The 2015/2016 school year was one for the books (an open-educational-resource book, that is). With the federal government embracing a rather laissez-faire approach toward education, with the student learning experience shedding its spectator skin for a more "doing" dermis, and with the virtual world continuing to grow in opportunities (for better or for worse), VariQuest has highlighted the top 5 topics in education.

Today's blog post is brought to you by Tasia Fields of Great Minds Teach Alike, an online resource for all things education, with a focus on educational technology. Tasia is an educator with her Bachelors of Science in Education and her Masters in Curriculum and Instruction. Learn more about Tasia here and click here to visit the homepage of Great Minds Teach Alike.

As students enter the corridors of Dolgeville Elementary School (and their classrooms) it's easy for them to become enthralled with the colorful displays that adorn nearly every wall of their building thanks to their creative staff and the VariQuest Cutout Maker. When Dreams Come True In spring of 2014, Susan Butler's (Principal at Dolgeville) dream came true when their Parent Teacher Organization purchased the Cutout Maker for their teachers during Teacher Appreciation Week. This gesture of gratitude is typical of their PTO, but usually the gift is around $500-$600. In 2014 however, after Susan saw the Cutout Maker at a trade show, she was able to talk them into a larger purchase turning her dream into a reality.

The whole one-size-fits-all (OSFA) notion has never been my cup of tea. It's a rare occurence, but coming across the seemingly perfect maxi dress that turns out to be OSFA is a day-ruiner when you're barely tall enough to go on big kid roller coasters. Now take this cookie-cutter attempt to K12 education heights, and that's school years worth of day-ruiners for principals, educators, parents, students, the like.

"I see and I forget. I hear and I remember. I do and I understand." -Confucius Little did Confuscius know that his belief would be the root of many pedagogical truths, even thousands of years later. This very belief, that poetically explains the reasoning behind whole-brain learning, is what VariQuest has decided to dive into for the launch of our brand new professional development offering.

Celebrate Black History Month by discussing important historical figures with this VariQuest middle school activity! Download your free poster pack by clicking the images below!

At the root of just about every educational reform initiative, debate, or discussion is how to quantify learning and measure academic success. Legislators will argue that in order to effectively “fix education” and fairly and accurately compare apples to apples, all students must have equal access to learning experiences so that we can assess teaching and learning with the same standards and measures. Critics abound with a long list of flaws in the system that cast a dark shadow over the things that are working.

PRESS RELEASE

I’m sure you’ve heard the rumblings online about the “new” way that math is being taught now that the Common Core standards for math are in place.