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Bena Kallick and Allison Zmuda
Table of Contents
Reviews | About the Authors
This book is the Editor's Selection member book for January 2017. Learn more about member choice.
Educators' most important work is to help students develop the intellectual and social strength of character necessary to live well in the world. The way to do this, argue authors Bena Kallick and Allison Zmuda, is to increase the say students have in their own learning and prepare them to navigate complexities they face both inside and beyond school. This means rethinking traditional teacher and student roles and reexamining goal setting, lesson planning, assessment, and feedback practices. It means establishing classrooms that prioritize
Based on their exciting work in the field, Kallick and Zmuda map out a transformative model of personalization that puts students at the center and asks them to employ the set of dispositions for engagement and learning known as the Habits of Mind.
They share the perspectives of educators engaged in this work; highlight the habits that empower students to pursue aspirations, investigate problems, design solutions, chase curiosities, and create performances; and provide tools and recommendations for adjusting classroom practices to facilitate learning that is self-directed, dynamic, sometimes messy, and always meaningful.
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Product No: 117015
ISBN-13: 978-1-4166-2324-3
Availability: January 2017
Examination & Desk Copies
Premium, Select, and Institutional Plus members who either choose this Editor's Selection or made no selection get the print book. Premium Online and Select Online members get the e-book.
"This wonderful book calls for rethinking the one-size-fits-all approach that has dominated the educational landscape for the past three decades and placing students' personal interests and needs at the intersection of curriculum, instruction, and assessment. The authors make a powerful case for student voice and agency, and describe practical ways for teachers to honor their students as thinkers, creators, and reflective makers of meaning—all in service of enhancing their learning."
—Martin G. Brooks, EdD Executive Director, Tri-State Consortium
"Bena Kallick and Allison Zmuda take personalized learning to the next level—and teachers and students are the fortunate beneficiaries! Students at the Center focuses on the importance of the essential partnership between students and teachers that allows them to learn and grow together. This book is a powerful reminder that students' voices must be heard, respected, and acted upon if they are to reach their fullest potential. Students at the Center will re-inspire your sense of purpose and renew your commitment to making a difference for every student!"
—Russell J. Quaglia Executive Director, Quaglia Institute for School Voice & Aspirations
"Students at the Center provides a compelling and refreshing treatment of personalized learning. Its focus on voice, co-creation, social construction, and self-discovery offers a lens through which educators can examine their practice. The book also integrates a strong stance for a dialogical and respectful relationship between teacher and student, an instructional repertoire that enables teacher and students to share the responsibility for learning, and the use of ongoing and diversified assessments that honor both learning processes and products. With its many examples and tools, this is a must-read for anyone interested in authentic learning and assessment."
—Giselle Martin-Kniep President, Learner-Centered Initiatives
BENA KALLICK is the co-director of the Institute for Habits of Mind and program director for Eduplanet21, a company dedicated to online professional learning and curriculum development based on the Understanding by Design® framework. She is a consultant providing services to school districts, state departments of education, professional organizations, and public agencies throughout the United States and abroad. Read more
ALLISON ZMUDA is going on 17 years as a full-time education consultant specializing in curriculum, assessment, and instruction. She is passionate about and excited to be a part of the personalized learning movement, working on site with educators to make learning for students challenging, possible, and worthy of the attempt. Read more
designing learning experiences
21st century learning | instructional strategies | school climate and culture | student engagement and motivation
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