The following guest blog post was written by Dr. Nancy Sulla, author of Students Taking Charge: Inside the Learner-Active, Technology-Infused Classroom.

Teacher evaluation is shifting to include the use of a rubric to define high-quality teaching practice. This particular entry will focus on Charlotte Danielson’s rubric, although the various rubrics in use are very similar in approach.

Barbara Blackburn is the author of Rigor is NOT a Four-Letter Word and Classroom Motivation from A to Z. In the following video tip, Barbara defines "RIGOR" using five key strategies.

Barbara uses the five letters of the word RIGOR to explain the five strategies necessary to increase the level of rigor in your classroom. She highlights specific examples of activities (for all grade levels!) you can implement to help your students succeed.

In the National Education Association’s recent article, "Cure Winter Doldrums with In-Class Exercise," former middle school teacher Phil Nast encourages schools to take advantage of exercise and its positive effects on behavior and learning in the classroom.

Many people acknowledge the importance of exercise in schools for promoting a healthy lifestyle among the youth and fighting childhood obesity. But the benefits of exercise don’t stop with physical health. In fact, physical activity can positively impact many aspects of a person’s mental health as well,  and can be a powerful tool for keeping students alert, focused, and in a good frame of mind throughout the school day.

In his book Lead On! Motivational Lessons for School Leaders, Pete Hall shares his wisdom, insights, and lessons lived and learned with school leaders at all stages of their careers. This tip gives school leaders six tips for reminding you why you love your job, and how to make it fun again!

During our January 24 webinar, It’s All About MEE, presented by Dr. Barbara Blackburn, Barbara talked about practical ways to activate students’ intrinsic motivation, increase student engagement, and raise the level of expectations in the classroom.

Three key questions were raised:

• How do you help students feel more successful in your class?
• How do you add value to learning for your students
• How do you demonstrate high expectations for your students?

For those who missed it, you can view the webinar on-demand...

The following blog post was written by Barbara R. Blackburn. Barbara will be presenting a free, one-hour webinar on Motivation, Engagement, and Expecations on January 24, 2012. In this three part series, Barbara will outline the three parts of the upcoming webinar. Register for the webinar!

I’ll be presenting a one-hour webinar on January 24 at 4:30. It’s All About MEE—Motivation, Engagement, and Expectations is a great way to find new strategies for your classroom or school.  Today, we’ll take a quick look at the second aspect: engagement.

Barbara Blackburn is the author of Rigor is NOT a Four-Letter Word and Classroom Motivation from A to Z. In the following video tips, Blackburn defines rigor and student motivation for beginners.

What is rigor? Should teachers attempt to create a rigorous environment for all students? In this video tip, Barbara Blackburn outlines and breaks down the definition of “rigor” for beginners. She focuses on the fact that rigor is meant for each student, not just honors or advanced students. She also highlights the importance of the language we use, as teachers in the classroom, to show support for students.

It’s a New Year and time to recharge! As a former teacher, I always took this opportunity to reset expectations and implement new strategies. Eye On Education aired a webinar on Student Motivation and Classroom Management with Larry Ferlazzo on December 14.  For those who missed it, you can view it on-demand. Strategies for building intrinsic motivation were discussed and our participants had lots to contribute. Thank you to our attendees for sharing innovative and practical tips about how they motivate their students. Here are 15 tips to get your students motivated in the New Year!

The following blog post was written by Barbara R. Blackburn. Barbara will be presenting a free, one-hour webinar on Motivation, Engagement, and Expecations on January 24, 2012. In this three part series, Barbara will outline the three parts of the upcoming webinar. Register for the webinar!

I’ll be presenting a one-hour online webinar on January 24 at 4:30. It’s All About MEE—Motivation, Engagement, and Expectations is a great way to find new strategies for your classroom or school.  Today, we’ll take a quick look at the first aspect: motivation.

Effective teams are a hallmark of effective schools. To create and maintain high-performing teams, all members of the team must share and adhere to similar commitments, or values. They must set commonly agreed upon goals, and hold each other accountable for attaining them.

Take a moment and watch this clip. It only takes 3 minutes and will inspire you!
http://www.powerofteamworkmovie.com/

How can this video be applied to your professional learning community (PLC)?

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 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.

How often do we say we have high expectations for every student? I did—pretty regularly, but the truth is that sometimes my actions did not reflect those beliefs. When we have high expectations, we truly expect each student to understand what we are teaching. And that means we find a variety of ways to ensure they are learning.

In Wikis for School Leaders: Using Technology to Improve Communication and Collaboration, author, online educator, and technology expert Stephanie D. Sandifer provides strategies and how-to advice on the way in which wikis, which when used strategically result in a more efficient use of time, better communication, and increased adult learning for the members of your school community.  Read below to see how to maximize the effectiveness of your professional activities through the use of wikis and raise student achievement in turn.

The following guest post is written by Eye On Education author Cynthia McCabe. McCabe is the author of the new title The Fearless School Leader: Making the Right Decisions.

It’s August.  You’re sitting in your office, trying to catch up with the myriad of issues that require your immediate attention: making class schedule changes, hiring new staff at the last minute, meeting new students and their families, squaring away details for Meet the Teacher Nights and faculty meetings, etc. You grab your trusty bottle of aspirin to head off the impending neck cramp.

Instead of putting your head down and plowing through the tasks at hand, I encourage you to take a deep breath and take a step back...