Uncommon Sense Teaching

Top 10 Pick for Learning Ladders’ Best Books for Educators Summer 2021 A groundbreaking guide to improve teaching based on the latest research in neuroscience, from the bestselling author of A Mind for Numbers. Neuroscientists and cognitive scientists have made enormous strides in understanding the brain and how we learn, but little of that insight has filtered down to the way teachers teach. Uncommon Sense Teaching applies this research to the classroom for teachers, parents, and anyone interested in improving education. Topics include: • keeping students motivated and engaged, especially with online learning • helping students remember information long-term, so it isn't immediately forgotten after a test • how to teach inclusively in a diverse classroom where students have a wide range of abilities Drawing on research findings as well as the authors' combined decades of experience in the classroom, Uncommon Sense Teaching equips readers with the tools to enhance their teaching, whether they're seasoned professionals or parents trying to offer extra support for their children's education.

Mayher traces his own evolution as a teacher/learner by recapturing the processes of reflection and inquiry he went through when confronted by contradictions between the way commonsense teaching and learning were supposed to work and the actual experiences of students in his classrooms.

"Peter Cochrane is one of our most far-sighted visionaries, and brings brilliant clarity and focus to our understanding of ourselves and our technologies, and of how profoundly each is transforming the other." -Douglas Adams, Author, The Hitch Hiker's Guide to the Galaxy In Uncommon Sense, Peter Cochrane's follow up to the radical 108 Tips for Time Traveller, Peter explains how very simple analysis allows the prediction of such debacles as the 3G auction and the subsequent collapse of an industry, whilst simple-minded thinking is dangerous in the context of a world that is predominantly chaotic and out of control. People balked when Peter suggested a wholesale move to eWorking, the rise of email and text messaging, and the dotcom regime mirroring the boom and bust cycle of the industrial revolution. His predictions of the use and growth of mobile devices and communication, or use of chip implants for humans to replace ID cards, passports, and medical records, or iris scanners and fingerprint readers - were all seen as unlikely. Today they are a reality. How then will the world react to his predictions as set out in Uncommon Sense of a networked world of distributed ignorance and sharing overcoming an old world of concentrated skill and control? To everything becoming 'Napsterised' in every dimension, where storage and processing power cost nothing, and become connected without the help of the old network companies? A world where individuals create their own networks, where laws of copyright and resale, and old business models have to be changed as giant industries are dragged kicking and screaming out of the 19th Century and into the 21st? Peter Cochrane poses and answers questions, suggests solutions, and raises red flags on issues that need to be addressed. Tables, diagrams, pictures and illustrations generously support all of the text, with the most difficult aspects illustrated by simulations and other material on a CD and links to a web site with an ongoing expansion of the themes addressed.

In eighteen lively chapters, Andrew Pessin examines the most unusual ideas from the ancient Greeks and contemporary thinkers, how they have influenced the course of Western thought, and why, despite being so odd, they just might be correct. -Time is an illusion. -Your thoughts do not exist inside your head. -There is no physical world -And more!

This book offers alternatives to typical leadership, highlighting new ways of thinking about how individuals can lead effectively. Specifically, it integrates several fields, including neuroscience, behavioral economics, mindfulness, cognitive and social psychology, emotional intelligence, and management decision-making. The authors challenge the “common sense,” mainstream thinking about leadership, arguing that effective leadership depends on a more complicated understanding of the underlying dynamics.When leaders rely on the common sense that they have been taught explicitly or implicitly about leadership, the results are often not effective—for themselves personally, for their followers, for the organizations in which they lead, and for society as a whole. For example, aspiring leaders often believe that the mark of good leaders is their ability to come up with quick answers to problems. Others believe that one’s ability to minimize complexity and uncertainty indicates leadership potential. In addition, despite the literature suggesting the value of engaging in self-reflection, few leaders regularly step back and look inward. Even those who can intellectually discuss emotional intelligence often focus on their ability to influence the emotions of others rather than reflecting on and learning from their own emotions.The book calls for leaders to operate with more humility and greater awareness of the multiple contexts in which they function—approaches that improve life for all organizational members. As leaders become more effective, they will become healthier and more satisfied, less harried, more grounded, and more fulfilled in their lives.

A book for learners of all ages containing the best and most updated advice on learning from neuroscience and cognitive psychology. Do you spend too much time learning with disappointing results? Do you find it difficult to remember what you read? Do you put off studying because it’s boring and you’re easily distracted? This book is for you. Dr. Barbara Oakley and Olav Schewe have both struggled in the past with their learning. But they have found techniques to help them master any material. Building on insights from neuroscience and cognitive psychology, they give you a crash course to improve your ability to learn, no matter what the subject is. Through their decades of writing, teaching, and research on learning, the authors have developed deep connections with experts from a vast array of disciplines. And it’s all honed with feedback from thousands of students who have themselves gone through the trenches of learning. Successful learners gradually add tools and techniques to their mental toolbox, and they think critically about their learning to determine when and how to best use their mental tools. That allows these learners to make the best use of their brains, whether those brains seem “naturally” geared toward learning or not. This book will teach you how you can do the same.

