"Out-of-School Tales of a Reluctant Educator" ... is a brilliant, insightful, vivid, heartwarming narrative of a reluctant teacher's attempt to navigate the sometimes treacherous and rollicking waters of adolescence. Page had never wanted to be a teacher. She was out of work, there was a teacher shortage, and Milltown High School needed a teacher. She had no training, no coursework, knew nothing about adolescents, and, besides teaching world history and American geography, she was charged to teach first and second year Spanish even though she could barely speak a word. "Out-of-School Tales," starting with Dr. King's "I Have a Dream" speech, spans forty-two years of poignant, unexpected, sometimes scary, and mostly hilarious events; the adolescent escapades might remind you of your own. At the same time, woven throughout is historical context and a portrait of how a teacher develops her ability to teach. From Billy giving her a very strange gift that he had crafted in shop class, to Page joining her neighbors in chasing two fat pigs down a country road in Vermont, there isn't a dull moment. It's history, it's sociology, it's education, it's all about adolescents. It might make you laugh and it might make you cry a little. www.marilynmonkspage.com _________________

Praise for the First Edition: 'Lots of fresh ideas, along with some very helpful suggestions' - Pamela Galvani, Teacher, Central Kitsap High School, Silverdale, Washington 'Should be immensely useful for any educator who wants to move past the tried-and-false traditional methods of classroom instruction' - Alfie Kohn, Author, Punished by Rewards Make constructivism work for you and your students! Taking students from passive spoon-fed knowledge to creation and acquisition of real learning: it sounds terrific. But how do you do it? This book shows you how. In this updated and expanded second edition, Marlowe and Page use a larger and clearer format to bring together constructivist theory with step-by-step guidance to make constructivist learning a reality in your classroom. Creating and Sustaining the Constructivist Classroom, Second Edition, includes the first hand experiences of practising teachers to help you understand the challenges and rewards you can expect from constructivism. The teachers' stories along with guidance from the authors give you a solid foundation on which to build your own student-created learning classroom. The authors provide: - Active learning examples to customize for any grade or classroom - Checklists to help you evaluate your starting point, progress, and goals - Practical assistance with issues surrounding student assessment, differentiation, and the inclusive classroom - Ideas for involving parents and community members - Ways to implement technology into the mix - Strategies to help new teachers implement constructivist principles Stimulate your students' creativity, autonomy, and independent thinking. Help raise their self-esteem and confidence. Get their minds working on proactive ways to bring real-world learning into their schoolwork. Encourage your students to discover new ways to search for information, process what they find out, and translate it into meaningful knowledge for themselves.

Praise for the First Edition: 'Lots of fresh ideas, along with some very helpful suggestions' - Pamela Galvani, Teacher, Central Kitsap High School, Silverdale, Washington 'Should be immensely useful for any educator who wants to move past the tried-and-false traditional methods of classroom instruction' - Alfie Kohn, Author, Punished by Rewards Make constructivism work for you and your students! Taking students from passive spoon-fed knowledge to creation and acquisition of real learning: it sounds terrific. But how do you do it? This book shows you how. In this updated and expanded second edition, Marlowe and Page use a larger and clearer format to bring together constructivist theory with step-by-step guidance to make constructivist learning a reality in your classroom. Creating and Sustaining the Constructivist Classroom, Second Edition, includes the first hand experiences of practising teachers to help you understand the challenges and rewards you can expect from constructivism. The teachers' stories along with guidance from the authors give you a solid foundation on which to build your own student-created learning classroom. The authors provide: - Active learning examples to customize for any grade or classroom - Checklists to help you evaluate your starting point, progress, and goals - Practical assistance with issues surrounding student assessment, differentiation, and the inclusive classroom - Ideas for involving parents and community members - Ways to implement technology into the mix - Strategies to help new teachers implement constructivist principles Stimulate your students' creativity, autonomy, and independent thinking. Help raise their self-esteem and confidence. Get their minds working on proactive ways to bring real-world learning into their schoolwork. Encourage your students to discover new ways to search for information, process what they find out, and translate it into meaningful knowledge for themselves.

Educational Psychology in Context: Readings for Future Teachers takes an exciting new approach to educational psychology by addressing the questions that real teachers in real schools ask about real students. This book's purpose is to provide a stimulating alternative to traditional texts by helping teachers develop a strong theoretical and research-based understanding of how their students learn and develop. Unlike other texts, this book of major readings is an anthology of primary-source readings selected for students entering the teaching profession and for teachers interested in examining learning and development. Bruce A. Marlowe and Alan S. Canestrari feature the original research and writing of the leading psychologists, cognitive scientists, and educators whose published work forms the very foundation of the field of educational psychology. Key Features: Distinctive Approach: Features original research from classic primary source documents by well-known psychologists and educators, as well as the work of contemporary researchers that extends our understanding of child development and learning Thematic Organization: The published research is organized thematically by teaching issues, lending itself to classroom dialogue, debate, and discussion Real-World Experiences: Each reading is prefaced by a "Letter From the Field" written by practicing classroom teachers, creating a link between research and teachers' classroom issues Rich Pedagogy: Challenging questions help teachers develop a strong theoretical and research-based understanding of how their students learn and develop Self-Assessment: Classic experiments encourage teachers to read and think critically and to develop their own research-based teaching philosophy The book is appropriate for courses in Educational Psychology, specifically Introduction to Educational Psychology, Learning Theory, Child/Adolescent Development, and Psychology of Learning at the undergraduate and graduate levels.