Larry Ferlazzo’s Websites of the Day…

…For Teaching ELL, ESL, & EFL

April 30, 2011
by Larry Ferlazzo
1 Comment

“16 Tips to Take Your iPhone to the Next Level”

16 Tips to Take Your iPhone to the Next Level is from The New York Times.

I’m adding it to The Best Sites For Beginning iPhone Users Like Me.

April 30, 2011
by Larry Ferlazzo
4 Comments

Oh, New Yorker Magazine, How Could You?

The New Yorker Magazine is one of my favorites, and I have been a faithful subscriber for at least twenty years, and probably longer.

I could not believe what I saw when I opened the latest issue — an advertising supplement from The University of Phoenix reporting on a recent New Yorker panel on “American Education In The 21st Century.” The “highlights” in the magazine were absolutely awful, and I certainly couldn’t bring my self to go to see the video of the panel online.

Of course, the panel did not have any teachers on it, or anyone who even works anywhere near a school.

Here are some of the quotes:

“We need good teachers, high expectations, and an effective feedback loop to measure success. By and large, we fail at all three,” said a retired CEO of Intel. Note to Mr. Barrett — how about if we don’t critique you on how to make a microchip, which most of us don’t know anything about, and you don’t tell us how to teach, which you obviously don’t know anything about?

“…there’s no relationship between money and student achievement,” said the Vice-President for Education Policy from the Center For American Progress. Ms. Brown, I’d encourage you to read The Best Sites For Learning That Money Does Matter For Schools. In looking at her biography, it does not appear like she has ever taught a student. That, of course, is obvious by her comment.

” We also have to think about the business community as the primary investor and innovator in education, K-12 and post-secondary. University of Phoenix and other institutions are the people who are reinventing the model,” said former Secretary of Education Margaret Spellings. Can I suggest she read The Best Posts & Articles Explaining Why Schools Should Not Be Run Like Businesses. Of course, it would have been nice if The New Yorker had mentioned that she’s a paid lobbyist for these for-profit colleges.

Oh, New Yorker Magazine, how could you?

April 30, 2011
by Larry Ferlazzo
0 comments

“Teachers are skeptical pragmatists of classroom-directed policies, not stone-age obstructionists”

Larry Cuban has written a very important post titled Teacher Resistance and Reform Failure (the title of my post is a quote from it).

He makes a number of key points refuting charges that some school reformer make about many of us being “defenders of the status quo.”

In addition, because he points out how teachers have indeed changed their pedagogy over the years, it’s a good response to Bill Gates’ charge that teaching hasn’t changed in a hundred years. Because of that, I’ll be adding the piece to The Best Posts Responding To Bill Gates’ Appallingly Clueless Op-Ed Piece.

Cuban’s post is short, and well-worth a read.

April 30, 2011
by Larry Ferlazzo
0 comments

Two Nice Vocabulary Sites For ELL’s

Here are two nice sites I’m adding to The Best Sites Where ELL’s Can Learn Vocabulary:

English Vocabulary Menu at ESOL Courses

English Picture Dictionary from Club EFL

April 29, 2011
by Larry Ferlazzo
0 comments

April’s Best Tweets — Part Two

Every month I make a short list highlighting my choices of the best resources I shared through (and learned from) Twitter, but didn’t necessarily include them in posts here on my blog. Now and then, in order to make it a bit easier for me, I may try to break it up into mid-month and end-of-month lists (and sometimes I’m a bit late).

I’ve already shared in earlier posts several new resources I found on Twitter — and where I gave credit to those from whom I learned about them. Those are not included again in this post.

If you don’t use Twitter, you can also check-out all of my “tweets” on Twitter profile page or subscribe to their RSS feed.

Here are my picks for April’s Best Tweets — Part Two (not listed in any order):

ADS FOR GOOD 10 Funny Public Service Ads About Serious Issues (VIDEOS)

“The eyes have it – incredible ways of seeing the world” slideshow

“The Future of Media: Storify and the Curatorial Instinct”

“Nature’s Living Tape Recorders May Be Telling Us Secrets” NPR

“Youth Organizing For Education Reform”

“A slide show of aerial photography, from pigeon-mounted cameras to Apollo 17 and beyond” Slate

“Amazing kinetic structure made from over 100,000 toothpicks depicts San Francisco” video

“How Arabic Science Saved Ancient Knowledge and Gave Us the Renaissance” SF Chronicle

“Your brain signals can drive how the movie ends” New Scientist

“The First Grader” is new National Geographic movie

Having trouble finding someone’s email address? Use Peepmail, The Atlantic

How To Tell Someone You’re Angry, Wall St Jrnl

You might also be interested in seeing other people’s choices for their best tweets:

Eye On Education

April 29, 2011
by Larry Ferlazzo
0 comments

“Escape From The Living Room 2″

I’ve previously written about how I use online video games as excellent language-development exercises.

