Best practice: new standards for teaching and learning in America’s schools.

An Annotation by Laurie Walsh

The chapter is a fabulously detailed and thoughtful discussion of six methods to create a student-centered classroom:

• integrative units,
• small-group activities,
• representing-to-learn,
• classroom workshop,
• authentic experiences and
• reflective assessment.

Each approach is thoroughly discussed, and there are suggested further readings for each.  Unlike many of the other authors, Zemelman does acknowledge that we still need whole-class instruction at times.  He offers methods for improving teacher-directed lessons: reading aloud,  mini-lessons, and demonstrations.

Zemelman, S., et.al. (1998).  Classroom structures for best practice.  Best practice: new standards for teaching and learning in America’s schools. Retrieved June 16, 2008 from ProQuest database.