By Lauren Jonas, NSTA Assistant Executive Director
Posted on 2015-06-11
The 2015 annual conference for the National Association of Elementary School Principals (NAESP) takes place June 30–July 2. Designed for educators on the front lines — teachers, superintendents, counselors, district and state administrators, and especially principals — the conference aims to have a huge impact on student success. And the National Science Teachers Association (NSTA) will be there to join them as principals experience the future of education.
NSTA’s position on Elementary School Science states “we support the notion that inquiry science must be a basic in the daily curriculum of every elementary school student at every grade level.” And we believe that science is a key component of a complete and rigorous curriculum for all students. Supported by our community of expert educators with a solid science education background and a passion for literacy, we’ve assembled a powerful resource collection that helps integrate science and literacy at the elementary level. Join us in Long Beach, California, June 30–July 2 to learn more, and stop by our booth to share your ideas with us about the direction in which you see education going.
When you do visit us, whether onsite or online, we hope you will sample some of our resources:
Visit booth #1123 onsite or use promo code NAESP online at the NSTA Science Store to receive the same 20% discount on all NSTA Press publications* that our members get—plus $5 off NSTA membership for yourself or a science teacher on your team!
*Offer good only on NSTA Press publications, from June 29–July 10, 2015, and cannot be combined with any other offer or discount.
The mission of NSTA is to promote excellence and innovation in science teaching and learning for all.
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By Martin Horejsi
Posted on 2015-06-10
Go Big with Vernier’s Go Wireless pH Sensor
Dethethering is a fancy word for eliminating the cord. By going wireless the probe opens some interesting doors to creative and safe exploration and experimentation. One of the big advantages of a wireless probe is the same advantage we experienced with telephones and microscopes went cordless. No longer did we trip over cords, knock over containers when moving the cords, or dredging off the top of counter tops desks with the cord acting like a giant chain stripping the surface down to bare ground.
By Mary Bigelow
Posted on 2015-06-09
Our new principal wants us to come up with goals to accomplish in the next year. He hasn’t provided much guidance yet, so I don’t know what to do. How can I do this meaningfully? —J., Delaware
The end of the school year is a good time to reflect. This often leads to developing professional goals to improve your teaching and student learning. You probably have some in mind.
Working toward these goals can be an effective part of an individualized professional development plan. Unfortunately, goal setting is often an empty formality in my experience. I would definitely talk with your principal about his expectations.
I had a principal who required us to submit several goals each year. I suspect it was something he felt he had to do (or was told to do), but he did not provide any suggestions or examples on the number, format, or purpose. And he did not follow up on them during the year. Our professional development was not based on the goals, and they were not mentioned during any post-observation conferences. Because of this, I didn’t take the goal setting process seriously, treating it as a yearly task to check off the list. I certainly worked at becoming a better teacher, but those efforts were not formally related to the goals I submitted.
The process was different at another agency I worked for. Everyone, including the executive director, used the agency’s mission statement to formulate two to three SMART goals (the format is described below). We fine-tuned them with our supervisors and created an action plan to address them. At the mid-term and end of the year we discussed our progress and how the process was adding to our professional growth. It was a powerful form of professional development and a positive experience in reflection and self-evaluation.
Looking back, I realized my school district goals, as they were written, were not useful because they were extremely broad and lacked much purpose. The SMART acronym describes a more focused format:
For example, “I want students to participate in class discussions” is a worthy but broad goal. It can be tweaked into a SMART goal:
Here are some generic goal areas that could evolve into SMART goals:
Instructional Goals
Interpersonal Goals
Organizational Goals
NSTA has a wealth of professional resources to help you meet your goals: online discussion forums and email lists, journals, books, conferences, the NGSS@NSTA Hub, free web seminars, and content-based courses.
Photo: https://www.flickr.com/photos/eclectic-echoes/6681499071/