General Books - Page 3

Introduction To Rubrics: An Assessment Tool To Save Grading Time, Convey Effective Feedback and Promote Student Learning

Dannelle D. Stevens, Antonia J. Levi

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Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 10 Average rating: 4.5 of 5

Editorial Review:

You need rubrics if:
* You find yourself repeating the same comments on most student papers
* You worry that you’re grading the latest papers differently from the first
* You’re concerned about communicating the complexity of a semester-long assignment
* You question the consistency of your and your colleagues’ grading scales
* Grading is taking up far too much of your valuable time

Research shows that rubrics save professors’ time while conveying meaningful and timely feedback for students, and promoting self-regulated and independent learning. The reason rubrics are little used in higher education is that few faculty members have been exposed to their use.

At its most basic a rubric is a scoring tool that divides an assignment into its component parts and objectives, and provides a detailed description of what constitutes acceptable and unacceptable levels of performance for each part.

Rubrics can be used to grade any assignment or task: research papers, book reviews, participation in discussions, laboratory work, portfolios, oral presentations, group work, and more.

This book defines what rubrics are, and how to construct and use them. It provides a complete introduction for anyone starting out to integrate rubrics in their teaching.

The authors go on to describe a variety of processes to construct rubrics, including some which involve student participation.They demonstrate how interactive rubrics--a process involving assessors and the assessed in defining the criteria for an assignment or objective--can be effective, not only in involving students more actively in their learning, but in establishing consistent standards of assessment at the program, department and campus level.

The World Almanac 2009 Daily Calendar: 365 Days of Facts, Stats, and Trivia (World Almanac)

Chronicle Books

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Features:

• Size: 6 x 51/8 x 1 5/8
• Humor

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Editorial Review:

Greet the day with historical events, sports trivia, memorable quotes, and more in this fact-filled calendar. Based on The New York Times #1 best-seller, The World Almanac, which has sold over 80 million copies.

The National Board Certification Workbook, Second Edition: How to Develop Your Portfolio and Prepare for the Assessment Exams

Adrienne Mack-Kirschner

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Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 8 Average rating: 4.0 of 5

Editorial Review:

The first edition of The National Board Certification Workbook offered you top-notch preparation for the National Board certification process. Now the second edition, with 40% new material, goes even further, taking you through every step of the process, and giving you the guidance you need to achieve certification.

Adrienne Mack-Kirschner's work as a National Board support provider makes her the ideal person to advise certification candidates, and her workbook is the next-best thing to attending her workshops. In addition to the comprehensive forms, checklists, and step-by-step portfolio instructions from the first edition, she's now expanded the workbook to include more guidelines for documenting your instruction with video as well as many useful suggestions on understanding the assessment exams and succeeding on them.

Beginning with Personal Inventory Sheets keyed to the Core Propositions, right through scoring your own work, Mack-Kirschner offers numerous helpful tools, including:

• best-practices charts
• guides to videotaping your teaching and analyzing the footage
• graphic organizers for thinking through your practice
• data-collection techniques for correlation with student achievement
• plentiful opportunities for self-reflection and assessment
• updated information about the new portfolio requirements
• strategic advice about taking the NB assessment examinations.

The National Board has raised the standards for the profession and brought a new level of distinction to its certified teachers because it requires "clear, consistent, and convincing evidence" of meeting its demanding standards. How do you measure up? Where do you need to stretch and grow? Use The National Board Certification Workbook, Second Edition, in conjunction with The Teacher's Guide to National Board Certification and find out how to examine your teaching practices and present the evidence of your classroom excellence in a way that helps your professionalism shine brightly.

Writing Research Papers: A Complete Guide (Writing Research Papers (Spiral), 10th ed)

James D. Lester

List Price: $40.40 By: Longman Publishing Group Amazon Marketplace: 55 new & used starting at $0.01

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Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 12 Average rating: 4.0 of 5

Research paper 4 out of 5 stars.
3 of 11 people found this review helpful.

The book is very helpful to those students being busy on the thesis like me.

Editorial Review:

The definitive research paper guide, Writing Research Papers combines a traditional and practical approach to the research process with the latest information on electronic research and presentation.

