Category: Writing

Charter school advocates often indicate that state and
district regulations are obstacles to good schools that help students learn.
What regulations are they talking about? How might those regulations prevent a
school from being as effective as it could be?
1. States match the licenses that teachers receive to a
specific subject or age level of students, which in turn matches the school
levels discussed in this chapter. Why are teachers not generally granted a
single license to teach students across the P–12 grades? What teachers can
receive a license that crosses all of the grade levels?

What values could you defend as worthy for all students
to acquire across different cultures, religions, and so on?
1. How would you approach the teaching of values if
required to do so by your school district?
2. Why do you think Chi Mae thought that the Japanese and
Tibetan authors might expand students’ perspectives about the nature of the
world?

UK parents cited anger, hostility, ignorance, bad
judgment and hatred as vices that they saw at least once a month on social
media. What classroom activity might you use that would help your learners
recognize these negative traits within social media?
1. Philosophers study ethical behavior in light of big
ideas such as goodness, justice, equity, and honesty. In what ways might you
use social media to help students consider one or more of these big ideas?
2. Dr. Blaire Morgan contends that social media is not
going away so parents and teachers need to maximize it benefits and avoid its
pitfalls. How might you use media within your classroom so as to maximize its
benefits?

Other than those mentioned in this chapter, what
additional recent educational developments seem particularly important to you?
Why are they important?
1. Has the increased federal involvement in education
been good or bad for schools? How so?
2. In your opinion, in what respect, if any, has
education become professionalized?
3. In your opinion, how much progress has the United
States really made in providing equal educational opportunity? Defend your
answer.
4. What is happening in education at this very moment
that is likely to be written about in future history of education books?

What are the historical antecedents that have contributed
to the lack of racial and ethnic understanding in U.S. society?
1. Should education programs seek to eliminate cultural
differences among individuals or to preserve and perhaps celebrate them?
2. What can you do in your classroom to improve
multicultural education? Why and how?
3. What additional information would you like about
multicultural education, and where might you find such information?

If you were in Ms. Beckett’s position, what would you do?
Check the Web to find what you are required to do as the teacher providing the
accommodation that Dwayne needs. What did you learn?
1. Could, and should, teachers or test prompters guide
students to the correct answers? What might happen to a teacher who provided
inappropriate assistance to a student?
2. What is the purpose of the annual testing of student
achievement? Do you agree with these purposes, and why or why not?
3. Why are many teachers and parents concerned about the
annual testing requirements?