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Education - General Articles |
These are our best general interest, all-purpose education articles, that focus on topics relevant to all parents and teachers. These articles are typically appropriate for all age levels and most subjects. Also included here are any general purpose news stories. Other related areas at KidSource OnLine for you to review are K-12 , Early Learning and Trends in Education .
Our rating system for these General Education articles is:
- Best, in depth and most helpful overall
- Very Good, but more specific in focus
- Good reference material
How Can I Be Involved in My Child's Education?
Research studies consistently reveal that high student achievement and self-esteem are closely related to positive parental participation in education. Parents and schools need to work together so all children can succeed in school. But even though studies show that most parents want to be involved in their children's education, they may not be exactly sure how to go about it, especially if, like most parents, they work during the school day. This article provides concrete suggestions to help you as a parent be more involved in your child's education and to help you help your child do better in school.
This Parents Guide to the Internet is intended to help parents--regardless of their level of technological know-how--make use of the on-line world as an important educational tool. The guide cuts through the overwhelming amount of consumer information to give parents an introduction to the Internet and how to navigate it. The guide suggests how parents can allow their children to tap into the wonders of the Internet while safeguarding them from its potential hazards.
This thought-providing article on mathematical educational practices challenges the belief that the 'back-to-basics' approach is correct. This "parrot math" philosophy has not succeeded; instead an activity-based approach, involving the real basics of classifying, inferring, generalizing, and so forth, is described. By Prof. Tom O'Brien.
Simple Things You Can Do To Help All Children Read Well
In this booklet, you will find suggestions for simple things you can do to help meet the America Reads Challenge. You can help as a parent, school, librarian, concerned citizen, community organization, university, employer, or as a member of the media.
Teaching Children with Attention Deficit Disorder
With 3 to 5% of our school-age population affected by ADD, almost every classroom can be impacted. While this article is oriented toward the classroom teacher, it can also help parents of children with ADD do better in school. It includes topics such as "establishing the proper learning environment", "giving assignments", "modifying behavior and enhancing self-esteem". This article also includes other educational recommendations and a resource list.
These brochures are designed to show parents a host of practical ways to introduce their children -- both in school and at home -- to creative writing theater, music, dance and visual art.
What's Basic - A Constructivist View (of Education)
What is basic to a child's education? Children should be prepared to deal with the problems that arise in their world, even though much of their future world is still unknown. An educational constructivist as described in this article, is more likely to be concerned with the child's construction of thinking abilities than with the structure of the content itself. This is another thought-provoking article by Prof. Tom O'Brien and at the end you'll find activities that illustrate these beliefs.
A calendar for seven weeks of learning activities based on the President's "Call to Action".
Helping Your Child With Homework
Homework is an opportunity for students to learn and for parents to be involved in their children's education. A parent's interest can spark enthusiasm in a child and help teach the most important lesson of all--that learning can be fun and is well worth the effort. This book includes practical ideas for helping children complete homework assignments successfully. Even though this article is written for elementary and junior high school-aged children, some of the ideas in this book may also be helpful for high school students.
Helping Your Child Learn To Read
Another very good article with many activities for children from infancy through age 10 with many of these activities designed for parents and children to do together. You can show that learning is fun and important and can encourage a love of reading in your child.
Helping Your Child Succeed in School
This booklet focuses on specific activities for children aged 5 to 11 that parents and children can do together. The authors believe that all children have two wonderful resources for learning--imagination and curiosity and as a parent, you can awaken your children to the joy of learning by encouraging this imagination and curiosity. Teaching and learning are not mysteries that can only happen in school. They also happen when parents and children do simple things together.
How Parents and Families Can Help Their Children Do Better in School
This is a great article with common sense approaches to helping our children do better in school. It advocates parental involvement, reading together and more. A must-read for all parents.
Summer Home Learning Recipes for Parents and Children Grades 9-12
This is part of a series of fun filled activities, compiled by grade level. For teens, this article focuses on problem solving and getting control of ones emotions.
A Guide To Enrollment And Success In Charter Schools
This Parent Guide from the ERIC Clearinghouse on Urban Education answers many common questions regarding charter schools, including questions about finding charter schools; application and admission procedures and requirements; and specific questions which parents should ask during the process of searching for a charter school.
