Are you starting a Student Teaching assignment after the new year?  If so, make sure to check out these Student Teaching Survival Tips in order to make the most of your time in training.

I think the most important way for a student teacher to impress the school staff is to listen carefully, choose words wisely, and volunteer to help wherever you can.

What advice do you have for student teachers?

Merit pay for teachers is always a hot topic among those in the field of Education.  Should teachers be rewarded with extra cash when they turn out exceptional results?  Should they be docked pay for not meeting certain standards?

While these concepts may sound reasonable to professionals in other fields, it's not the way things have traditionally been done in schools.  So do you think Education should adapt into a pay-for-results model?  If you're undecided on the issue, check out the Pros and Cons of Merit Pay for Teachers.

In last week's discussion of the factors that influence student success, the majority of the comments echoed the sentiment that the quality of parental involvement plays a major role in how well students perform in school.  Commenter Carolyn summed it up as such:

Unfortunately, many of their parents do not see the need for algebra, history or other basics that make a student a well-rounded person. The parents are often not well educated, either. If we could break this cycle, our test scores would go up because the student would have bought into the notion that education is needed.

Do you think this assertion is taking the concept too far?  Do parental attitudes about education directly impact student scores?

New York Times columnist Bob Herbert recently examined a new program being offered by Harvard University designed to award doctoral degrees to a new generation of leaders in Education.  He also lays out the compelling - and frankly depressing - case for why such a program is urgently needed today.  Interestingly, the program is going to be run "tuition-free."  That's certainly an innovative approach.

To me, the most shocking and demoralizing fact from the article was: "An American kid drops out of high school at an average rate of one every 26 seconds."  Wow.  It's mind-boggling.

What skills do you think today's Education leaders should be taught?

The Los Angeles Times recently profiled a trend in Education: elementary school students sitting on large inflatable exercise balls instead of chairs.  Proponents say that more restless students can better concentrate when sitting on the balls instead of rigid, stationary chairs.  Another benefit is improved posture.  Teachers report that students are less likely to lay their heads down on their desks when sitting on the balls.

Would you consider letting your students sit on exercise balls?  Better yet, have your students already tried it out?  If so, what benefit and/or drawbacks did you observe?

Last week, the About Elementary Education community weighed in on the topic of student test scores determining teacher tenure status.  Most commenters seemed to agree that teachers should not bear full responsibility for how their students perform on a given standardized test.  Reader Genna brought up an interesting (and likely controversial point):

Teachers have a huge responsibility - that is undeniable. But they cannot carry the weight for everyone. Students and parents alike must do their fair share and show interest, motivation, and a desire to learn...and show up!... Is it the teachers that are failing the students?!? I would bet that if you put teachers from high performing schools in the low performing schools that the test scores would not change much if at all...because two very important factors would not have changed - the students and the parents.

I believe that teachers should be held accountable to show progress in student performance over a given school year.  They should have to document all interventions in order to prove that no stone was left unturned in order to help each student gain and grow.  However, I don't think teachers should be blamed and punished if their efforts don't yield results that meet a certain "one size fits all" standard.  Children are complicated, and so is the learning process.  It's difficult to measure with any absolute accuracy.

What say you, educators?

Wow, it's December already - time to start planning our winter holiday activities for the classroom.  Here's a handful of festive ideas to get you started:

• Christmas Math Word Problems
• Christmas Journal Writing Prompts
• Christmas Vocabulary Word Bank
• Christmas Acrostic Poem Lesson Plan

What's your favorite way to celebrate the holidays with your elementary school students?

Last week's blog comments exposed a real rift between new and veteran teachers.  One new educator named Scott had this to say on the topic:

Veteran teachers don't always realize how lucky they are, especially those in teacher unions. In the 'real world', sub-par performance by teachers would not be tolerated. If a teacher would not welcome suggested improvements, he/she would be let go in every other industry. I find it very annoying and embarrassing actually when my tenured colleagues sigh, act out, and file grievances for every little change they are asked to do-changes that alot of research says may help. You say you are a professional, so act like a professional.

Do you think veteran teachers tend to be quick to complain to the union?  Why do you think there is such tension between new and veteran educators?

In a clash with teacher unions, New York City Mayor Bloomberg has announced that student test scores will factor into whether teachers received tenured status or not.  Wow, I can sense the uproar and debate all the way out here on the West coast!

What do you think of this policy?  Should teachers' careers be held up by student test results?  What factors should go into deciding whether a teacher is awarded tenure or not?

The latest trend in test preparation?  Helping three and four year olds get ready for kindergarten admissions tests!  And it's not just for private school admissions.  Many preschool aged children are studying in order to get into public gifted and talented programs.

Do you think this is harmless or excessive?  In my opinion, testing has gotten out of control in our education system.  We should allow children to develop and evolve with less structure and pressure.