As regular readers know, I’m a big fan of ASCD, the teacher professional development organization, and regularly post about their resources.

Here are some recent ones that I think readers might find particularly useful:

Checking for Understanding: Formative Assessment Techniques for Your Classroom, 2nd Edition is a great book by Douglas Fisher & Nancy Frey. A chapter is available online for free, and it’s worth reading. The chapter is titled Why Check for Understanding?, and I think the section on distinguishing between mistakes and errors is outstanding. I’m adding it to The Best Posts, Articles & Videos About Learning From Mistakes & Failures.

The ASCD Express newsletter’s theme this month was on asking questions, and it’s very good. I’m adding it to The Best Posts & Articles About Asking Good Questions — Help Me Find More.

Which Book Should I Read To Jump-Start The New Year? is a fun and useful interactive flowchart created by ASCD.

Here are two good recent articles by ASCD leaders on teacher leadership:

Leadership / Meaningful Pathways for Teachers is by Judy Seltz.

What Is a Teacher Leader? What Should It Be? is by Sean Slade.

ASCD board member and Tacoma Public Schools deputy superintendent Josh Garcia is a 2015 Education Week Leader to Learn From. He’ll be presenting a free Ed Week webinar January 21 at 2 p.m. on designing a whole child accountability system. What does that mean, you might ask (as I wondered, too)? Here’s the answer:

To be considered successful in Tacoma, Wash., schools must show they can deliver a lot more than good test scores. They should be able to involve many children in extracurricular activities, attract lots of adult volunteers, and reconnect with teenagers who have dropped out. They need to spark praise from parents and students for providing a safe and engaging place to study. They have to reach into their communities to make sure all eligible children take advantage of district preK and full-day kindergarten.