“Escape From The Living Room 2″ is a new game that will be added to my list of ones to have students play. Here is its walkthrough (the instructions on how to win the game).

April 29, 2011
by Larry Ferlazzo
0 comments

Using “Descriptive Norms” In The Classroom

I recently read about a study that’s a couple of years old that examined different ways that hotels used to encourage guests to conserve water and energy by reusing towels. The New York Times reported on it, and here’s a link to the actual study.

The New York Times reported:

Some guests in a chain hotel saw a sign urging them to “help save the environment” by returning their towels to the rack. Others saw a customized sign that cited their room numbers —saying, for example, “75 percent of the guests who stayed in this room (room 313)” had reused their towels. Other signs prompted guests to join their fellow “citizens” or “men and women” in helping the environment.

By a healthy margin, signs that cited the guests’ room numbers worked best.

The study explains it worked this way because people were:

getting information about social norms. Specifically, they

are getting information about descriptive norms, which refer

to how most people behave in a situation. Descriptive norms

motivate both private and public actions by informing individuals

of what is likely to be effective or adaptive behavior

in that situation (Cialdini, Kallgren, and Reno 1991).

A wide variety of research shows that the behavior of others

in the social environment shapes individuals’ interpretations

of, and responses to, the situation

…getting information about social norms. Specifically, they are getting information about descriptive norms, which refer to how most people behave in a situation. Descriptive norms motivate both private and public actions by informing individuals of what is likely to be effective or adaptive behavior in that situation. A wide variety of research shows that the behavior of others in the social environment shapes individuals’ interpretations of, and responses to, the situation especially in novel, ambiguous, or uncertain situations.

This got me wondering if and how I use this strategy in the classroom. One way I thought of was how I introduced books to my students — I have my classroom library divided into categories, and one of them is called “popular books.” These are the ones previous classes have found to be the most interesting. My students always tend to spend a lot of time checking those out, and, I’m sure, read ones they wouldn’t have looked at if others hadn’t found them popular.

Another time I use this strategy is when I introduce visualizing for success to students. When I explain how many students have done it in the past, I believe it makes it more enticing for my present students.

I don’t necessarily think this strategy changes any longterm behavior, but it does seem to make students more open to trying new things. They may ultimately decide not to pursue it further, but at least they have tried it based on their own initiative.

Are there times when you’ve used “descriptive norms” in your classroom? I’m wondering if there are other opportunities I’m missing….

April 28, 2011
by Larry Ferlazzo
1 Comment

Really Interesting Perspective On Study Claiming Third Grade is Pivotal for Readers

A recent study financed by the Annie E. Casey Foundation — and very widely publicized — claims that if students can’t read “proficiently” by the end of third grade, then they are more likely to drop-out from high school. I’ve previously posted about this study, and sharply criticized it for its tone and some of its recommendations (see Here We Go Again: Private Foundations Have A Place (And Have To Be Kept In Their Place)).

Given all that, however, the report does seem to have prompted some good work on literacy, even from our Mayor, in whom I have little confidence when it comes to education issues.

Stephen Krashen has just come out with his own analysis of the study, which I think is pretty fascinating. It points out a number of misinterpretations made by the study’s author and people publicizing it.

I hope I’m not misinterpreting his analysis, but a key point seems to be that there is nothing at all magical about third grade, and there’s a huge danger in focusing on it. By doing so, we could be shortchanging so many other efforts that could be even more effective, and send a damaging message to young people who might not meet the artificial level of “proficient” when we say they’re supposed to…

April 28, 2011
by Larry Ferlazzo
2 Comments

The Best Resources For Learning About Tornadoes

The southern United States was battered by tornadoes yesterday, resulting in 200 deaths so far and terrible devastation.

This “The Best…” list is divided into two sections — the first one includes links about yesterday’s tragedy, and other similar ones this year, and the second shares sites about tornadoes in general.

Here are my choices for The Best Resources For Learning About Tornadoes:

The Tornadoes In The South:

CNN has many multimedia resources on what happened yesterday.

Tornadoes devastate South, killing more than 200 is a series of photos from The Sacramento Bee.

