A thorough overview of elementary education in the United States, spanning its history, foundations, curriculum models, technology, assessment, and special programs. Elementary Education: A Reference Handbook takes readers on an all-inclusive journey through the history and current status of elementary education in America. The handbook first examines the historical, philosophical, social, and cultural foundations of elementary education. It then delves into the fascinating topic of how children learn, including racial identity formation, culturally differing cognitive thinking styles, and language developments. A critical investigation of issues relating to the curriculum reveals its purpose, types, and models, weighing the impact of technology and providing a historical review of key subjects, from language arts to physical education. Are the results of standardized testing and high-stakes testing realistic and fair? This handbook explores these and other key questions in a detailed discussion of assessment and evaluation methods. Covers foundations, key events, contributors to elementary education, theories of learning, curriculum models, instructional practices, best practices, school reform, trends, and issues in elementary education Provides a chronology of elementary and public education from Plessy v. Ferguson through the No Child Left Behind Act

In today's society where most students own MP3 players, engage in constant instant messaging and downloading from the Internet, more than ever school administrators and staff should be aware of issues in administration, policy, and applications. This book provides a comprehensive presentation of current policies and practices of technology in K12 schools. The first part of the book lays out the foundation of what schools should be concerned about involving various aspects of technology and its impact on school administration and teaching.

The second part of the book introduces technology, policy and philosophical discussions on the use of technology in schools.

The third section of the book provides an examination of technology of practical applications of technology currently used in schools.

Sharon Tettegah holds faculty appointments in the Department of Curriculum and Instruction and Educational Psychology. She also has appointments with the National Center for Supercomputing Applications and the Beckman Institute at the University of Illinois, Urbana Champaign.

Richard C. Hunter is a faculty member, and former chair in the Department of Educational Organization and Leadership in the College of Education at the University of Illinois, Urbana Champaign.

The effectiveness of Education for Sustainable Development depends on the ability of schools and teachers to embrace pedagogies that reduce the gap between the rhetoric of education for the environment and the reality of classroom practices. This book responds to the need to better understand the nature of the relationships between agency and structure that contribute to the development of educational rhetoric-reality gaps in order to inform processes that most effectively facilitate pedagogical change. This book explores the issues of pedagogical change through the experiences of Australian primary school teachers faced with the challenge of implementing an environmental education program in which young students were positioned as active participants in the social processes from which environmentally sustainable practices could be developed. These teachers were required to adopt pedagogies that often represented the antithesis of their well-established teacher-directed approaches. Through the use of Anthony Giddens' Theory of Structuration this book provides unique perspectives of the teacher mediated manner in which certain elements of structure and agency interrelate to enable and constrain classroom practices-essential understandings for school principals and educational policy developers who aim to effectively implement pedagogical change. This book also demonstrates that the Theory of Structuration provides a valuable ontological research framework, and provides social researchers with practical guidance for how to relate this theory to specific research issues.

A volume in Contemporary Perspectives in Early Childhood Education Series Editors Olivia N. Saracho and Bernard Spodek This volume provides a comprehensive critical analysis of the research in mathematics education for young children. The researchers who conducted the critical analysis focused on the relationship between (1) mathematics learning in the early years and domain specific approaches to cognitive development, (2) the children's social learning and their developing understanding of math, and (3) the children's learning in a natural context and their understanding of mathematics concepts. The work of these scholars can help guide those researchers who are interested in pursuing studies in early childhood mathematics in a specific area of study. This volume will facilitate the research conducted by both novice and expert researchers. The volume has accomplished its major goals, which consists of critically analyzing important research in a specific area that would be most useful in advancing the field and provide recommendations for both researchers and educators.

This volume begins with an overview of theories supporting natural language development-Piagetian, Vygotskian, and cognitive or information processing. Following the theoretical basis for natural language processes in reading and writing, chapters explore the following: how young children acquire rapid growth in oral language without direct instruction; the universality of play in language learning; and portfolio assessment. The contributors develop specific approaches for developing literacy, as chapters focus on the development of preschool early writing, in-school techniques for developing effective collaborative writing experiences, recommendations for creating and facilitating literacy classrooms, children's literature, metacognition in the reading process, and the notion of the theme unit through literature.

