).
I’m adding this next post to New Studies Suggest That Cellphones Make Students Learn Less & Make Them Feel Worse Mentally. Is That True &, If So, What Do We Do?:
Internet Infrastructure Map is pretty interesting. I’m adding it to The Best Sites To Learn About The Internet. Woman With Attitude has great historical stories about women adventurers. I’m adding it to The Best Sites For Learning About Women’s History.  More Recent Articles
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