Podcast Series: Innovations in Education

Explore the full series of eSchool News podcasts hosted by Kevin Hogan—created to keep you on the cutting edge of innovations in education.

Poptential™ by Certell Revolutionizes Social Studies Education with Integration of American Principles and Launch of Engauge™ Teacher Dashboard

INDIANAPOLIS — Certell, the creator behind the Poptential™ family of free social studies course packages, announced a significant update to its digital curriculum and platform designed to help students better understand the principles that have shaped American history while giving teachers tools to better manage their classroom and improve learning.

Poptential course packages have been updated to incorporate “American Principles” designed to foster a greater understanding of American civic life and sharpen critical thinking skills among students. Additionally, Certell introduced a powerful new dashboard for teachers called Engauge™, which helps instructors understand student engagement with Poptential e-books in real time.

The integration of American Principles into Poptential social studies courses is a significant milestone. These principles are fundamental ideas that have shaped U.S. history, culture, and identity, serving as the bedrock of American civic life. The goal is to ensure that students not only grasp these principles but also understand why they were deemed essential by the nation’s founders.…Read More

Learning Through Play Is Powerful – and Students and Teachers Agree!

BILLUND, Denmark — To celebrate the second annual World Play Day, LEGO® Education is inspiring teachers to experience purposeful play firsthand by giving students and teachers Permission to Play. 

Play is not just for the playground. It is a powerful tool for teaching that naturally engages students in the learning and builds the skills they’ll need in and outside the classroom like creativity, communication, critical thinking, and collaboration.  

A new survey of K-8 teachers and students from LEGO Education found that nearly all (98%) of students say purposeful play helps them learn and the majority (96%) of teachers believe it’s more effective than traditional methods like lectures or textbooks. On top of that, almost 80% of students want more playful learning experiences in the classroom. …Read More

5 science and technology videos to get students talking

Key points:

  • TED-Ed Lessons are short videos designed to engage students and stimulate critical thinking
  • Here are 5 videos covering science and tech topics such as earth science and animal behavior
  • See related article: Cool! 6 TED-Ed lessons about the cold

School is back in session, and for many students, that means a major shift from an unstructured schedule to a more regimented school day. It may still be challenging to keep students’ attention on topics like science and technology now that classrooms are once again full.

Creating a video-based lesson that explores different concepts around science and technology is one fun way to boost student engagement.…Read More

Gale In Context: Literature Launches to Promote Critical Thinking Skills and Better Learning Outcomes in ELA for High School Students

FARMINGTON HILLS, Mich. – Gale, part of Cengage Group, has added a new resource to its award-winning Gale In Context family of products. The company has launched Gale In Context: Literature, a new resource for literature instruction and learning that helps high schoolers engage and thrive in English language arts (ELA). Read our blog about why English teachers will love Gale In Context: Literature.

Designed with high school students in mind, Gale In Context: Literature provides learners with the context they need to engage and form personal connections with a wide variety of literature from traditional texts to diverse new voices. Educators can easily connect students to standards-based resources that provide the literary context necessary to ensure student understanding of the texts they’re reading in ELA lessons. This sparks greater interest in literature, enabling teachers to facilitate meaningful interactions that inspire more compelling classroom discussions that increase critical thinking skills, delivering better learning outcomes.

Download/view screenshots of Gale In Context: Literature.…Read More

CAE and Pearson Partner to Bring Critical Thinking Assessment to Secondary Education Students

NEW YORK (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Council for Aid to Education, Inc. (CAE), a leader in designing innovative performance tasks for measurement and instruction of higher order skills, today announced the immediate availability of its College and Career Readiness Assessment (CCRA+) through a non-exclusive partnership with Pearson [FTSE: PSON.L], the world’s leading learning company. Pearson will resell CCRA+ as part of its Pearson Assessment for Learning Suite (PALS).

Designed for students in grades six through 12, CCRA+ assesses critical thinking, problem solving and written communications – essential skills that are predictive of positive academic and career success. These skills are highlighted in Portraits of a Graduate profiles, yet most states and districts do not have an effective and reliable approach to measure these skills.

“CAE is proud to partner with Pearson to help schools and districts access our assessment tools to support student growth,” said Bob Yayac, president and CEO, CAE. “While more than 125 districts have developed or are developing a Portrait of a Graduate, our research and conversations indicate most have not identified how they will measure these skills in an objective, consistent and standardized manner. CCRA+ addresses this important need.”…Read More

Take a peek inside this teacher’s Escape Room learning challenges

Escape rooms are engaging for people of all ages—they require durable skills such as creativity, critical thinking, determination, and the ability to work in groups to solve challenges. It makes sense that educators would craft their lessons around the concept of an escape room—and that’s just what high school educator Lynn Thomas has done.

In this Q&A with eSchool News, Thomas details how she found inspiration to create escape room learning opportunities and the benefits she sees for her students–and she offers a look at a new ChatGPT challenge she’s created.

eSN: What gave you the idea to structure learning activities in an escape room-style challenge? …Read More

4 ways to enhance critical thinking skills

Critical thinking is plainly in decline.  Everywhere we look, people are uncritically consuming and spreading information that is distorted, misleading, and sometimes intentionally deceptive. Conspiracy thinking is rampant–QAnon, Alex Jones and the Sandy Hook shooting, Pizzagate, and unfounded claims of widespread voter fraud are just a few of the most notorious examples. The very foundations of our democracy are arguably at risk when millions are willing to believe irrational and unfounded claims.

Nobel prize-winning economist Daniel Kahneman (Thinking Fast and Slow) demonstrated that we’re generally inclined to draw conclusions based on gut instincts, thereby avoiding the hard work of closely examining evidence.  Psychologists and neuroscientists have shown that we are subject to “confirmation bias,” the tendency to believe whatever reinforces our prior views and to disbelieve what challenges them. We are especially prone to this bias if changing our views would be costly–financially, to our reputation, or to our identity. These natural tendencies, exacerbated by the pervasiveness of social media and the limitless access to information on the internet, leave us vulnerable to being duped by disinformation.

But we are not defenseless.  There are some simple exercises we can use to combat both our natural instincts and the rising tide of digital misinformation.  …Read More

5 essential STEM education reads

STEM education is a critical part of a comprehensive K-12 education–it helps students build and improve critical thinking skills, problem solving skills, and it teaches students to be persistent when presented with a challenge.

And while STEM education is essential, it’s not always accessible–underrepresented groups, including female students and minority students–often lose interest in STEM subjects as the subjects grow more challenging and as they move through school.

Representation is another obstacle to more ubiquitous STEM participation. When students don’t see STEM professionals who look like them represented in advertising, on TV and in movies, or in classroom resources, they have a harder time envisioning themselves in STEM careers.…Read More

5 ways to make way for science in an ELA and math world

How much time do you think the average K–3 student spends learning about science? Thirty minutes a day? An hour a day? Well, according to the 2018 National Survey of Science and Mathematics Education, K–3 students spent an average of 89 minutes studying ELA, 57 minutes learning math, and a miniscule 18 minutes a day on science. These numbers aren’t too surprising when you consider that reading and math are high priorities in early grades. However, when educators fail to make room for science in their lessons, students can still lose out on essential growth. 

Science is much more than naming planets or memorizing the periodic elements. At its heart, science is about tapping into a student’s innate curiosity and creativity while fostering their critical thinking skills. It encourages them to ask important questions and discover answers by carefully examining their surroundings.

Given the incredibly packed school day schedule, finding room for science will take more than a little flexibility and creative thinking. Here are just a few resources and strategies that teachers can put into practice right away:…Read More