American schools are continuously called upon to serve many constituents by providing a variety of educational and social services to learners of all ages. However, schools are often hindered by parents who do not understand or are unaware of educational issues and how they impact their children. Now more than ever before, parents need to be informed so that they may become active, knowledgeable partners in the educational process. In Hot-Button Issues In Today's Schools, Sheldon Marcus and Phillip D. Vairo examine contemporary educational issues of paramount concern to parents, including: _

If we want our students to be prepared for a life involved with artificial intelligence, global awareness, cultural understanding, racial, religious and lifestyle diversity, and changing economic and political realities, then we have to change what we are doing in our schools from pre-school to graduate school. We can no longer wait for large-scale reforms to develop, because those reforms will only occur due to some kind of tragedy. If schools are going to reform proactively, educators in each school and in each district have to lead the way.

Success is not the key to happiness, happiness is the key to success'. Albert Schweitzer Research over the last few years has explored the patterns of thinking, feeling and relating that create human success. It is recognised that wellbeing is not a stand alone feature of individuals, rather it is inextricably linked to that individual's ability to flourish and achieve. The connection between education and happiness is firmly established, confirming what teachers already know, happy children learn and perform better than unhappy children. This programme introduces the core elements of positive psychology and conveys them in a clear and practical way for primary aged children. The 15 sessions aim to teach pupils how to: realise their personal strengths; connect healthily with others; build friendships; and, reach out to trustworthy adults. There are full facilitator notes with all the necessary resources to run an interactive programme that will be delivered with a sense of fun, to engage and inspire all learners. To support the programme the book also contains a section on the key concepts of positive psychology that underpin the sessions, a PowerPoint for staff training and a downloadable resources with copiable resources and useful websites.

The fifth edition of FOCUS ON COLLEGE SUCCESS recognizes the varied experiences of today's students and guides them to be more mindful, motivated, productive, and focused. The text's research-based approach builds a solid foundation, helping students to see the relevance of this course. Increased attention is given to diversity, mindfulness, resilience, grit, financial literacy, technology, and productivity, college-related "life hacks," alternative presentation e-tools, and the newest strategies in career planning. Many students today are distracted, over-optionalized, and over-obligated. FOCUS ON COLLEGE SUCCESS addresses these issues head-on, creating teachable moments — and concrete results — in every face-to-face or online learning experience. New for 2021: Empower your students to connect the dots between what they’re learning now and their current or future careers with “How Transferable Are Your Skills?� – a new MindTap activity that challenges students to identify how their personal and academic experiences can help them become career-ready.

Imperfect Heroes is intended to help teachers flourish during challenging times. The book is written for all educators, but especially those who seek renewal in their ability to help students learn and grow. Included are the inspiring and motivational stories of twelve "Teaching Heroes." Successful leaders, writers, and artists face challenges strikingly similar to obstacles faced by teachers. Iconic individuals often use life hardships as a springboard to achieve higher levels of effectiveness. Teachers can do this, too. Personal, career, and relational roadblocks are universal, and much can be learned from how heroes have turned trials into successes. The main idea of this book is that learning about the lives of people different from ourselves can provide large benefits. The application of ideas from new and divergent sources to our teaching practices can result in transformative growth in our ability to help others learn. Teachers can use the hero stories intertwined with classroom examples to gain confidence, motivate students, and renew their commitment to making a positive contribution to the world.

Higher education is the site of an ongoing conflict. At the heart of this struggle are the precariously employed faculty 'contingents' who work without basic job security, living wages or benefits. Yet they have the incentive and, if organized, the power to shape the future of higher education. Power Despite Precarity is part history, part handbook and a wholly indispensable resource in this fight. Joe Berry and Helena Worthen outline the four historical periods that led to major transitions in the worklives of faculty of this sector. They then take a deep dive into the 30-year-long struggle by California State University lecturers to negotiate what is recognized as the best contract for contingents in the US. The authors ask: what is the role of universities in society? Whose interests should they serve? What are the necessary conditions for the exercise of academic freedom? Providing strategic insight for activists at every organizing level, they also tackle 'troublesome questions' around legality, union politics, academic freedom and how to recognize friends (and foes) in the struggle.

Once the honeymoon days of acceptance and admittance to medical school are over, most medical students suddenly find themselves faced not only with the grueling course work of basic sciences that precede even more harrowing clinical studies, but also with questions of self-doubt, resocialization, alienation from friends and family, and career angst. The experience of medical school turns out to be not the imagined flight of intellectual self-actualization but rather a grinding struggle to cram too much information into too few hours, with precious little time for recreation or a social life. And every step of the way the student is haunted by the question, did I do the right thing? Based on years of studying and working with medical students, Robert H. CoombsÆs Surviving Medical School offers both an orientation to the hectic, anxious realm of medical education and a resource for coping with and succeeding in that environment. Coombs begins with questions regarding expectations and intellectual and emotional capacities. The author then examines matters related to career doubt and alienation often experienced by medical students. Following an orientation to the clinical experience, the book concludes with discussions about physician fallibility, residency, and professional practice. Surviving Medical School is a must read for medical students at all levels, and provides excellent preparation for baccalaureate students anticipating medical school. It also serves as a valuable shelf reference for medical school instructors, advisors, and counselors.

