H i g h S c h o o l E d i t i o n
M a r c h 2 0 0 4
SPOTLIGHT ON ASSESSMENTAssessment in today's education system has to determine so much: Are students meeting new federal guidelines detailed in No Child Left Behind? Are the teachers' adequately covering the material assessed by standardized tests? Are students really "getting it?" It's no wonder if you are overwhelmed, confused, and frustrated. We've chosen to focus this issue on how teachers are managing to keep it all together including their testing requirements, their curriculum guidelines, and their passion for teaching. Read on to gain a better understanding of assessment, its ever-changing role in our education system, and possible alternatives, as you work through the second half of the school year. Assessment in the News Nowhere is the conflict about assessment more evident than in today's headlines. This month's news stories report that national indicators are not in agreement about what students are achieving, that big states are better at monitoring standards, and that exit exams are here to stay. Article summaries provided by the NSTA WebNews Digest (Visit http://www.nsta.org/mainnews for nationwide news for science educators). Click here to read more: http://science.nsta.org/enewsletter/2004-03/news_stories_high.htm Assessment on the Net In this month's high school journal, The Science Teacher, NSTA members read "Student Poster Sessions." The link to that article is: http://www.nsta.org/gateway&j=tst&n=49072 SciLinks® is a web-based service from NSTA that provides online content chosen for printed articles and books. It does so through keywords; the keyword from this issue is: Intertidal Zones: http://www.scilinks.org/retrieve_outside.asp?sl=926356991033104435 NSTA Articles on Assessment The following NSTA journal articles provide you with ideas for classroom lessons and activities related to assessment. Click here to read more: http://science.nsta.org/enewsletter/2004-03/high_school.htm Books, Books, BooksClick here to view a list of books from the NSTA Catalog that deal with assessment. http://science.nsta.org/enewsletter/2004-03/books_high.htm Click here to view the newest titles from NSTA Press: http://science.nsta.org/enewsletter/2004-03/newbookshigh.htm Professional Development Effective professional development is seen as increasingly vital to school success and teacher satisfaction. With schools today facing an array of complex challenges—from working with an increasingly diverse population of students, to integrating new technology in the classroom, to meeting rigorous academic standards and goals—observers have stressed the need for teachers to be able to enhance and build on their instructional knowledge. (Education Week on the Web) Click here to read more: http://www.edweek.org/context/topics/issuespage.cfm?id=16 NSTA Opportunities Outstanding Science Trade Books for Students K–12 The NSTA/Children's Book Council Joint Book Review Panel selected the outstanding trade books of 2003. Click here to read about them: http://science.nsta.org/enewsletter/2004-03/cbc.pdf Submit a Manuscript to The Science Teacher For its first-ever summer issue, The Science Teacher is seeking manuscripts that describe new and creative ideas for the secondary science classroom. Click here to read more: Coming Your Way: A Summer Issue of The Science Teacher You told us that you have more time for reading and planning in the summer months, so we are mailing our first-ever summer issue of The Science Teacher in July. Click here to read more: http://science.nsta.org/enewsletter/2004-03/tstsummer.pdf How to Write for The Science Teacher Interested in becoming a published author but not quite sure how to go about it? Writing for one of NSTA's peer-reviewed journals is a great way to share your experience with your colleagues and to enhance your resume at the same time. Click here to read more: http://science.nsta.org/enewsletter/2004-03/wwwtst.pdf Next Month's Theme: Interpreting Evidence If your colleagues would like to subscribe to Science Class, please direct them to: http://www.nsta.org/newsletters. If you have a text-only browser or are having any difficulties with our links, please visit http://science.nsta.org/enewsletter/2004-03/member_high.htm. THE FINE PRINTThis
e-newsletter is brought to you by the National Science Teachers
Association
|