Deadliest tornado outbreak in nearly 40 years kills hundreds is from MSNBC.

Tornadoes kill over 200 is a series of photos from The Boston Globe.

Storms, Tornadoes Devastate the South is the title for a series of photos from The Atlantic.

Predicting Tornadoes: It’s Still Guessing Game comes from The New York Times.

Heartache after storms kill more than 300 in South is an Associated Press interactive.

Other Tornadoes

Tornadoes Kill Dozens In Midwest is a Wall Street Journal slideshow.

Deadly tornadoes strike again is from The Big Picture.

Here’s an interactive map from The New York Times showing where recent tornadoes have occurred.

Pictures of the 1953 Worcester, Massachusetts tornado comes from MSNBC.

Tornado Ravages Joplin, Missouri is from The Atlantic.

MSNBC has a slideshow.

Aerial Photographs of Joplin Before and After the Tornado is an interactive from The New York Times.

Tornado-Damaged Joplin, From Above is the title of a series of photos from The Atlantic.

Here’s a video of the Joplin tornado:

Here’s a Wall Street Journal video showing the terrible Joplin tornado:

Tornadoes In General:

Curriculumbits has a wide variety of free animated activities with text and audio support that would be accessible to Intermediate English Language Learners. Not all of their animations are accessible, but many are. You can see this one on Tornadoes.

The Des Moines Register has an online slideshow about a deadly tornado that devastated an Iowa town. It includes many before-and-after images.

Here’s a student-created website on tornadoes.

Control a tornado in this interactive.

Here’s a short video on tornadoes.

Inside a Tornado comes from National Geographic.

The BBC has an animated guide to tornadoes.

Twisters Untangled: Understanding Tornadoes is an interactive from NPR.

The Facts (and Fiction) of Tornadoes comes from The New York Times and includes multimedia.

Tornado! is a useful infographic.

Feedback on this topic is welcome!

If you found this post useful, you might want to look at 660 previous “The Best…” lists and also consider subscribing to this blog for free.

April 28, 2011
by Larry Ferlazzo
0 comments

Check-Out Today’s NPR Interview With Diane Ravitch

Ravitch: Standardized Testing Undermines Teaching is the title of today’s NPR interview with Diane Ravitch.

You can check it out online.

April 28, 2011
by Larry Ferlazzo
0 comments

“The Courage To Blog With Students”

The Courage To Blog With Students is an article by my Teacher Leaders Network colleague Marsha Ratzel that is a “must-read” for any teacher using blogs with their students, or considering the idea. It appears in Education Week: Teacher Magazine.

I’m adding it to The Best Sources For Advice On Student Blogging.

April 28, 2011
by Larry Ferlazzo
0 comments

Two Very Good Posts Related To School Reform

Here are two very good posts applicable to school reform issues that have appeared recently:

In a Data-Heavy Society, Being Defined by the Numbers is by Alina Tugend at The New York Times. I’m adding it to The Best Resources Showing Why We Need To Be “Data-Informed” & Not “Data-Driven.”

Social Norms Beat Market Norms is by Diane Ravitch. I’m adding it to The Best Posts & Articles Explaining Why Schools Should Not Be Run Like Businesses.

April 28, 2011
by Larry Ferlazzo
0 comments

Special Edition Of “Links I Should Have Posted About, But Didn’t”

I have a huge backlog of resources that I’ve been planning to post about in this blog but, just because of time constraints, have not gotten around to doing. Instead of letting that backlog grow bigger, I regularly grab a few and list them here with a minimal description. It forces me to look through these older links, and help me organize them for my own use. I hope others will find them helpful, too. These are resources that I didn’t include in my “Best Tweets” feature because I had planned to post about them, or because I didn’t even get around to sending a tweet sharing them.

I usually bring these together weekly but, because my blacklog is so big right now, I decided to publish this second “special edition.”

Here are the resources in this special edition of “Links I Should Have Posted About, But Didn’t”:

Free Music Directory comes from Socialbrite, and lists a number of sources of royalty-free…music. I’m adding it to The Best Places To Get Royalty-Free Music & Sound Effects.

The British Council has a very simple, and useful, vocabulary game related to Spring. I’m adding it to The Best Sites For Learning About The Spring Season.

HOW TO: Master Smartphone Photography [PICS] comes from Mashable. I’m adding it to both The Best Sites For Beginning iPhone Users Like Me and to The Best Sites For Learning Beginning Photography Tips.

