The leadership lessons kids learn on the field may also apply to their experiences off of it. Rob Haworth, co-author of the upcoming book, What Great Coaches Do Differently with Todd Whitaker, tells The Examiner , "Students who participate in athletics are exposed to leadership role models (i.e. coaches) and often are required to exercise some degree of leadership with their peers (i.e. team captains)."

Arthur K. Ellis's new "Teaching, Learning, and Assessment Together" series offers easy-to-use classroom strategies that will engage students in activity and reflection.  Read below for the assessment strategy "Clear and Unclear Windows" from Teaching, Learning, and Assessment Together: Reflective Assessments for Elementary Classrooms.

On May 20, the Visual Thesaurus spoke with Active Literacy Across the Curriculum author Heidi Hayes Jacobs about the tendency of many teachers to overlook vocabulary instruction within content areas. She also talked about the state of intellectualism in the U.S. and its effects on education. Jacobs shared intriguing ideas about the existence of a “classroom caste system” based on social and academic ability, and how the system can exacerbate a student’s feelings of inferiority.

Alternative teacher certification programs have become increasingly prevalent over the past few years, and more and more college graduates are choosing to join these organizations instead of traditional teacher education programs.

In alternative programs, college graduates without formal teaching experience or coursework commit to teaching in schools for usually two years, depending on the program. Prior to teaching, they are trained for several weeks through the program. Corps members are then eligible to receive state-issued teaching certificates, licenses, or permits, which enable school districts to hire them...