The Language and Thought of the Child By JEAN PIAGET Professor at the University of Neuchatel and at the Institut J. J. Rousseau, Geneva Preiace by PROFESSOR E. CLAPAREDE NEW YORK HARCOURT, BRACE COMPANY, INC. LONDON KEGAN PAUL, TRENCH, TRUBNER CO., LTD. 1926 Translated by MARJORIK WARDEN CONTENTS PAGE PREFACE ix FOREWORD . . . . . . . xix CHAPTER I THE FUNCTIONS OF LANGUAGE IN TWO CHILDREN OF SIX I I. The material ....... 5 I. An example of the talk taken down, 6 2. The functions of child language classified, 9 3. Repetition echolalia, ii 4. Monologue, 13 5. Collective monologue, 18 6. Adapted information, 19 7. Criticism and derision, 26 8. Commands, requests, threats, 27 9. Questions and answers, 28. II. Conclusions 34 10. The measure of ego-centrism, 34 n. Conclusion, 37 12. Results and hypotheses, 43. CHAPTER II TYPES AND STAGES IN THE CONVERSATION OF CHILDREN BETWEEN THE AGES OF FOUR AND SEVEN SO i. Check of the coefficient of ego-cenmsm, 51 2. Types of conversation between children, 52 3. Stage I Collective monologue, 56 4. Stage HA, First type Association with the action of others, 58 5. Stage UA, Second type Collaboration in action or in non vi CONTENTS abstract thought, 60 7. Stage I IB, First type Quarrelling, 65 8. Stage IIu, Second type Primi tive argument, 68 9, Stage IIlB Genuine argument, 7010, Conclusions, 73. CHAPTER III UNDERSTANDING AND VERBAL EXPLANATION IJEWEEN CHILDREN OF THE SAME AGE BETWEEN THE YEARS OF SIX AND EIGHT. 76 i. The method of experiment, 792. Parcelling out the material, 86 3. Numerical results, 944, Ego-centrism in the explanations given by one child to another, 99 5. The ideas of order and cause in the expositions given by the explainers, 1076. Thefactors of understanding, 119 7. Conclusion. The question of stages and the effort towards objectivity in the accounts given by children to one another, 124. CHAPTER IV SOME PECULIARITIES OF VERBAL UNDER STANDING IN THE CHILD BETWEEN THE AGES OF NINE AND ELEVEN 127 7. Verbal syncretism, 131 2, Syncretism of reasoning, 136 3. The need for justification at any price, 1454, Syncretism of understanding, 1505. Conclusion, 157. CHAPTER V THE QUESTIONS OF A CHILD OF SIX . . 1 62 I. f Whys 164 I. Principal types of whys, 166 2. Whys of causa explanation. Introduction and classification by material 171 3. Structure of the whys of explanation 1804. Whys of motivation 1885. a Whys of justification, 1 191 - 6, Conclusions, 197. LUJNIJiJNIb vn II. Questions not expressed under the form why . 199 7. Classification of Dels questions not expressed under the form, why, 199 8. Questions of causal explanation, 202 9. Questions of reality and history, 207 10. Ques tions about human actions and questions about rules, 214 ii. Questions of classification and calculation, 216. III. Conclusions 217 12. Statistical results, 217 13. The decline of precaus ality, 223 14. Conclusion. Categories of thought or logical functions in the child of seven, 227. APPENDIX 239 INDEX 245 PREFACE THE importance of this remarkable work deserves to be doubly emphasized, for its novelty consists both in the results obtained and in the method by which they have been reached. How does the child think How does he speak What are the characteristics of his judgment and of his reasoning For half a century the answer has been sought to these questions which are those which we meet with at the very threshold of child psychology. Ifphilosophers and biologists have bent their interest upon the soul of the child, it is because of the initial surprise they experienced at his logic and speech. In proof of this, we need only recall the words of Taine, of Darwin and of Egger, which are among the first recorded in the science of child logic. I cannot give a list here of all the works that have appeared since that period those of Preyer and of Sully, of P...

In recent years retrieval practice has continued to grow in prominence and interest - an evidence-informed effective teaching and learning strategy that supports all learners. After extensive reading, engaging with research and working with schools, Kate Jones has written a guide that explores how retrieval practice can work in a primary school context. The book begins with research then focuses on classroom application, covering curriculum design, task and question design with retrieval practice and how to embed retrieval practice as part of the language of learning across the wider school community. This is an essential read for teachers and leaders at all levels looking to effectively embed retrieval practice in their primary classroom.

Written by experts in the field, this book explains the principles of effective vocabulary instruction for the modern language classroom. While many language classrooms rely on practices which can be outdated, idiosyncratic or ill-advised, this book overviews the research and background necessary to successfully integrate vocabulary instruction into the curriculum in a systematic way. Starting with the common gaps in vocabulary instruction, Milton and Hopwood demonstrate how students' development of a large, communicative lexicon, with an understanding of word structure and collocations, is an essential component of language instruction. The book addresses goal setting, curriculum design, word selection, how words are learned, learning in and outside of the classroom and more. It also addresses common myths about teaching vocabulary in the United Kingdom and around the world. This comprehensive text fills an important gap in the literature and is ideal for undergraduate and postgraduate courses in world language/foreign language methods and language methods courses.