 

This market-leading text provides students with step-by-step guidance through the research writing process, from selecting and narrowing a topic to formatting the finished document. Writing Research Papers backs up its instruction with the most complete array of samples of any writing guide of this nature. The text continues its extremely thorough and accurate coverage of citation styles for a wide variety of disciplines. The thirteenth edition maintains Lester's successful approach while bringing new writing and documentation updates to assist the student researcher in keeping pace with electronic sources.

The Scrabble Word-Building Book: Updated Edition

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Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 3 Average rating: 4.5 of 5

scrabble freak 5 out of 5 stars.
3 of 3 people found this review helpful.

Great book with many great clues and the 2 and 3 letter word sections are great for all scrabble players !! Highly recommend

Thanks for the update! 5 out of 5 stars.
3 of 3 people found this review helpful.

So happy to have an updated version of this to replace my worn out copy. We use this book as a standard for all our favorite word games: Scrabble, Triversity & Quiddler.

Editorial Review:

Want to outsmart, outwit, and outplay your Scrabble® opponents? Usingthe completely revised and updated The Scrabble® Word-BuildingBook, you can! This essential strategy guide shows you how to buildon your opponents' words and become a master of this classic game.For novice players and expert wordsmiths alike, this helpful referenceincludes:

• A handy list of the 94 two-letter words sure to pile on the points
• Over 800 three-letter words -- 550 of which can be formed fromtwo-letter words
• All eight-letter words that can be formed from seven-letter words
• Every word up to seven letters you can play!

To increase your word-building power and achieve the highest score,keep The Scrabble® Word-Building Book at your fingertips -- and beatyour opponent every time!

30 Days to a More Powerful Vocabulary

Wilfred Funk, Norman Lewis

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Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 12 Average rating: 4.0 of 5

A Great Book 5 out of 5 stars.
14 of 17 people found this review helpful.

Ahh...the pleasure of words, how could a man deny himself this Empyrean delight! Asceticism, at least in the realm of vocabulary, is a mortal sin that a true logophile should not hesitate to denounce.

The organization of the book is worth heaping praises upon. Chapters, each of which should be finished in a day, are ordered thematically (eg Power Verbs and Foreign Words), that I personally found myself actually reading the book at whichever interesting chapter depending upon my particular inclination for that day. However, my advice should be taken with caution as the authors seemingly intended the book to be read in a particular order of progress. Well, tastes and aptitude may vary.

The book begins with an initial assessment of vocabulary and general language skills already possessed. Subsequent chapters are also supplemented with exercises (which are accompanied by helpful hints themselves), and the book ends with a final assessment of success.

At times the authors seem to be sermonizing on the values of the "American" language (as the authors call it), at times to be touting the importance of national linguistic pride, at times busily engaged in an exercise in Oprahesque you-can-do-it ad nauseam. As some reviewer(s) noted, the book has not been expurgated of the prejudices particularly prevalent at the time it was first written.

Despite the flaws which all books are guilty of in some degree or another, Dr Wilfred Funk and Norman Lewis have shown the path towards a greater experience of this esoteric enteprise. A path that is delightfully fun, rewarding and entertaining; it is definitely worth every penny!

Editorial Review:

• Do you misuse and mispronounce some words?
• Do you sometimes find yourself at a loss to express exactly what you mean?
• Do you fail to comprehend complex words while reading?
• Are you tired of having people seemingly talk "above" you?

If you answered YES to any of these questions, then 30 Days To A More Powerful Vocabulary is the perfect solution. Millions of people have improved their academic performance, job skills, and self-esteem, just by spending fifteen minutes a day completing the simple exercises and self-tests within this bestselling guide!

You will learn, step-by-step, how to
• increase your language power with word "roots"
• find the words to sell your ideas
• learn new words daily
• check on your progress with 30 challenging tests

PLUS - Complete Index to New Words and Pronunciation Key
30 Days To A More Powerful Vocabulary
Nearly Four Million Copies In Print!

Bright Minds, Poor Grades

Michael D. Whitley

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Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 26 Average rating: 4.5 of 5

Very worthwhile, very constructive 4 out of 5 stars.
7 of 8 people found this review helpful.

The pro's: It got right to the heart of the matter and outlined the most common psychological causes of underachievement. It helped to put things in perspective: my child is not a robot that is programmed to perform academically according to my standards, he is a thinking, feeling individual who has his own fears and needs. The book reminded me that it's not all about academic achievement (although that's why I bought the book), the larger issue that is undeniably intertwined is the continued development a loving, constructive relationship with my child and how it affects his ability to accept responsibility.

