Ask The Teacher: A Practitioner's Guide to Teaching and Learning in the Diverse Classroom

Using a straightforward and versatile question and answer approach, the Second Edition of Ask the Teacher speaks directly to the teacher candidate with a wealth of tips about educational issues in foundations, history, psychology, curriculum, methodology, classroom management, and family involvement.

Table of Contents:
  Unit 1: Corner Stones The Competent and Caring Teacher America's Schools Need an Educational Philosophy for a Democratic Society What Early Schools Taught How Public Education Began The Enduring Legacy of Structured Inequality in America’s Public Schools Philosophical Roots of American Education The Contemporary Debate in 21st Century American Education How Teachers Stay Good The Best Way to Teach a Class Become a Nurturing Teacher Mentors Help Students Succeed at High School Why Are Some Teachers Better Than Others Are? A Classroom Conducive to Learning Professional Development: Who Teaches the Teachers? The Mesh of Theory and Practice in Professional Education Programs for At-Risk Students Do Pay Off Quality of Charter Schools Depends on Many Factors Small-Scale Schools Offer Consistently Better Education School Size is Crucial to Child's Success Small Classes Yield Big Results Why Do Some Schools Just Work Well? How Schools Can Get More “Bang for their Buck” Solving the Dropout Problem Effort Is the key to Success in School Nutrition Affects Intellectual Performance Teachers as Leaders A Teacher’s Legal, Ethical and Moral Responsibility The Future of Education Needn't Be Bleak Unit 2: Culture to Culture 21st  Century Roll Call Schools Should Celebrate Ethnic Diversity Ebonics Enters the Language Debate Two-Way System Solves Bilingual Problem Two-Way Bilingual Education Benefits All Roots of Intolerance Teachers and Parents Can Help All Students Succeed Multicultural Education the Right Way to Go Inclusive Schools See Diversity As a Strength Some Children Develop Skills Faster Than Others School's Vision Begins with Educational Platform Teaching the Bilingual Student Multilingual Heritage The United States: An English Speaking Nation or a Multilingual Nation? What Has to Happen for Standards to Work Meeting Standards What U.S. Schools Could Learn from Japan How Can All Students Experience Success? Fostering the Bilingual Child Nurturing the Bilingual Child Attracting Minority Students to Science and Math Mathematics for the English as a Second Language Student Changing Public Schools to Serve All Students Girls Getting the Short End of The Educational Stick Gender in Children's Literature: Cinderella or Cinderfella? Students Will Rise to the Challenge Being “Politically Correct” in School Unit 3: The Why and How of Classroom Psychology There's more Than One Way to Be Smart Bell Curve Isn't the Best Learning Indicator Teachers Don't “Give” Grades Halting Grade Inflation Does the Size of Your Brain Matter? Brain Growth: A Second Bite of the Apple Disposition Drives Cognition Don't Abandon the Academic Ship Mixed-Age Grouping Works What Is Self-Esteem? Help Your Student Beat the Fear of School Self-Esteem Is Everything Students Will Behave with Proper Guidance Student Motivation Understanding a Misunderstood Notion–Student Motivation How to Set Up an Environment Where Students Choose to Become Motivated An Answer for Unsuccessful Learners–Cognitive Retraining Learning Requires a Dual Investment: Time and Effort Best Efforts Are More Important Than Being Exceptional Teacher Expectations a Self-Fulfilling Prophecy Pro-Social Behavior: A Product of Positive Expectations Sidelined Athletes Grumble about Grades Grouping by IQ The Fear of Making Mistakes Educational Research and Common Knowledge A Poor Educational Choice: Grade Retention Social Promotion or Being Held Back–Are These the Only Choices? Four Steps to Enhance Academic Achievement Unit 4: Discipline: Rules of the Road Classroom Discipline That Really Works The Disadvantages of Punishment in the Classroom Punishments and Rewards: One and the Same? Classroom Discipline What Constitutes Appropriate Discipline? Effective Classroom Discipline Homework Helper How to Cope with At-Risk Students