Since the mid-1970s a shift in perspective has occurred on the relationship between TV and young viewers. Researchers, parents, teachers, policymakers, and consumer advocate groups have shown increased criticism of televisions's role as social educator, babysitter, agent for mass consumer socialization, and perpetrator of questionable social values, morals, and mythical human behaviors. Educators intersted in understanding the complex and wide-ranging contrversies about the influence of television on children will find much in this edited collection to clarify their understanding of the empirical research, educational practice, and national policy issues raised by the relationship between TV and children.

The empirical and theoretical studies in Part I explore the interactive relationship between TV and the child viewer. In opposition to the widely held view that the child is a passive recipient of TV information, these studies show that children's background knowledge and their cognitive and experimental skills influence how they interpret TV content, symbolic form, and ultimately, its influence on what kind of learning takes place. The effects of reciprocal relationships of TV violence, commercial advertising and reading ability are investigated in other chapters in this section. Part II moves to practical educational questions and presents approaches to curriculum design for the teaching of critical and literate viewing skills. Innovative curricula, based on principles of liberal education, which encourage active and critical viewing, are spelled out in detail. Part III compares the policies of governments in industrialized nations in assuring the quality of children's television. An annotated list of studies and position papers published from 1975 to 1983 concludes this work.

Hope or Despair? asks what promotes and what holds back student learning in Pakistan's government-sponsored primary schools. Using a national sample of schools, students, teachers, and supervisors, it shows how learning is affected by student background, teachers and teaching, school supervision, facilities, and innovation. It is the first book to use achievement tests based on the national curriculum to show influences on learning in the primary schools of an entire developing country. The study also explores why some students complete primary school and others do not. The overall quality of education in Pakistan's government primary schools is low, but student learning rises with the teacher's formal education and with certain teaching practices. Student social class, a strong influence on learning in the United States, makes little difference in Pakistan. Whether the teacher is male or female has no relationship to learning in science, but it does affect achievement in mathematics. Neither supervision nor school facilities are related to achievement. This unique study will be of great interest to those concerned with schooling effectiveness in developing countries as well as to economists, sociologists, and political scientists interested in human resources in those countries.

* Parent engagement is a hugely powerful tool in maximising children's outcomes in the primary school. * This book will enable you to evaluate your current practice in this crucial area of school life and suggest ways in which you can plan and deliver improvements successfully. * Provides five key drivers for leaders, teachers, support staff, volunteers and governors * Includes recommendations from a wide range of international sources, including John Hattie, Bill Lucas and Janet Goodall * Case studies exemplify some of the most successful techniques and programmes currently in use to encourage and facilitate * Includes easy-to-use tools to support their strategic thinking and school improvement activity.

High stakes testing, standards, and accountability politics is taking us away from the importance of the affective domain in curriculum development. This critical learning domain is often an unrecognized and infrequently considered topic in the literature. Through this book we extend the current knowledge base by addressing a curriculum model developed in the 1980s. We add a 2012 knowledge base as we delineate the role of self-perceptions in school-related learning, how middle level curriculum affects self-perceptions, and the type of curriculum planning which enhances self-perceptions and improves learning in the cognitive, affective, and psychomotor domains. The combination of sound psychological principles and practical teaching and curriculum suggestions with an empirical basis makes the book attractive to both higher education and local school professional libraries. In the former it will serve as the primary text in graduate and advanced undergraduate middle level education programs and practices courses. It might also be a primary text in courses or workshops in affective education or other experiences which emphasize affective, values, and self-concept. It also has potential as a supplementary text in undergraduate educational psychology courses. At the in-service level this book could be used as a workshop resource or as a professional reference for middle level teachers, administrators, curriculum workers, and supervisors. Our interest in young adolescents and their school setting coincides with the fourth edition of This We Believe (NMSA, 2010). The self-enhancing school is characterized by "from-to" statements; for example, "from" avoiding parents "to" working with parents. Using theory and research we discuss the costs of staying in the "from" position and the benefits derived from moving to the "to" position. By combining educational psychology and curriculum development we make a unique contribution to middle grades curriculum developers.

This book is a report on the academic achievement assessment of Grade-6 students in primary school with a large-scale sample for the first time since the new curriculum reform. This report consists of the general report, reports on the four subjects of Chinese, Mathematics, Science and Morality and Society, the questionnaire survey report and assessment instruments. This report states the complexion of students' academic achievement including achievements and shortcomings and proposes some targeted suggestions. The methods and assessment instruments have important reference value for future academic achievement assessment.

