So many slighting remarks have been made of late on the use of teaching grammar as compared with teaching science, that it is plain the fact has been lost sight of that grammar is itself a science. The object we have, or should have, in teaching science, is not to fill a child's mind with a vast number of facts that may or may not prove useful to him hereafter, but to draw out and exercise his powers of observation, and to show him how to make use of what he observes... And here the teacher of grammar has a great advantage over the teacher of other sciences, in that the facts he has to call attention to lie ready at hand for every pupil to observe without the use of apparatus of any kind while the use of them also lies within the personal experience of every one.
The series is focused on enquiry with a view to improving practice through:
~ accessible content at the reader’s level about the main issues;
~ knowledge about a range of teaching methods and curriculum content;
~ knowledge about the way information and communicative technologies can influence teaching, learning and curriculum content;
~ enquiry tasks that encourage the reader to:
~~ assess and develop their understandings of the issues;
~~ assess and develop their subject knowledge;
~~ try out activities in the classroom and collect data about their effects and effectiveness;
~ an annotated reading list at the end of each chapter.
This text focuses on religious education, history, geography and cross-curricular planning in the primary school. It includes discussion of the purpose of education, and how the humanities fit into this.
Although some of the ideas contained in the book are complex and could be seen as demanding, the authors have been careful to keep the style straightforward and the language is accessible rather than ‘academic’. Wherever possible, new ideas and concepts are supported by concrete examples. The authors’ intention is to communicate clearly some of the complexity and subtlety of effective and reflective teaching.
Successful School Change: Creating Settings to Improve Teaching and Learning
Drawing on 15 years of research and teaching in low-income schools, Claude Goldenberg provides a powerful model of school change for those seeking to make reform happen in their school or classroom. With great care and sensitivity, Goldenberg demonstrates the kinds of long-term planning and coordinated effort required to create lasting change.
