Research and Curriculum Unit Professional Development Newsletter
Volume 2, Issue 1
February 11, 2003
The RCU Professional Development family has grown this year. We are proud to announce that the new Blackboard administrator and coordinator of the new VIP (Vocational Instructor Preparation) program is Leanne Freeman. Leanne joins us from Hinds Community College. If you have any questions or concerns about Blackboard, please contact Leanne at clf2@ra.msstate.edu.
If you want a Blackboard account, please email Leanne the following information:
1. Your Name
2. The last 4 digits of your social security number
3. Your school name
4. The class that you teach
5. Your email address
She will create a course for you and answer any questions you may have.
You will find our “Web Resources” for this Newsletter below:
Learning to Discipline
http://www.pdkintl.org/kappan/k0209met.htm
No one is born knowing how to control 125 adolescents for five hours a day and teach the curriculum at the same time. Learning to discipline takes years. Mostly, it's trial and error. Nothing works all the time, and what works well in one class may have no effect on another. At the start of her teaching career, Margaret Metzger confesses, she ricocheted between being a drill sergeant and Mary Poppins. In this Phi Delta KAPPAN online article, she shares with new teachers the lessons she's learned along the way about managing and disciplining young adolescents. This is a good read for all those who care about what happens in America's classrooms.
Best Discipline is Good Curriculum
http://www.rethinkingschools.org/archive/17_01/Best171.shtml
Teachers consistently report trying almost anything to get students to behave. They try behavior charts and individual plans. Discipline is an exhausting part of the job that never really goes away. The message that most teachers get is that to be a good teacher, you must first be a good disciplinarian. In this article, Kelley Dawson takes exception to the belief that the first duty of the teacher is to be a disciplinarian. She explores the role of quality curriculum in motivating and engaging students. She concludes that running a classroom can be easier when both students and teachers care about what's being taught.
Rubrics Galore!
http://www.odyssey.on.ca/~elaine.coxon/rubrics.htm
One of our MiddleWeb resource-spotters calls this Canadian web site, "The best rubric site I've ever found. I have often saved one of these rubrics and adjusted it to fit one of my assignments or class needs." Prepare to be a bit overwhelmed!
Online Classes – Learning Center
http://www.hplearningcenter.com
Sponsored by Hewlett-Packard, these online courses are free, taught by experts, and offered at a variety of levels. There are courses on Word, Excel, PageMaker, desktop publishing, HTML programming, Web site construction, and even business etiquette.
Beginner’s Guide to Dreamweaver and Fireworks
http://www.dw-fw-beginners.com
These hands-on tutorials teach the basics of two industry-standard web authoring and graphics production tools. Dreamweaver tutorials explain how to work with text, design templates, and more. Fireworks tutorials offer practice in using bit map selection tools, creating animated GIFs that fade, and working with rollovers.
ShortCourses
If you are just beginning to think about a digital camera, have bought one and want to learn more about it, or are seeking to become a real digital expert, this is a great site. You can learn everything from the basics of using a digital camera to tech-heavy topics such as how to capture digital video, calculate image size, and much more.
FrontPage in the Classroom: FrontPage Tutorials
http://www.electricteacher.com/tutorial2.htm
Aimed at classroom teachers, Cathy Chamberlain’s Electric Teacher Web site provides step-by-step instructions for several common FrontPage tasks. Topics include importing an existing web site, working with graphics, hyperlinking, and site navigation, among others. Also offered are tutorials for PowerPoint, PhotoDraw, and Word.
Microsoft Education: In and Out of the Classroom
http://www.microsoft.com/education/?ID=IOCTutorials
The educator’s section of Microsoft’s site features, among other things, a collection of tutorials in Office XP, Office 2000, Windows NT, FrontPage 2000, Publisher 2000, and even Windows 98 or Word 97. Select a product, browse the table of contents, and then download a chapter and go through it offline.
RCU Online Learning Series (http://www.rcuonlinelearning.com)
We are still working on the RCU Online Learning Series web site. Please remember to visit the web site periodically. We have added information on how to get a Blackboard web site for your classroom, and we have also posted training materials for the different face-to-face workshops that are going on throughout the state. Even though the workshop may not be for your area, it may have information that may apply to you. We have recently added materials from a workshop on Advisory Committees. There are some great handouts that you are welcome to use.
Professional Development Specialist
Research Curriculum Unit
Mississippi State University
Phone: 662-325-8553
E-mail: rab3@ra.msstate.edu
Homepage: http://www.msstate.edu/~rab3
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