The con's: Had high hopes when I bought the book, but in the first 40 pages I found myself despairing over what then appeared to be a hopeless situation. Positive testimonials would've been helpful early on. (Parents, push through this part, it gets better.) The 10-step program section had a few examples of his own dialog with students -- additional sample parent-student dialogs would've been VERY helpful in this section.

My experience with this book:
First of all, I was lucky enough to have just finished reading "How to talk to kids so kids will listen, and listen so kids will talk", and it's "sequel" "How to talk so teens will listen." Without those two books, I think we'd still be floundering. (Parents, if you have a strained relationship with your teen, then read both books. I promise, you won't regret it.)
Next, my husband and put the program in place with my two boys. My middle schooler immediately responded positively, he cheerfully does his work and enjoys our nightly discussions. He's very proud of his achievements, he just brought home 3 A's and 2 B's on his report card. My high schooler is a tougher case: he is behaving exactly as the book predicted (very resistant), but I'm seeing some chinks in his armor as he's going through the inevitable, necessary struggle of owning his responsibilities. This last report card period he brought home 3 B's and 2 C's. Not great, but our relationship and his personal development are showing definite signs of improvement.

Overall, it's a tough challenge and requires true commitment on the part of the parents. The author makes no bones about this: "you must understand that it is you, not the child, who will change first." Don't be scared off or discouraged by this. It is the best thing you could do for your child.

Editorial Review:

For any parent who has ever been told, "your child isn't performing up to his or her potential," this book has the answer. Renowned clinical psychologist Michael Whitley, Ph.D. offers a proven ten-step program to motivate underachieving children. This easy-to follow book identifies the six types of underachievers from the procrastinator to the hidden perfectionist to the con artist, and it presents the ten steps to help children succeed in school-and ultimately, in life.

Looking Beyond the Ivy League: Finding the College That's Right for You

Loren Pope

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Total reviews: 25 Average rating: 4.0 of 5

Gives another perspective on the college search 4 out of 5 stars.
3 of 3 people found this review helpful.

My son is in high school and is beginning to look at colleges. He is an above-average but not exceptional student -- takes challenging courses (AP, intensified, etc.) but has around a 3.3 GPA unweighted. I myself was mesmerized by "selective" colleges when I was a college shopper 25 years ago, especially if they had gorgeous, traditional campuses. The more steeped in tradition, the better! One main difference between my son and me, though, is that I was a super motivated student who was a good match for this type of college. My son is not motivated by the same types of things as I was, and although he wants to go to college, he is not motivated by prestige like I was, and he just wants to go somewhere where he can contribute and discuss ideas. Of course, he wants to work toward something that will help him get a job, but above all else, he wants to grow from the experience. He simply does not have the grades to get into the top tier private or state schools (in our state, UVA and W&M), and I'm not about to stress him out by pushing him to be someone he's not and aspire to those level of colleges. That would be setting him up for failure. For this type of student, who I believe is like the majority of students, I think Mr. Pope's book is a breath of fresh air. I would have given it a five-star rating but for his unfounded generalizations about top tier schools (more on that later).
I think what Mr. Pope is trying to show in his books (and they have recently been updated -- so those of you grumbling about the out-of-date information can cease to whine now...) is that there are plenty of options out there BESIDES the name brand, top tier schools that can inspire and educate the middle range of students very well and in some cases just as well as or better than the Ivies. Many of the middle range or "B" students are thoughtful, interesting people who WILL contribute to their colleges and to making an interesting student body. The smartest 5 - 10 per cent of high school students don't have a monopoly on being interesting and involved students, contrary to what many in our high-powered, competitive area (Wash D.C. suburbs) may think. I think Mr. Pope does an excellent job of explaining what small colleges have to offer and why they would be a superior choice for many students.
Where I believe he falls down a bit is in making blanket statements about some other (usually competitive and/or Ivies) colleges/universities that simply are unfounded. For example, at one point he says that Emory and Henry College in Virginia does a far superior job than William & Mary (W&M), UVA, and Washington-Lee at producing graduates who make a difference in their world. How can he make a comment like that unless he knows each an every person who graduates from those schools? W&M and UVA both have some of the highest Peace Corps participation rates among their graduates of any colleges/universities in the country. Greedy, grade-grubbing, self-serving people usually don't serve in the Peace Corps. Both colleges also have a large number of Truman, Rhodes, Fulbright and other special scholars; and their graduates are quite often civically involved in my community in large numbers. I think Mr. Pope's information about these small colleges is useful, and my son may very well choose one of these schools. But, please, Mr. Pope, your book will have much more credence and sway if you take a positive approach and not slander the "competitive" schools with hollow rhetoric you cannot back up with fact. Sure there are nerdy loosers who graduated from the Ivies and their "clones," but so there are from any college. Generalizations are always dangerous, because they are rarely true across the board.
You can continue in future editions to build up these lovely small colleges without cutting down the large state schools and/or the top tier ones. They are gems, as you say, but please don't belittle more well known schools in illustrating your point.