Children's Literacy Development: Suggestions for Parent Involvement
Parents are a child's first and most influential teachers! Free and inexpensive resources are available to help you fulfill the important responsibility of raising a literate child. This article gives a quick digest of ideas and resources to get you started.
Whether we use technology with young children--and if so, how-are critical issues facing early childhood educators and parents. This article discusses questions about when children should start using computers; developmentally appropriate computer activities in preschool, kindergarten, and early primary classrooms; benefits of computer use; integration of computers into classrooms; and teacher training.
Coping with Stress in the Special Education Classroom
Despite the current trend toward school-based decision making, many schools remain bureaucratic organizations where teachers have little control over major decisions in their environments and frequently work in isolation. Further, with increasing demands to be accountable, teachers' work is becoming more intense, leaving many teachers feeling emotionally exhausted. Thus, in school bureaucracies, teachers may become stressed by role overload and lack of autonomy. Teachers can more effectively deal with stress by using specific strategies discussed in this article.
The Student Guide tells you about federal student financial aid (SFA) programs and how to apply for them. Education or training after high school costs more than ever, and you need to learn about as many sources of aid as you can.
Good or Bad, What Teachers Expect from Students They Generally Get!
Most teachers know a little bit about the Pygmalion effect, or the idea that one's expectations about a person can eventually lead that person to behave and achieve in ways that confirm those expectations. Few educators understand exactly how to use the Pygmalion effect or self-fulfilling prophecy to convey positive expectations and, maybe even more importantly, to avoid conveying negative expectations. While written for teachers, this article can and should be used by parents and caregivers.
How Can We Help Make Schools Safe for Children?
The primary cause of anxiety for many parents today is protecting their children from acts of violence at school. In general, parents and school officials are concerned about preventing children from becoming either aggressors or victims. This brochure discusses what steps parents and school administrators can take to make schools safer.
How Communities Can Support Family Involvement in Education
This article outlines specific steps and areas of focus for communities if they wish to support schools and family involvement in education. Their belief is that communities that have good schools and better educated residents are almost always safer, more stable communities where businesses and families thrive
Internet Resources for K-8 Students
Although there are many content-rich resource sites for elementary and middle school students on the World Wide Web, finding such sites can often be difficult. This article describes K-8 curriculum-related Web sites that will be of interest to students, teachers, parents and librarians.
Learning Partners -- Let's Do History!
When your children ask, "Where did I come from?" and "Was I always here?" they are asking questions about history. This article contains suggestions for activities to do with your children to help them learn history.
Learning Partners -- Let's Use the Library!
Most public libraries offer a wide variety of children's books and magazines, with many in Spanish and other languages. In addition, there's a wealth of materials in other mediums and programs that can help a child in his/her development and education. Here are some things you can do to introduce your child to the library and to help him/her to use and enjoy all these materials found in your local library.
New Information on Youth Who Drop Out
This Parent Guide from the ERIC Clearinghouse on Urban Education discusses the reasons why students drop out, the consequences of these decisions, as well as what parents and schools can do to help students stay in school, or get an alternative education, and also met the responsibilities that caused them decide to drop-out initially.
Parent-Teacher Conferences: Suggestions For Parents
Parent-teacher conferences sometimes become a cause for concern for everyone involved-children, parents, and teachers.This Digest outlines ways to improve communication during parent- teacher conferences. Suggestions are offered to help parents participate more effectively in parent-teacher conferences dealing with children's behavior and learning.
What Should Parents Know About Standardized Testing In Schools?
One tool that schools use to learn about students is the standardized test. This brochure explains basic features of these tests and suggests questions you might ask your child's teacher about testing. Understanding the role of testing will help you to enable your child to succeed in school and to develop a better relationship between your family and your child's school.
With more dual-income or single parent families, it is difficult for parents to be involved with their children's childcare situation or education. This article provides concrete ideas to help parents become actively involved given the multitude of constraints on their time. These ideas are not only for parents, but for child care providers, educators and employers.
Loneliness is a significant problem that can predispose young children to immediate and long-term negative consequences. However, only recently have research and intervention in educational settings focused on young children who are lonely.
Emotional intelligence for parents and families
Emotional intelligence is an essential set of skills for today's families. Learn what EQ means and how to start raising yours.
