Have you noticed that your classrooms have technology that is not being used to support instruction?  Are computers being used as bookends?  Are teachers assigning computers for "free time" and "rewards" only? Are interactive whiteboards being used as bulletin boards? Consider planning and implementing professional development to help support and encourage your teachers to use the technology to enhance student learning.

The following guest post was written by Barbara R. Blackburn, author of the best-seller Rigor is NOT a Four-Letter Word. Learn more about Barbara R. Blackburn here.

In my last guest post, we talked about concrete ways to increase high expectations in your classroom. Let's turn our focus now on the importance of having high expectations for each student in your classroom.

The teaching method we often see is whole-group instruction/lecture with a bit of discussion thrown in—usually in the form of the teacher asking a question and one or two students responding.

The following post was written by Eye On Education's Senior Editor, Lauren Davis.

Last weekend, Vice President Dan Sickles and I represented Eye On Education at NCTE's Annual Convention, held this year in Chicago. The event brings together English teachers, literacy coaches, curriculum leaders, and educational publishers from around the country to share ideas and resources. Here are some highlights from our trip:

Thank Your Students Often. Saying "thank you" is one of the little things we can do that will make a big difference. Here are some of the benefits of saying "thank you:" it's free, it tells students that you care, it makes students feel appreciated and special, it models appropriate manners, it encourages students to do better and to be better, it sets a tone of encouragement in the classroom, and it promotes a positive learning environment. I had the privilege of observing a teacher who thanks her students more often than any teacher I’ve ever observed. Here are some of the statements I heard during this observation:

The Wall Street Journal’s article “Parents Get Rating Role” publicizes the announcement that New York City schools will soon be rated based on how well they work with parents. With the goal of increasing parent involvement, Chancellor Dennis Walcott intends to open “parent academies” in every borough. These academies would provide services ranging from giving parents tips on helping children with their homework to helping parents become school leaders.

Differentiation Is an Expectation: A School Leader's Guide to Building a Culture of Differentiation, by Kimberly Kappler Hewitt and Daniel Weckstein, provides leaders with all that they need to promote differentiation in their schools and districts. This tip provides school leaders with five strategies they can use to show their teachers their appreciation, without creating an overly competitive and divisive work environment.

Eye On Education sent four staff members to the NMSA/AMLE Annual Conference in Louisville, Kentucky: Morgan Dubin (Marketing Associate), Lauren Beebe (Editor), Jon Rothman (National Accounts Manager), and James Canero (Sales Assistant).

The conference was a great success with the following authors visiting us in the booth: Todd Whitaker, Sherrel Bergmann, Judith Allen Brough, David Shepard, Bryan Harris, and Amy Sandvold. Attendee loves our new What Great Teachers Do Differently t-shirts, and David Shepard taught some attendees how to do the longitude/latitude dance right in our booth!

In Todd Whitaker's new book for teachers, What Great Teachers Do Differently: 17 Things That Matter Most, he describes the beliefs, behaviors, attitudes, and interactions of great teachers and explains what they do differently. In the tip below, Whitaker helps teachers understand how to model the behavior they expect.

"Modeling the behavior you expect" does not mean that we let go of our expectations. We want students to say "please," "thank you," and, "can I help?"