Resistance to test-based school reform is growing is by Valerie Strauss at The Washington Post. I’m adding it to The Best Posts On How To Prepare For Standardized Tests (And Why They’re Bad).

The words that could unlock your child comes from the BBC. I’m adding it to The Best Resources For Learning How To Best Give Feedback To Students.

Here are several new additions to The Best Resources Documenting The Effectiveness of Free Voluntary Reading:

The Language Learning Benefits Of Extensive Reading by Paul Nation

What Is Extensive Reading? (some of the links are dead, but for those you can easily find the articles listed with a web search)

Another article titled “What Is Extensive Reading?”

36 Tools to Digitise Coursebook Activities is a slideshow presentation by Nik Peachey. I’m adding it to The Best Sources For Ideas On How To Use Technology With English Language Learners.

Here are some other regular features I post in this blog:

“The Best…” series (which are now 650 in number)

Best Tweets of The Month

The most popular posts on this blog each month

My monthly choices for the best posts on this blog each month

Each month I do an “Interview Of The Month” with a leader in education

Periodically, I post “A Look Back” highlighting older posts that I think are particularly useful

The ESL/EFL/ELL Blog Carnival

Resources that share various “most popular” lists useful to teachers

Interviews with ESL/EFL teachers in “hot spots” around the world.

Articles I’ve written for other publications.

April 27, 2011
by Larry Ferlazzo
0 comments

The Best Resources For Learning About The “Achievement Gap”

A piece at the Huffington Post today titled “A Test: Why Was the Black-White Gap Closing When It was Closing?” reminded me of a post I wrote awhile back. Its headline was Surprise, Surprise! Study Finds Achievement Gap Progress Stops In Eighties (When Poverty Rates Begin To Rise). Here’s an excerpt from that post:

The Washington Post has a report on a new study from The Educational Testing Service.

It finds that:

“…there was a steady narrowing of the achievement gap from the 1970s until the late 1980s. Scores essentially remained the same since then.”

That’s about the same time the poverty rate in the U.S. began to rise after a steady period of getting lower.

Here’s another quote from the article from the study’s author:

Restarting progress in closing the achievement gap must be addressed on multiple levels, Coley said.

“Entire neighborhoods may have to be uplifted in terms of their economic capital, school quality, safety and health structures,” he said.

Reading the Huffington Post piece, and re-reading my own post, prompted me to put together this “The Best…” list. It’s closely connected to The Best Places To Learn What Impact A Teacher & Outside Factors Have On Student Achievement. The primary difference here is that I’ve only included articles and posts that very explicitly address the “achievement gap.”

Here are my choices for The Best Resources For Learning About The “Achievement Gap” (in addition to the two resources I mentioned earlier):

Eliminating the Achievement Gap Is Educational Alchemy is by Walt Gardner at Education Week.

Reforms That Could Help Narrow The Achievement Gap by Richard Rothstein.

How Can We Close The Achievement Gap? is from The National Journal and has twenty-nine responders, including Richard Rothstein.

Student Mobility is a related post I’ve written.

The many causes of the achievement gap is by Richard Rothstein and comes from The Harvard Education Letter.

Can Educators Close The Achievement Gap? is an interview with Rothstein and Kati Haycock.

Why the Black-White Gap Was Closing When It Was is by James Gee and appeared in The Huffington Post.

The Black-White Achievement Gap: When Progress Stopped is a report from The Educational Testing Service.

Feedback on this topic are welcome!

If you found this post useful, you might want to look at 660 previous “The Best…” lists and also consider subscribing to this blog for free.

April 27, 2011
by Larry Ferlazzo
1 Comment

“Yahoo Sells Delicious To YouTube Founders”

As you might have heard already, there are changed coming to Delicious, the social bookmarking application. You can read all about it at TechCrunch, Yahoo Sells Delicious To YouTube Founders.

And, if you haven’t already received an email from Delicious telling you what you have to do in order to transfer your bookmarks to the new Delicious, you can find the instructions here.

And if you want to learn about alternatives to Delicious, you can find them at The Best Sites For Figuring Out What To Do If Delicious Shuts Down.

April 27, 2011
by Larry Ferlazzo
1 Comment

Meetin.gs Has Potential

Meetin.gs is a new site that lets you organize virtual meetings that also let you share documents and media. It’s looks pretty simple and easy to use. It’s not open to the public yet, but I received an invitation very quickly after I requested it.

I’m adding it to The Best Online Tools For Real-Time Collaboration.

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