Equal Mathematics Education for Female Students
Research over the last decade has shown that males and females have different classroom experiences because they approach learning differently and because teachers tend to treat them differently. As girls progress through school, they are less likely to continue their math education, either taking more rudimentary courses or dropping the subject altogether. This article identifies the specific treatment of female students that inhibits their ability to successfully learn math and steps to remove the barriers that prevent females from learning advanced mathematics.
"Failure syndrome" is one of several terms that teachers commonly use (others include "low self-concept," "defeated," and "frustrated") to describe students who approach assignments with very low expectations of success and who tend to give up at early signs of difficulty. Psychologists have described this phenomenon as "learned helplessness," a slightly more technical definition but referring to a similar pattern of behavior. Unlike students of limited ability, who often fail despite their best efforts, failure syndrome students often fail needlessly because they do not invest their best efforts--they begin tasks half-heartedly and simply give up when they encounter difficulty. This Digest delineates the nature of the problem, suggests strategies for coping with failure syndrome students, and discusses how teachers can help.
The fall is a great time for children to explore the outdoors, learn about seasonal transitions and develop a variety of cognitive skills. Nature-related experiences can foster a child's emerging sense of wonder, and the earliest years of life are the best time to begin providing direct, on-going interactions with the natural world.
Five Ways to Stimulate Brain Power in Your Child
Now, new brain research shows that there are specific things parents can do that will have a permanent and positive effect on a child's ability to learn.
Gender Issues in Children's Literature
Besides being an important resource for developing children's language skills, children's books play a significant part in transmitting a society's culture to children. Gender roles are an important part of this culture. How genders are portrayed in children's books thus contributes to the image children develop of their own role and that of their gender in society.
How Schools Can Support Family Involvement In Education
Despite the many advantages of partnerships, schools and families remain disconnected in too many communities. There are many reasons why schools and families fail to work together. This article discusses how this happens and it provides practical suggestions for how parents and schools can work more closely together to better educate our children. In conclusion, the authors promote that school-family partnerships are important way to help children learn and a great way for schools and families to help each other.
Involving Parents in the Education of Their Children
The suggestions offered in this digest can help teachers involve parents who might not otherwise be involved. While it is possible for a teacher to implement such a parent involvement program alone, it is much easier if the school as a whole is committed to the program. Administrative staff can relieve some of the burden of implementing a comprehensive parent involvement program, and can offer help and support to teachers.
Moving? Choosing a School? Sources of Information on Individual Schools and School Districts
It's that time of year again! It's the time of year when parents begin to think about the next school year and choosing the best school for their child. The decision is a difficult one and should depend on information about the school itself, as well as comparative standardized test scores.
New Standards to Bolster Parent Involvement in Education
The National PTA has developed standards to encourage parent involvement in their children's education. In their new handbook, the National PTA highlights six standards it believes are essential for any school or program involving parents and families.
New Web Site Aims to Help Teachers Find Learning Resources
A new tool is now available to help teachers pinpoint -- from thousands of learning resources on the Internet -- the one that is right for their students. The Gateway to Educational Materials (GEM) is designed for teachers to type a topic, grade level, and other information into a search screen that then retrieves -- from more than 140 web sites -- lessons, instructional units, and other free educational materials on that topic, for that grade level.
Parenting and Career Development
Not only what a parent does for a living can influence a child's career choice, but the family dynamics also have a strong influence. The article looks at the ways in which parenting styles, family functioning, and parent-child interaction influence career development. It's written for an educator, but has many good points for a parent as well.
Phonics in Whole Language Classrooms
This digest discusses some of the ways children develop functional phonics knowledge in the context of authentic reading and writing, as well as some of the ways teachers can foster such development.
Preventing and Resolving Parent-Teacher Differences
Parents and teachers share responsibility for creating a working relationship that fosters children's learning. This digest discusses how to improve parent-teacher relationships and it suggests some general strategies for creating a climate in which misunderstandings and disagreements between parents and teachers can be minimized through improved communication. It also discusses some general principles for parents and teachers in dealing with misunderstandings or disagreements as they arise.
