Welcome 2013
Author: Manuel R. CortezRodas
"From MRCR Education to you.
May the new year bring the best in education for all who take part in it."
Copyright 2012. MRCR Educational Consulting Firm. All Rights Reserved.
Monday, December 31, 2012
Friday, December 28, 2012
Closing The Year
Closing the Year in Education
Author: Manuel R. CortezRodas
As the year comes to a close, we, as educators, should take the time to look back and reflect on all that has taken place and has been achieved with our students, in our classrooms, and throughout our schools.
January-June (Last Year's Class)
Last Year's class was with us for the first half of the year. We help to guide them as they concluded their school year, and prepared to move on to their next grade level. We did our best to accommodate the learning needs of each of our students, and gave as much of our time as we could to ensure that every student in our classroom received the most excellent of education so that they may become successful learners for years to come.
July-August (Summer Time)
Summer time is not a stoppage of education, but rather a break for both students and educators to transition into the next educational year. Summer time presents a time for students to catch up to grade level if they have fallen behind, or to get ahead if they have demonstrated the knowledge needed to pursuit further education. For educators it is a time for lesson planning and adjustment, as well as thoroughly thinking about the responsibilities we have as educators and the role we have in the education of our students.
September-December (Next Year's Class)
Next Year's Class is with us now, and we have done our best to be prepared in order to meet the needs that each of our students will have. As the year comes to a close, it is once again time to regroup and refocus our attention toward our students, so that they may become successful learners in the year to come as they prepare to advance to the next learning level in school.
We have reached the end of another year as educators. As we look back and reflect on the accomplishments that have been made possible, let us keep looking forward toward the next class of students. They are going to become the future of education throughout our nation.
Copyright 2012. MRCR Educational Consulting Firm. All Rights Reserved.
Monday, December 24, 2012
Winter Holiday Wishes
Winter Holiday Wishes
Author: Manuel R. CortezRodas
From MRCR Education to you:
Wishing you and yours a wonderful winter holiday season.
De MRCR Eduaction a usted:
Deseandoles a usted y los suyos una maravillosa temporada feriada de invierno.
Copyright 2012. MRCR Educational Consulting Firm. All Rights Reserved.
Friday, December 21, 2012
Year End Evaluation
Evaluating Education as the Year Ends
Author: Manuel R. CortezRodas
As the year comes to an end we as educators should take a look back at the year in its entirety, the new school year, and look ahead to the new year. If we have the fortune to be given a winter break, we should truly take the time to reflect on these three phases. We cannot be ready to teach if we have not learn, and we cannot learn if we do not study. It is part of our responsibility as educators to study, learn, and teach so that we can fully prepare our learners.
Evaluating the current school year
From the first day of school to the last day of the year, the current school year should be evaluated. We should reflect on how we prepared to open the school year for our students, and how we welcomed them into our classrooms. By now we should have a clear understanding of the educational level that our students have as individuals and as a classroom. Students who are well prepared should be encouraged to continue pursuing further self-learning, while at the same time encouraging them to help other classmates by sharing their knowledge. Students who were not prepared, have not caught up to their classmates, and are having a difficult time reaching the level required, should be our primary focus, and should be directed to further school resources and programs in order for them to reach an equal level of education.
Evaluating the year in its entirety
From the first school day of the year to the last day of the year, the year as a whole should be evaluated. We begun the year with a group of students who should have been able to learn, acquire, and demonstrate the knowledge necessary to advance to the next grade level. During our summer break we should have taken the time to review, improve, and realign our lesson plans. We have also began a new education cycle, with a new group of students, as we open a new school year. It is this new group of students that we are now working with so that they learn, acquire, and demonstrate the knowledge necessary to advance to the next grade level.
Preparing for next year
From what we learn in our evaluation of the current school year and the year as a whole, we can gain the knowledge and develop the tools that we will need to help our students succeed. Performing these evaluations will help us prepare for the next year. As we are in our winter break, and as we do during our summer break, it is our responsibility as educators to continuously review, evaluate, and prepare so that we may also continuously maintain in our presence the students whom we are serving.
Copyright 2012. MRCR Educational Consulting Firm. All Rights Reserved.
Monday, December 17, 2012
Sandy Hook Elementary School
Newtown, Connecticut.
Author: Manuel R. CortezRodas
On Friday, the 14th of December 2012, in the Newtown, Connecticut, at Sandy Hook Elementary School, there were 26 individuals whose time in life came to an end too soon, in a place where education takes place, in order to prepare for the future. 6 educators, who were at work educating others, gave their lives in sacrifice. 20 children, who were at school getting educated, were sacrificed.
