Effective teachers are empowered—and so are their students
Effective teachers are empowered—and so are their students
September 20, 2018
By: Jan Bryan, EdD, Vice President, National Education Officer, Renaissance USA Educator effectiveness and grit are trending across educational media. Is it coincidence or inevitability that these two concepts should dominate current discourse simultaneously? Perhaps it is the potential for these ideas to be [...]
Learning with a destination in mind: The art and science of personalised goal setting
Learning with a destination in mind: The art and science of personalised goal setting
September 18, 2018
By: Eric Stickney, Director of Educational Research, Renaissance USA A version of the famous quote from Chinese philosopher Lao-tzu states, “A journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step.” But what determines whether that journey will be successful? [...]
Building reading comprehension through questions, inquiry, and sketchnotes
Building reading comprehension through questions, inquiry, and sketchnotes
September 18, 2018
By: By Billy Spicer, Instructional Coach, Renaissance USA To comprehend or not to comprehend—that is the question. To comprehend illustrates a strong connection between reader and text, a connection that can only be made if students truly understand the words that are [...]
What does Student Growth Percentile do?
What does Student Growth Percentile do?
September 17, 2018
What is Student Growth Percentile? Achievement indicates whether performance is below, above, or on par with grade-level expectations. Growth explains the kind of progress the student is making over time. Student Growth Percentile is a method of characterising and measuring growth used [...]
Tips for helping students find reliable news and online sources
Tips for helping students find reliable news and online sources
September 17, 2018
By: Team Renaissance USA In a world of constant notifications, tweets, and status updates, we have access to more content than ever before. With a 24/7 media cycle, there’s more and more content being pumped out—some of it great, some [...]
What is Lexile® Framework?
What is Lexile® Framework?
August 30, 2018
The Lexile® Framework for Reading is a scientific approach to measuring reading ability and the text complexity of reading materials. The Lexile scale is like a thermometre, except rather than measuring temperature, it measures a text’s complexity and a reader’s skill [...]
How to: Accelerate Progress with Guided Reading
How to: Accelerate Progress with Guided Reading
August 20, 2018
By: Margaret Allen, Strategic Education Manager, Renaissance UK More haste, less speed. It’s a well-known fact of life. But what about when you’re faced with a class full of primary children and a school-led directive on guided reading? All of [...]
Learning to sail: Engaging reluctant readers
Learning to sail: Engaging reluctant readers
August 20, 2018
By: Jan Bryan, EdD, Vice President, National Education Officer, Renaissance USA What was the last thing you read? Did you read for pleasure, to gain information, or to complete a task? Did you read to calm yourself, escape the day, [...]
What is the Zone of Proximal Development (ZPD)?
What is the Zone of Proximal Development (ZPD)?
August 12, 2018
By: Renaissance US team The Zone of Proximal Development, or ZPD, was a concept introduced by Lev Vygotsky in the late 1920s. Vygotsky, a Russian psychologist, used ZPD to describe the relationship between a student’s learning and his or her [...]