Editorial Review:

The celebrated book that revolutionized the way Americans choose colleges—now fully revised and updated

An invaluable guide with virtually no competition, this book helped to establish Loren Pope as one of the nation’s most respected experts on the college application process. Now fully revised and updated, Looking Beyond the Ivy League offers a step-by-step guide to selecting the right institution, a checklist of specific questions to ask when visiting a college, the secrets to creating good applications and good applicants, and much more. With as few as one-third of college students remaining at the institution they entered as freshmen, finding the right college is harder than ever before. This book makes it easier for students and their parents.

Countdown to College: 21 To Do Lists for High School : Step-By-Step Strategies for 9th, 10th, 11,th and 12th Graders

Valerie Pierce, Cheryl Rilly

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College Parents of America Recommends "Countdown" 5 out of 5 stars.
19 of 20 people found this review helpful.

As the president of College Parents of America, the only nationwide member association dedicated to serving and advocating on behalf of current and future college parents, I consider Valerie Pierce's "Countdown to College" to be one of the most valuable and user-friendly college planning guides in print. When I first began compiling and culling information for parents to access on our Web site (www.collegeparents.org), I consulted "Countdown" frequently for resources and easy-to-understand explanations of complex preparation and application processes. I found the book to be concise, well-organized and comprehensive in its "To Do" lists for high school students. Today, my staff and I still keep several dog-eared copies around for quick and easy reference. And, we have enlisted Ms. Pierce as one of our "Ask the Experts" panelists for our members to consult. I highly recommend this book for all parents of high school students -- and I guarantee that their copies will become dog-eared as well!

Editorial Review:

This is an easy-to-follow timeline to help students to maximise their high school years and optimise their chances of 'getting where they want to go'. While encouraging exploration and self-discovery, these "to-do's" provide the nitty gritty details necessary to the college admissions process. There will be no missed deadlines, or missed opportunities, as this step-by-step guide shows students and parents what to do and when to do it.

A Handbook for Classroom Instruction that Works (ASCD)

Robert J. Marzano, Jennifer S. Norford, Diane E. Paynter, Debra J. Pickering, Barbara B. Gaddy

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Total reviews: 7 Average rating: 3.0 of 5

Great for Professional Book Study with Teachers! 5 out of 5 stars.
22 of 22 people found this review helpful.

I used this book to guide a book study with elementary teachers in a school where I was the principal. All teachers in the study were reading Marzano's Classroom Instruction that works and a couple of us had a copy of this book to bring in additional information and activities to enhance our study. Both books present the "cut to the chase" version of research that many teachers appreciate because of their busy schedules. The books present strategies that have been proven repeatedly to be effective and professionals who have looked carefully at Marzano's work know that it is scholarly work. He has, however, tried to present it in a very down to earth fashion. No high brow research jargon here. Teachers appreciated and learned from the study and the structure and additional information this guide brought to our work together was an significant factor.

Editorial Review:

Designed as a self-study resource, this handbook guides readers through nine categories of instructional strategies proven to improve student achievement. Sections 1-9 address the nine categories of instructional strategies that can be applied to all types of content, at all grade levels, and with all types of students: Identifying similarities and differences; Summarizing and note taking; Reinforcing effort and providing recognition; Homework and practice; Representing knowledge; Learning groups; Setting objectives and providing feedback; Generating and testing hypotheses; and Cues, questions, and advance organizers. For each of the nine categories, exercises, brief questionnaires, tips and recommendations, samples, worksheets, rubrics, and other tools are provided. For elementary and middle school teachers, counselors, evaluators, and administrators.