From the "Good Schools Guide" team, this is a new independent guide to Special Educational Needs (SEN), from mild dyslexia to the most severe conditions. It features in-depth reviews of some 350 mainstream and specialist schools that cater mainstream and special schools - no advertising or paid-for entries.One in five UK schoolchildren are diagnosed at some time in their school career as having a Special Educational Need (SEN) - some one hundred and fifty thousand new diagnoses a year. For the parents this is a time of great anxiety. What does it mean? How can I help? What should the school be doing about it? Is moving schools the answer? Where can I get help and advice?This new guide from the well-established "Good Schools Guide" team provides the answers. It describes the SEN system and the various SEN diagnoses - from dyslexia to ADHD to Asperger's Syndrome. It lists the many sources of information and advice that parents might turn to; how to navigate the system, what makes a good school for a child with SEN; and, how to screen out those with their head in the sand. All sorts of people involved with children with SEN have written sections on their own experiences parents, teachers, professionals and the children themselves. The book concludes with write-ups on over 700 schools, from the established to the almost unknown, from state to the private sector; mainstream, special and combined.The Guide comes with free access to a website containing details of all the 1500+ special schools in the UK, as well as many mainstream schools that have provided the GSG team with SEN data.

In 2019, there were more than two million children being homeschooled. That number doubled during the pandemic and is now likely to continue increasing as more parents worry that school might not be the best place for their children to learn and grow. Teach Your Own helped launch the homeschooling movement; now, its timeless and revolutionary message of recognizing the ways children come to understand the world has been updated for today's environment. Parents and caregivers will discover how to navigate: - Learning in a classroom versus learning in the world - The difference between a learning difficulty (which we all experience every time we try to learn anything) and a learning disability. - Schedules that achieve the homeschooling-work-life balance that you want as a family - The relationship between learning and playHomeschooling and technology - And much more. John Holt's warm understanding of children and his passionate belief in every child's ability to learn have made this book an essential resource for over forty years to homeschooling families.

Technology has become a necessary and everyday part of studying. This book starts with effective practice in learning, and shows how technology can support that good practice. The authors show you the many ways in which online and mobile technologies can be used for study and give you guidance on how best to use them for learning in higher education, whether that is at college or university, or within your workplace. This wide-ranging survival guide combines advice on effective learning, with practical tips on using technology successfully to give you a smart approach to accessing, recording, sharing and revising information and knowledge. An efficient learning strategy with technologies will help you develop independence and self direction, so that when faced with a bewildering choice of web-based resources you are confident about how much to read, and when to stop. The approaches, skills and techniques discussed in this book will be of value to you not only in your formal course of study, but also in any other learning you might wish to undertake in future. In an increasingly competitive job market this will also be attractive to prospective employers.

This book offers a range of personal and engaging stories that highlight the diverse voices of doctoral students as they explore their own learning journeys. Through these stories, doctoral students call for an academic environment in which the discipline-specific knowledge gained during their PhD is developed in concert with the skills needed to maintain personal wellbeing, purposely reflect on experiences, and build intercultural competence. In recent years, wellbeing has been increasingly recognised as an important aspect of doctoral education. Yet, few resources exist to help those who support doctoral students. Wellbeing in Doctoral Education provides a voice for doctoral students to advocate for improvements to their own educational environment. Both the struggles and the strategies for success highlighted by the students are, therefore, invaluable not only for the students themselves, but also their families, their social networks, and academia more broadly. Importantly, the doctoral students' stories should be a clarion call for those in decision-making positions in academia. These narratives demonstrate that it is imperative that academic institutions invest in providing the skills and support that doctoral students need to succeed academically and flourish emotionally.

Imperfect Heroes is intended to help teachers flourish during challenging times. The book is written for all educators, but especially those who seek renewal in their ability to help students learn and grow. Included are the inspiring and motivational stories of twelve "Teaching Heroes." Successful leaders, writers, and artists face challenges strikingly similar to obstacles faced by teachers. Iconic individuals often use life hardships as a springboard to achieve higher levels of effectiveness. Teachers can do this, too. Personal, career, and relational roadblocks are universal, and much can be learned from how heroes have turned trials into successes. The main idea of this book is that learning about the lives of people different from ourselves can provide large benefits. The application of ideas from new and divergent sources to our teaching practices can result in transformative growth in our ability to help others learn. Teachers can use the hero stories intertwined with classroom examples to gain confidence, motivate students, and renew their commitment to making a positive contribution to the world.