Procedures To Increase the Entry of Women in Science-Related Careers
Girls and boys start off equal in mathematics and science performance and interest in school. They appear to do equally well in both subjects in elementary school. Once courses become optional in secondary school, the down hill spiral in enrollment of female students in mathematics and physical science begins, accompanied by decreases in achievement and interest. This means that women are inadequately prepared for most college majors as well as those in technical fields. This detailed report addresses this and proposes solutions for helping girls develop a long-term interest in science.
Truancy has been labeled one of the top ten major problems in this country's schools, negatively affecting the future of our youth. If your child or your school has a problem in this area, then this article will help you understand the issues behind it and what schools can do.
Success for All: A Summary of Evaluations - A Reading Program
In the belief that reading is fundamental to other skill areas, the program described in this article targets students in lower elementary school grades. It provides students with intensive instruction in language arts, extensive professional development to help teachers succeed with every student, and an active family support program.
Technology in Early Childhood Programs
As technology becomes more accessible to early childhood programs and computer software becomes more user-friendly, early childhood educators have a responsibility to examine its impact on children and prepare themselves to use it for all children's benefit. Here are some tips for professionals in evaluating computer programs, which can be used -- like any other learning tool -- in developmentally appropriate or inappropriate ways.
This is a statement by the U.S. Secretary of Education about record school enrollment this fall. With 51.7 million children going to school this fall -- a new national record -- there are a lot of children in our schools striving for excellence. Demographers call this phenomenon the baby boom echo. This special back-to-school report seeks to describe the many aspects of this baby boom echo and its implications for education.
The Teacher's Role in Developing Social Skills
The Learning Disabilities Association of California describes the critical role that school plays in the child's social development and self-concept, whether the student has learning disabilities or is enjoying academic success.
A Guide To Choosing An After-School Program
This Parent Guide from the ERIC Clearinghouse on Urban Education discusses the process of choosing an after-school program. Types of programs are discussed, as well as the qualities of a good one, along with what to look for in an after-school program.
A Lesson from CPAs on the New Education Tax Breaks
The Taxpayer Relief Act of 1997 includes some education-related tax provisions that can benefit families with children in college.
Getting Online: A Friendly Guide for Teachers, Students, and Parents
This publication from the staff of the ERIC system, sponsored by the Department of Education, is designed to help teachers, students, parents, and others "get online" as well as to help these populations discover educational materials on the internet more easily and successfully.
An Introduction to Internet Resources for K-12 Educators
Recently, through state and regional education networks and commercial providers, the vast resources of the Internet are increasingly available to administrators, school library media specialists, and classroom teachers. This digest lists a sample of no cost Internet resources of special interest to K-12 educators.
A fun article from the Hooked on Phonics Program with examples of teaching techniques for pre- and early-readers.
Planning for Parent Participation in Schools for Young Children
Parents need to be actively involved in their child's education. However, it is not always easy for parents to become involved given the many demands upon them. This article outlines how teachers can plan parent participation strategies for their own classrooms to take into account the complexity of today's family life. The guidelines here will also help parents become more involved and will help parents know what to expect when working with their child's teacher.
In play, children expand their understanding of themselves and others, their knowledge of the physical world, and their ability to communicate with peers and adults. This digest discusses children's play and its relationship to developmental growth from infancy to middle childhood. The digest also suggests ways in which educators and other adults can support children's play.
Academic Studies and Play on a Collision Course
An overwhelming majority of parents believe play is critical to childhood development, but the pressure for performance in and out of school is driving play out of children's lives.
This digest reviews the recent history of advertising to children, spotlights controversial marketing efforts, and focuses attention on the evolving nature of commercial messages directed toward children in the public schools.
Brain Research: Implications for Second Language Learning
There has been a longstanding interest among second and foreign language educators in research on language and the brain. Language learning is a natural phenomenon; it occurs even without intervention. By understanding how the brain learns naturally, language teachers may be better able to enhance their effectiveness in the classroom.
Building on Existing Strengths To Increase Family Literacy
Developing the skills of parents to enable them to be more personally successful and fulfilled, and to more effectively promote their children's learning at home and achievement in school, is the goal of all family literacy programs.
Asking questions of students is a critical part of a teacher's responsibility. This article discusses what's a good question and how questions can be used to improve learning outcomes.