Negative Thoughts Lead to Poor Self-Image Behavioral Standards in the Classroom Tackling School Violence Which Works Better–Punishment or Reward? When a Teacher Should Call a Student's Home There's Lots of Hope for Your Shy Student How to Solve the “Bully” Problem Is Spanking Ever a Good Idea? Mutual Respect is Key to Preventing Violence The Gang Problem and a Solution Changing Student Behavior Dealing with Truancy What is Sexual Harassment? How to Deal with Verbal Abuse in the Classroom Sarcasm Has No Place in School Teaching Children How to Behave Habitual Tardiness Is a Symptom, Not a Problem One Size-Fits-All Dress Code Can Seem Like a Straightjacket Unit 5: Testing: Getting It Right Assessment and Evaluation: Knowing the Score Performance Assessment Best Tests What to Do on the Day of an Exam What Are Standardized Tests? What’s Behind No Child Left Behind? How to Prepare for Standardized Tests Preparing for Short-Answer and Essay Tests What is Test Bias? How to Test Children in Lower Grades IQ Tests Are Only One Tool in Measuring Intelligence Tests Should Measure Development, Not Limit a Student's Opportunities A Formula for Success on Quizzes, Tests, and Examinations How to Prepare Students for a Test Using Portfolios to Assess Math Progress Types of Math Portfolio Assessment Six Steps to Better Grades Unit 6: Curriculum: What to Teach Slow Learners Deserve Full Curriculum An Answer to the Diversity Gap in High Schools Where in the World Is Geography? What about Science? Evolution Theory has Roots in Science Why is Spelling So Hard? Finding Out about the World Around You What's the Point of Reading Shakespeare? The Arts are Undervalued What's Going on with Art Programs? Does Pronunciation Matter? Are Physical Education Programs Worth the Time, Effort, and Money? Why is Physical Education taught in Secondary School? The Jump to Junior High or Middle School Middle School Selection of Crucial Importance Are High Schools Getting Tougher? Oral History Project Students Learn a Lot on Field Trips Television has a Place in the Classroom Parents Are Right to Limit TV TV or Not TV, That Is the Question Is PBS a National Treasure? Economics is a Vital Element of Citizenship Education The Language of Mathematics What Is a Portfolio? The Evolution of Literacy   Unit 7: Methodology: How to Teach Collaboration is a Formula for Better Education Working in Groups Can Yield Positive Results Cooperative Learning Leads to Results The Essay Menu A High School Design Flaw: Six Classes a Day, Five Days a Week Replacing the Six-Period School Day A Game Plan to Enhance Student Achievement What is Andragogy? Experiences Affect How and What We Learn Critical Thinking Skills in the Classroom Children Learn Best from Self-Initiated Activities Students Balk at Assignments Getting Homework Done on Time Mixed-Age Activities How to Get Students to Turn in Their Homework The Self-Directed Student Teachers Should Distribute Lecture Notes Real-World Thinking and Problem Solving Collaborative Skills: Teamwork That Lasts a Lifetime How to Teach Conventional Math Classes in a Short Period of Time Teaching Mathematics to Children Four Requisites to Academic Accomplishment Struggling Students Aren't Bad Students Not All Students Work at the Same Pace What are Critical Thinking Skills? Unit 8: Learning to Read, Reading to Learn Encourage Young Readers by Reading Aloud Language Skills are Key to Intellectual Development Taking Steps toward Writing Effective Essays Revision Is an Important Part of an Assignment Learn to Read, Then Read to Learn Integrated Approach to Language Arts Pays Off Newspapers in Class Encourage Reading Like, How Come Kids, You Know, Can't Communicate? The First Lesson in Reading Can Be an Experience Helping Beginning Readers Reading Starts with Identifying Sounds Finding That Inner Voice to Make Reading Enjoyable Help A Child Love to Read Mix of Teaching Strategies Is Key to Reading Success Ways “Poor Students” Can Learn to Read Learn Grammar without Drills Five Ways to Become an Exemplary Listener Q&A Sessions Need Right Kind of Questions Understanding the Textbook How to Encourage Reading Use This Trick to Get a Child to Read Helping a Child Read at Home Questions to