Connect and Involve: How to Connect with Students and Involve Them in Learning is a practical handbook of strategies and procedures for teaching at all grade levels-elementary, middle, and high school. The secret to increasing teaching effectiveness is to make small changes in what teachers think and do-and to get their students to make small changes in what they think and do. Every time teachers connect with students and involve them in learning, teachers engage them in powerful ways that make it more likely that they will choose to learn and to do quality work. This book shows how to be a more effective teacher through small changes in planning and classroom procedures. Each chapter focuses on a key strategy, and each chapter head and its subheads are an outline of how to put the strategy into practice. Teachers can preview all the ideas by reading the chapter titles, heads, and subheads. There are no prescriptions here; teachers bring their expertise on the age group, the subjects they teach, and the big ideas and key skills students need to achieve on high-stakes testing. The strategies and procedures provide ways for teachers to evaluate where small changes can make a difference in achievement for their students.

This book greatly simplifies the complex process of choosing a major by leading students through personal, academic and occupational information searches. It offers a natural progression for decision making by using thought-provoking activities to explore themselves before exploring majors. Whether choosing or changing a major, the discovery process examines different perspectives, such as relating interests, skills and values to academic fields of study, searching a national system that identifies many academic majors, and exploring majors available at their own institution. Once specific academic alternatives are identified, a search of occupational information helps students examine the career possibilities that specifically relate to the majors they are considering.

Studying for your Policing Degree is PERFECT for anyone wanting to train to become a police officer. After reading this fully comprehensive guide you will understand: the structure and culture of HE, and how policing fits into it what to expect, and what will be expected of you, as a university student teaching and assessment methods within policing, so that you can perform to the best of your ability in an academic environment how to manage your policing studies in an effective way and make the most of the resources available to you. The books in our Critical Study Skills series will help you gain the knowledge, skills and strategies you need to achieve your goals. They provide support in all areas important for university study, including institutional and disciplinary policy and practice, self-management, and research and communication. Packed with tasks and activities to help you improve your learning, including learner autonomy and critical thinking, and to guide you towards reflective practice in your study and work life. Uniquely, this book is written by a subject specialist and an English for Academic Purposes (EAP) expert.

White teachers in multiracial schools are looking for ways to understand how to make a difference with their students of color in their classrooms. This book will help teachers make that difference.

The Caring Solidarity framework is both descriptive and aspirational. It is an attempt to empower White teachers to do the work of interrogating their racial privilege and join in Caring Solidarity with their African American students. The framework can be used to describe teachers who are working in Caring Solidarity with their students and to develop teachers with intention toward Caring Solidarity. We are in a unique historical moment that demands White teachers become more effective in their schools, classrooms, and communities and for researchers to find ways to describe those teachers who build relationships of solidarity with students. Considering today's tenor of the conversation around race, picking up this book and considering its contents is an act of defiance of the current climate, and/or one of devotion to the art and craft of teaching children. Caring Solidarity is not a replacement for current frameworks such as Culturally Sustaining Pedagogy or Abolitionist Pedagogy but is a map for White teachers to journey toward those pedagogies. Everyone starts from somewhere. The path is winding and long but the goal, to create an equitable and humane classroom, is worth the trip. The purpose of this theory is to point the way.

This fully updated second edition is an essential reference book that contains a wealth of resources and practical information relating to the education and care of children with special educational needs. Within its pages you will find an accessible, jargon-free overview of current SEN policies and how they affect parents, teachers and children; contact details of over 1,000 selected organizations, charities and services that exist to help the child with special educational needs; an extensive glossary of terms and medical conditions associated with special education; pointers to useful resources on the Internet; the names and addresses of Local Education Authorities, all of which can provide information on inclusive schooling; the names and addresses of over 1,800 special schools in the UK; and advice on how to make links with other professionals, to ensure all children with special educational needs are getting the attention to which they are entitled. Any teacher, teaching assistant, parent or caregiver of a child or children with special educational needs will find this book a useful companion.

Expert guidance for international families and students applying for admission to US universities Written by an experienced international educator and counselor, The International Family Guide to US University Admissions is an indispensable resource for the vast and increasing number of students applying for places at US Universities each year. Beginning with an introduction that explains to both students and parents how the book works and why, it offers milestones that must be completed during said application time period, a tried-and-true handbook that corresponds with each chapter, pop-outs that provide expert insight and resources that you should utilize throughout the process. Every year, hundreds of thousands of international students and their families must go through the painstaking, complicated, confusing and culturally baffling process that is US university admissions. Until now, there has been no single resource for readers to turn to for holistic, accurate and up-to-date advice on the subject. Following the timeline of the US university admissions cycle, the book guides the parents and the student through the entire process in order to ensure that they are pacing themselves appropriately from preparation to submission and through to applying for student visas. It serves as an advisor throughout the process, providing insightful advice by parents and students that are relevant to specific milestones. With the help of this book, you'll discover how to make sense of the US admissions system from start to finish. * Understand the application and evaluation process in depth in order to be an informed and successful applicant * Make your schooling selection from over 3,000 US universities by understanding what would make a good fit for the student * Learn what is expected of you in writing essays, why it is important, and how to create beautiful, genuine writing pieces reflective of your outlook in life * Enjoy case studies and words of advice from the author's former students and their families * Understand the difference between the SAT and ACT exams Whether you're an international student living outside of the US or an ex-pat living abroad, you'll find answers to all of your questions all in one place.