Computer Units Have Positive Effect on the American Family
Computers are altering how families interact with each other and other technologies and this can result in positive changes for the American family. This is among the principle findings of a major new survey of households with a personal computer.
Escalating Kindergarten Curriculum
This article discusses the practice of kindergarten retention, which is increasing dramatically. In some districts, as many as 60% of kindergartners are judged to be unready for first grade. These children are provided with alternative programming: developmental kindergarten (followed by regular kindergarten), transition or pre-first grade, or the repeating of kindergarten.
Foreign Language Requirements and Students with Learning Disabilities
This article discusses the issue questioned by many students and professionals- the reasonableness of foreign language requirements for students with learning disabilities. According to Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, colleges and universities are not obligated to waive foreign language requirements for students with learning disabilities, nor are they required to provide course substitutions. Thus, colleges and universities that do provide waivers or substitutions do so on a voluntary basis.
More Than Just the Internet: Technology for Language Teaching
At a time when technology-enhanced learning tends to be associated with Internet-based applications like the World Wide Web, it is important to remember that non-Internet technology tools remain very useful aids for the language student and teacher.
Outdoor Education and Environmental Responsibility
Outdoor education offers programs that provide opportunities for students to become environmentally conscious citizens. Students must be prepared to recognize their environmental responsibilities and act upon them. Such a sense of environmental responsibility is a potential outcome of outdoor education under certain conditions. This digest reviews what various studies have shown about developing environmental responsibility.
School Readiness and Children's Developmental Status
Teachers must maintain the interest and promote the growth of children who have already demonstrated signs of early literacy and numeracy while simultaneously encouraging the development of these behaviors in children who have not yet acquired them. Similarly, they must meet the needs of children with difficulties while reserving sufficient attention and effort for those with few or no difficulties. Although there has always been variation in the characteristics of children entering kindergarten, the commitment to meeting the educational and developmental needs of all children in an increasingly diverse society presents great challenges to teachers, schools, and communities.
Selecting Culturally and Linguistically Appropriate Materials
The population of the United States is growing more culturally diverse each year, and this diversity is clearly evident among families with young children. In many cases, educators' and other service providers' lack of experience with and knowledge of diverse families makes the development of relationships with them difficult. This Digest focuses on how to identify and select culturally and linguistically appropriate materials (e.g., books, brochures, pamphlets, fact sheets, and multimedia) for parents and family members.
What Should Young Children Be Learning?
Recent research on intellectual and social development and learning is rich in implications for curriculum and teaching strategies for early childhood education. The data on children's learning suggests that preschool and kindergarten experiences require an intellectually oriented approach in which children interact in small groups as they work together on projects which help them make sense of their own experience.
Nearly all schools claim to hold high expectations for all students. In reality, however, what is professed is not always practiced. Although some schools and teachers maintain uniformly high expectations for all students, others have "great expectations" for particular segments of the student populationbut minimal expectations for others. Evidence suggests that schools can improve student learning by encouraging high standards.
New IDEA Bill Clarifies Parental Role in School Meetings for Special Education Students
The Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) contained numerous amendments to the original IDEA law passed in the 1970s, attempting to address some of the weaknesses of the old legislation. According to IDEA, in all states, parents will now be included in groups making eligibility and placement decisions about children with disabilities.
Screening programs for children entering school are widespread, and their use is increasing. Screening is used to predict which pupils are likely to have problems in regular classrooms and to identify those who may be eligible for particular programs, such as special education. This digest summarizes current practices and issues in screening young children and lists recommendations for screening procedures used with children entering school.
Learning Partners -- Let's Use TV!
This article is full of ideas for parents to use television as an aid to teaching their childrent math and geography.
Making the First Day of School a Holiday for Parents
throughout the Southwest Vermont Supervisory Union. According to Terry Ehrich, President of the First Day Foundation, "the idea is to bring the parental, family, community-involvement-in-education theme into sharper focus at the beginning of each school year. Our aim is to begin each school year with positive relationships between teachers, parents, and students, building momentum for a three-way partnership for learning through the rest of the school year"
Making Drama Activities Accessible To Participants With Disabilities
Wild Swan Theater announces the availability of Dramatically Able, a teacher's handbook and video tape that will help teachers and youth leaders make drama accessible to children and adolescents with disabilities.