In keeping with the authors' belief that the hands-on word sorting approach to word study is invaluable to teachers and students alike, this volume presents prepared sorts covering the complete curriculum of word study for the letter name-alphabetic stage of spelling development. Complete with 60 blackline masters, specific teacher directions, suggestions for follow-up activities, and spell checks for ongoing assessment, this collection of sorts includes both picture and word sorts for students who are in the letter name-alphabetic stage of spelling development. The new edition includes new sorts, clearly stated generalisations for each lesson, step-by-step directions for each sort, and a new pacing chart and goal setting record form. Together, the Words Their Way core text and this supplement provide teachers with the knowledge and tools to meet the wide range of needs in today's classrooms. Samples Download the detailed table of contents. Preview sample pages from Words Their Way: Word Sorts for Letter Name-Alphabetic Spellers, Global Edition.

This text looks at how computers are being used in primary classrooms and how they could be used better. Its three sections focus upon: how do we investigate learning through talk around computers? What affects the quality of group work around computers? What can teachers do to improve this?

Feel confident in full coverage of the curriculum requirements with an atlas specially created to cover Social Studies, Geography and History. - Encourage awareness of the whole Caribbean region with a 44-page Caribbean section, containing detailed maps of all independent countries and major dependent territories from The Bahamas to Trinidad, and including Belize and Guyana. - Engage students in topical issues with a world mapping section, including features on world climate, the environment and population. - Introduce a solid foundation in geographical knowledge with world facts and figures for all nations. - Secure strong geographical skills with a feature on map reading and how to use an atlas. - Ensure ease-of-use with a 4-page index showing letter-figure grid references to place names found on the maps.

Encompasses the poetry requirements in National Curriculum programmes of study for Speaking and Listening, Reading and Writing. The text identifies eight ways for children to experience poetry: listening; speaking; reading; memorising; conversation; through the arts; writing; and performing. It then shows how teachers can use all these modes to develop pupils' perceptions and responses to poetry, including planning programmes and assessing outcomes.

The Pocket Diary of a SENCO spans a typical school year and includes hopeful and often humorous diary entries that share the authentic aspirations, joys and frustrations of championing inclusion and working in the role of a SENCO. Grounded in real-life experiences and day-to-day practice, Pippa McLean describes the experiences of a SENCO and the reality of SEND provision in school, drawing out the personal characteristics and values that schools can foster to support inclusive practice and nurture positive relationships between children, parents and colleagues. Diary extracts across the months range from 'Be ready to hit the road', 'Be gentle on yourself', to 'Be a culture builder' and 'Be an advocate'. Each entry is followed by reflective questions and space for the reader to jot down their own thoughts, as well as 'monthly musings' to support their own professional development. Written in a truly conversational style, this essential pocket diary captures the reality of SEND provision in schools and will be relatable to many. It is valuable reading for SENCOs, teachers, support staff and trainees who wish to enrich their learning around inclusive practice and engage reflectively within their busy lives.

Drawing upon actual research, this book uses a fictional school setting and fictional characters to illustrate, at times in a humorous way, some of the dilemmas which arise in the day-to-day mentoring of students. It tells the stories of some of the main partners in the process (students, tutors, mentors and other teachers) and their triumphs and disasters. The authors comment on issues raised, provide practical and professional solutions to problems and give guidance on further reading. The book will aid the management of school-based training and collaborative work between students, teachers and tutors and will make interesting and instructive reading for all involved.

The purpose of this research is to identify the categories of South Korean elementary teachers' knowledge for teaching mathematics. Emerging from the data collected and the subsequent analysis are five categories of South Korean elementary teachers' knowledge for teaching mathematics: Mathematics Curriculum Knowledge, Mathematics Learner Knowledge, Fundamental Mathematics Conceptual Knowledge, Mathematics Pedagogical Content Knowledge, and Mathematics Pedagogical Procedural Knowledge. The first three categories of knowledge play a significant role in mathematics instruction as an integrated form within Mathematics Pedagogical Content Knowledge. This study also demonstrated that Mathematics Pedagogical Procedural Knowledge might play a pivotal role in constructing Mathematics Pedagogical Content Knowledge. These findings are connected to results from relevant studies in terms of the significant role of teachers' knowledge in mathematics instruction.

This book explores children's meaning making of the books they learn to read with, especially relating to the intersections of race, gender and class. Based on research using a participative, innovative design with young children, issues of identity, belonging and classroom hierarchies are explored in complex and poignant ways by the children.

Friendship and Educational Choice provides a unique insight into how young people go about making decisions about their educational options and the subtle, yet crucial, influence of friends and peers on these processes. It argues that focusing on both the impact of friends on educational decisions and the reciprocal influences that such decisions may exert on young people's friendships helps us to understand the significance and impact of educational choice in the wider lives of young people.