A practical guide on how one professor employs the transformative changes of digital media in the research, writing, and teaching of history

To most of us, learning something "the hard way" implies wasted time and effort. Good teaching, we believe, should be creatively tailored to the different learning styles of students and should use strategies that make learning easier. Make It Stick turns fashionable ideas like these on their head. Drawing on recent discoveries in cognitive psychology and other disciplines, the authors offer concrete techniques for becoming more productive learners. Memory plays a central role in our ability to carry out complex cognitive tasks, such as applying knowledge to problems never before encountered and drawing inferences from facts already known. New insights into how memory is encoded, consolidated, and later retrieved have led to a better understanding of how we learn. Grappling with the impediments that make learning challenging leads both to more complex mastery and better retention of what was learned. Many common study habits and practice routines turn out to be counterproductive. Underlining and highlighting, rereading, cramming, and single-minded repetition of new skills create the illusion of mastery, but gains fade quickly. More complex and durable learning come from self-testing, introducing certain difficulties in practice, waiting to re-study new material until a little forgetting has set in, and interleaving the practice of one skill or topic with another. Speaking most urgently to students, teachers, trainers, and athletes, Make It Stick will appeal to all those interested in the challenge of lifelong learning and self-improvement.

What passes for parenting “common sense” today often falls short of the mark. Many of the most common ways parents try to get kids to behave only adds to their stress and frustration, with little resulting improvement in children's behavior.Now there is Parenting With Courage and Uncommon Sense, a book written to show parents what really works when it comes to raising children who grow up to be good people, not just good kids.The book was written by the founder of one of the largest and most successful non-profit parent education programs in the U.S., the Parent Encouragement Program (also known as PEP) that has flourished for more than 30 years. Linda E. Jessup, the founder of PEP, partnered with family therapist Emory Luce Baldwin to write this comprehensive parenting guide for Moms and Dads.Unique among most parenting books, Jessup and Baldwin illustrate their points with the story of a family struggling with familiar problems. Each chapter shows how the parents' growing understanding and skills remedy their most frustrating problems while also creating more harmonious relationships between family members and a calmer, less stressful environment in the home.The lively format and true-to-life examples entertain readers, while also showing parents how to: • Understand why their children behave the way they do;• Help children end their repeated, disturbing misbehaviors;• Discover ways to encourage children to try harder to improve and deal better with their mistakes; and• How to use love, respect, and encouragement to teach children to grow kinder, more cooperative, and more helpful. Written as a book to support PEP's parent education program, Parenting With Courage and Uncommon Sense is loaded with “take-away points” and detailed appendices that show readers how the ideas in the book can used in their own families. Parents will find this book a valuable resource to return to again and again, as their families grow more courageous and more uncommonly sensible.

TEACH YOUR STUDENTS TO READ WITH PRECISION AND INSIGHT The world we are preparing our students to succeed in is one bound together by words and phrases. Our students learn their literature, history, math, science, or art via a firm foundation of strong reading skills. When we teach students to read with precision, rigor, and insight, we are truly handing over the key to the kingdom. Of all the subjects we teach reading is first among equals. Grounded in advice from effective classrooms nationwide, enhanced with more than 40 video clips, Reading Reconsidered takes you into the trenches with actionable guidance from real-life educators and instructional champions. The authors address the anxiety-inducing world of Common Core State Standards, distilling from those standards four key ideas that help hone teaching practices both generally and in preparation for assessments. This 'Core of the Core' comprises the first half of the book and instructs educators on how to teach students to: read harder texts, 'closely read' texts rigorously and intentionally, read nonfiction more effectively, and write more effectively in direct response to texts. The second half of Reading Reconsidered reinforces these principles, coupling them with the 'fundamentals' of reading instruction—a host of techniques and subject specific tools to reconsider how teachers approach such essential topics as vocabulary, interactive reading, and student autonomy. Reading Reconsidered breaks an overly broad issue into clear, easy-to-implement approaches. Filled with practical tools, including: 44 video clips of exemplar teachers demonstrating the techniques and principles in their classrooms (note: for online access of this content, please visit my.teachlikeachampion.com) Recommended book lists Downloadable tips and templates on key topics like reading nonfiction, vocabulary instruction, and literary terms and definitions. Reading Reconsidered provides the framework necessary for teachers to ensure that students forge futures as lifelong readers.