Formative Assessments Using Technology
Written by Michael Plocher FORMATIVE ASSESSMENTS Assessing learning is an important part of teaching. Whether in a traditional classroom, confirmation class, Sunday school, or other learning...
View ArticleSTE(A)M in Early Childhood Education
Written by Anne Marquardt STEM. STEAM. STREAM. Which of these recent educational buzzwords can you decode? At first glance these acronyms—which stand for Science, Technology, Reading (or Religion),...
View Article21st-Century Skill Development
Written by Matthew Moeller 21st-Century Education The fundamental issue is not of new versus old education nor of progressive against traditional education but a question of what, if anything whatever,...
View ArticleFoster Teacher Collaboration with Micro-Credentials
Written by Dr. John Meyer What are the teachers at your school talking about? Schools where teachers talk positively about ways to improve teaching and learning are more successful than those that...
View ArticleWelcoming Your New Teachers
Written by Professor Jonathan Schaefer WELS schools all over the country are receiving new teachers on their faculties. These teachers are well trained and enthusiastic. During their first year on a...
View ArticleCreating Expert Learners in Our WELS Classrooms
Written by Dr. Kari Muente It is a challenging time to be a teacher. As our WELS classrooms are becoming more academically, culturally, and linguistically diverse, tension is rising between curriculum...
View ArticleIs Everyone in Your School on the Same Page?
Written by Dr. John Meyer Is everyone in your school on the same page when it comes to what effective teaching looks like? I recently spoke with two teachers who were frustrated by their principals’...
View ArticleWhy Bother Teaching History?
Written by Professor Peter Baganz In the 5th century BC, the ancient Greek Olympics not only featured athletic competitions, but Herodotus, often considered the first historian, read his Histories...
View ArticleFlexible Tuition: A Solution for Struggling Congregations
Written by Bill Fuerstenau The Problem Many WELS congregations that support elementary schools are struggling. Membership in our churches is shrinking, and with that, financial support as well. When...
View ArticleThe Need for Research and Writing in History Class
Written by Professor Peter Baganz Before teaching at MLC, I taught history for 19 years at one of our area Lutheran high schools. Every student in every one of my history classes wrote a major research...
View ArticleBuilding Bridges Between Preschool and Lutheran Elementary School
Written by Brad Gurgel The connections between a congregation’s preschool and K-8 program can sometimes be weak. There are many reasons this can happen. The two programs vary in families served,...
View ArticleMake Your School More Effective
Written by Steven Haag The Case for Professional Learning Communities The best way to make your school great is to empower teachers by boosting their collective efficacy. Hattie (2017) found this made...
View ArticleService-Learning: Stewardship at Its Finest
Written by Craig Bretkreutz Where has the youth gone in our church? How could our students make a real impact in their community? Will my students ever really use the stuff I teach them? If you’re...
View ArticleBridging the Gap Between Preschool and Elementary School
Written by Shawna Tech Just because parents choose to send their children to a Lutheran preschool doesn’t mean that they will have them continue at the Lutheran grade school. What can Lutheran...
View ArticlePoverty and Education: What Being Poor Does to the Brain
Written by Dan Johnson What does poverty look like? Can you tell by looking at the students who walk into your room? Are they hungry? Dirty? Sleepy? Does poverty only affect those in large cities and...
View ArticleAre WELS Schools Truly Multicultural Underneath the Surface?
Written by Grey Davis The student body in some Lutheran schools has changed in the last 20 years. As the world globalizes, Lutheran schools see an opportunity to fulfill the Great Commission (Hoover,...
View ArticleAdministrative Release Time: A Paradigm That Requires Change
Written by Harmon Krause In the last two years, 60 principals walked away from their positions in a Wisconsin Evangelical Lutheran Synod (WELS) school, affecting 19% of the schools (J. Rademan,...
View ArticleEight Indicators of High-Quality Early Childhood Ministries
Written by Professor Cheryl Loomis The mission of WELS Early Childhood Ministries (ECM) is to partner with families in providing Christian care and education for their children. High-quality programs...
View ArticleThings I’ve Learned About Teaching Online
The perspective of a current online grade 7-8 Algebra 1 teacher and former high school math teacher Written by Emily Grunwald The coronavirus has created new challenges for teachers and students. With...
View ArticleAdvancing Your Students Through Online Learning
Written by Angela Hanson How are you, your students, and their families doing now that COVID-19 has completely up-ended your lives, taken you out of the classroom, and suddenly thrown you into the...
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