Ask about School Reading Programs Early Reading Builds a Lifetime Habit Story Time Helps Children Learn to Read Reading and Writing Work Hand in Hand Unit 9: Inclusion and Service: Yes, That Means Everyone Decisions that Concern Disabled Students Ways to Test Disabled Students Does Your Student Have a Learning Disability? Teaching Special Education Students in the Regular Classroom–a Team Approach Setting Up Learning Environments for Students with Attention Deficit Disorder Will All Non-Gifted Students Please Raise Their Hands? An Inclusive Educational Strategy: Specially Designed Academic Instruction in English Having Friends at School Dealing with Dyslexia Dealing with ADD What is Service Learning? Linking Students in the Classroom with their Communities through Service Learning Nurturing Children of Mixed Heritage Extending the School Day The Most Popular Class Is the One Least Taught Oral History Project a Winner from First Question to Final Presentation A Child's Success a Joint Mission Eliminating Drug Abuse Requires Team Approach After-School Programs to Entertain Children How to Turn Students into Good Citizens Let’s Get Down to Cases 3…, 2…, 1…, Action! Unit 10: Tools of the Trade It's Important to Travel the Information Highway Computers' Impact on Education Why Every Student Isn't on The Information Highway Computers in the Classroom Why Computers Are Important Getting Started on Computers How to Distribute Computers on Campus Are Computers Worth the Expense? Technology in Today's Schools Computer Age Changes Librarians' Roles Learning on the Internet The Best Kind of School Technology Plans Technology Offers a Big Plus to the Instructional Process The Potential of Distance Education Is E-Mail Changing Scholarly Dialogue? Online Classes Change the Concepts of Time and Space How to Teach an Online Course What Makes a Quality Educational Web Site Experience Quality Online Learning Testing by E-Mail Andragogy meets Online Education Online Collaborative Learning Collaborative Online Education Online Access to High School Education   Unit 11: Education: A Family Affair Parents and Teacher Must Work Together Communicating with Parents How to Get Involved in School Reform Reform Movements How to Choose the Best Preschool Preparing a Child for Kindergarten Preschool Checklist Appropriate Teacher Conferences Appropriate Questions at an Open House Unhappy with Your Teacher? What to Expect from a Student Teacher Classroom Visit May Help Concerned Parent How Parents Should Deal with Teachers Father's Involvement Is Very Significant The Powerful Effect of a Father's Involvement on His Children's Education Changing Schools Requires a Community Effort Summer School Approach to Learning School-to-Work Transition Employability Skills Parents are Their Child's First and Most Important Teachers How to Help a Child with Homework A Child's Self-Esteem Helping Your Children with Homework Start Teaching a Child about Nature Now What about Home Schooling? Helping the Unsuccessful Student How to Help a Child Overcome Social Inhibitions Parents' Role in the Education of Their Children How Parents Can Help with Homework Parent Involvement That Pays Off Review a Child's Work to Improve Performance Families Involved in Classroom Learning Experiences Specific Kinds of Family Involvement Really Work Parents’ role in Science and Math Education How to Tell Youngsters about the World of Work Glossary    

About the Author :
Mark Ryan has taught at all grade levels, from elementary classes to university seminars.  He holds a Bachelor’s degree in history from the University of California at Santa Cruz, a Master’s degree from the University of Puerto Rico at Rio Piedras, and a Doctorate in Higher and Adult Education from Arizona State University at Tempe.     From 1994 through 1997 he wrote the Ask the Teacher column syndicated by Copley News Service and was regularly published in such newspapers as the Boston Herald, the Denver Rocky Mountain News, and the San Diego Union Tribune.  In 2004 Dr. Ryan received the President’s Distinguished Teaching Award from National University. He recently co-authored Writing Effective Lesson Plans: The Five-Star Approach, with Peter Serdyukov.