We acknowledge the loss of life has has taken place in a school, in a town, in a state, in a nation, in the world. We must now sacrifice ourselves to support, honor, and respect these 26 individuals whose lives came to an end in a school. We take a moment of silence as we read the following:
Davino, Rachel (Age 29) Educator
Hochsprung, Dawn (Age 47) Educator
Murphy, Anne Marie (Age 52) Educator
Rousseau, Lauren (Age 30) Educator
Sherlach, Mary (Age 56) Educator
Soto, Victoria (Age 27) Educator
Bacon, Charlote (Age 6) Student
Barden, Daniel (Age 7) Student
Engel, Olivia (Age 6) Student
Gay, Josephine (Age 7) Student
Marquez-Green, Ana (Age 6) Student
Hockley, Dylan (Age 6) Student
Hsu, Madeleine (Age 6) Student
Hubbard, Catherine (Age 6) Student
Kowalski, Chase (Age 7) Student
Lewis, Jesse (Age 6) Student
Mattioli, James (Age 6) Student
McDonnell, Grace (Age 7) Student
Parker, Emilie (Age 6) Student
Pinto, Jack (Age 6) Student
Pozner, Noah (Age 6) Student
Previdi, Caroline (Age 6) Student
Rekes, Jessica (Age 6) Student
Richman, Aville (Age 6) Student
Wheeler, Benjamin (Age 6) Student
Wyatt, Allison (Age 6) Student
(Source: Connecticut State Police; Via Associated Press Twitter Feed http://t.co/zvFeNdLb)
Copyright 2012. MRCR Educational Consulting Firm. All Rights Reserved.
Thursday, December 13, 2012
Winter Break
Year End Review
Author: Manuel R. CortezRodas
Approaching Winter Break
As we approach the winter break in most of our schools, it is a good time to take a look back at what has been accomplished since the school year started back in August. We have gone from the first day of school, to thanksgiving day, to the soon up coming winter festivities. We have had our students for three months during which we have tried our best to educate them. There have been lesson plans and homework that has been handed out and turned in. There have also been quizzes, tests, and assignments that have been graded using the designated rubric. By now we should be able to know where our students stand, and where they are going to go if they stay the course.
Year End Evaluation
A good evaluation for the end of the year must take into account that it is not the end of the school year, but rather the end to the year. This has the advantage of taking place before the half way mark to the actual school year. Each student began the year at a different starting point. Part of our responsibility as educators is to get them going at the same level and pace as the classroom as a whole. As we close the year, and look back on three months of education, we should take the time to do a proper evaluation. This evaluation should be done at the student, classroom, and curriculum level.
Preparing for the New Year
This is a time to look forward toward the new year. A time to look ahead to what our students still have to learn. As we approach this winter break, we must approach the beginning of the new year as a time to press on with our educational goals. Our students depend on us to instruct them properly and help them to plan their educational paths. By preparing for the new year we can demonstrate to our students that, although we must make adjustments along the path, the overall goal is still the same. Our goal is to educate, and to provide the best education for our students that we can offer them.
Copyright 2012. MRCR Educational Consulting Firm. All Rights Reserved.
Tuesday, December 11, 2012
Benefits of STEAM Education
What Students Develop from STEAM Education
Author: Manuel R. CortezRodas
The benefits of a STEAM education are reflected on the development of the students as they acquire, apply, and demonstrate the following skills:
- They find solutions to problems, rather than problem solving.
- They are artful in their communication, rather than express STEM-babble.
- They understand that information is pursued, rather than being a fact seeker.
- They become life-long learners, rather than stage students.
- They are neo-knowledgeable, rather than pseudo-fictional.
With a solid foundation in a clearly defined STEAM education curriculum, we as educators can plant a seed of learning in each of our students. This seed will then begin to branch out and grow in each student as they progress through their education. With a constant evaluation of their learning we can ensure that as students grow they develop a healthy education, and it will allow for corrective actions to be implemented if needed. The fruits of these students will be good and in time they will create an educational ecosystem that cycles around learning.
Copyright 2012. MRCR Educational Consulting Firm. All Rights Reserved.
Tuesday, December 4, 2012
STEAM Education Curriculum
Developing a STEAM Education Curriculum
Author: Manuel R. CortezRodas
Foundation for a STEAM Education Curriculum
The foundation for a STEAM education curriculum begins with a team of people who believe that educating students in Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts, and Mathematics is important for the preparation and development of future learners.
Definition of STEAM Education Curriculum
To begin the development of STEAM education curriculum, we must define what we understand to be STEAM education curriculum. STEAM could be the foundation upon which we build education. We could also use education as the foundation for STEAM education. STEAM curriculum should be built on or around a defined foundation.
Planting STEAM Education Curriculum
With the foundation and definition of STEAM Education Curriculum, the planting can take place. A seed is planted on a defined foundation, and it can begin growing by branching out. A STEAM education curriculum branches out as it grows after it is planted on a defined foundation.
Branching STEAM Education Curriculum
STEAM Education should branch out in a single direction before growing. The direction of growth can be defined by a multitude of factors such as available educational resources, student education level, community priority of education, and the effective implementation of education regulation prior to growth.
Growing STEAM Education Curriculum
STEAM Education should grow out in a multitude of directions that allow for new branching in different directions. Whether STEAM is the foundation and education the growth, or education the foundation and STEAM the growth, the curriculum branches out and grows allowing for the development of students who are learned in the areas of STEAM education.
Evaluating STEAM Education Curriculum
As the curriculum flows throughout the educational system, it should be evaluated constantly and at every stage. Measurements allow us to evaluate any part of the curriculum, and we learn from these measurements how effective the curriculum is, if it needs to be made better, are the students at an equal level.
Copyright 2012. MRCR Edcuational Consulting Firm. All Rights Reserved.
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