QISA - Current Conditions Monthly News Letter

	In The News: Follow The Child; Purpose for Schools & Students; The Participation Gap
	New Hampshire Grade 3-5 Results 2007-2008 Academic Year (PDF - 355Kb)
	New Hampshire Grade 6-8 Results 2007-2008 Academic Year (PDF - 374Kb)
	New Hampshire Grade 9-12 Results 2007-2008 Academic Year (PDF - 367Kb)
	Current Conditions - Monthly Newsletter February, 2008 issue (PDF 53Kb)

Condition of the Month: PURPOSE
Having a sense of purpose for the warmer weather is as much about who we are while loafing, learning, and laboring as it is about the activities themselves. Help students add purpose to their summer by asking who will be a good friend at camp, who will think of others while on vacation, and who will take on the challenge of summer learning with a positive attitude and sense of accountability.

Condition of the Month: CONFIDENCE TO TAKE ACTION
Making a difference may mean finding a cure for cancer or negotiating a peace between warring nations. Making a difference may also mean encouraging a student who is struggling with a biology lesson or helping colleagues see both sides of a divisive issue. Each positive action each one of us takes improves the world no matter the degree.

Condition of the Month: Leadership & Responsibility
Leaders are typically thought of as people who have vision and voice. They have a clear picture of where they want to go and effectively communicate that to their followers. The challenge is creating a shared vision from multiple viewpoints and speaking in a voice that harmonizes the voices of the entire community. We invite you to consider how you are modeling and teaching this more responsible form of leadership to your students.

Condition of the Month: Spirit of Adventure
Teaching a classroom of diverse students is a challenge. How do we design classroom assignments that appropriately challenge all learners, pulling some from their comfort zones and others from their panic zone? How do we provide an environment where it is safe to fail or to succeed?

Condition of the Month: Creativity
Creativity is often thought of as "extra-credit" or "extra-curricular." Or, if curricular, creativity is the sole responsibility of the art teacher. There is another point of view; one that runs counter to more traditional approaches to education: Creativity is the starting point of any education that seeks to be relevant.

Condition of the Month: Curiosity
Our students from young to old, from naïve to cynical, are curious. They want to make sense of their world. They seek out more information... Effective teachers lead students to discover the connection between their students´ insatiable wondering and the infinitely wonder-filled world around us.

Condition of the Month: Fun & Excitement
How do you hook students on learning? What´s the bait? Bugs? Blume? Binomials? Byzantine buildings? "Reel" learning occurs when a student is engaged and connected to the learning material and process.

Condition of the Month: Sense of Accomplishment
What is learning and how do we measure it? Being accountable for results is crucial to the success of schools. Yet those working in schools know that meaningful accountability cannot be reduced to indicators of merely academic "end product." Such measures represent only one narrow dimension of accountability. Let´s hold ourselves and our students answerable for all the factors we know contribute to an educated citizen.

Condition of the Month: Heroes
There is something about a HERO that demands, or rather, commands respect. At the same time, HEROES are accessible, attentive listeners, trusting and trustworthy. Be a HERO and respect will follow.

Condition of the Month: Belonging
Welcome back to another exciting school year! Summer highlights the remarkable variety of human individuality. Ask those who have rejoined you in school what they did and you will discover summers ranging from reading to rock climbing, from tutoring others to taking courses, from painting houses to playing in the park.