COURSE TITLE:

REASONS STUDENTS DON’T LIKE SCHOOL: Mind & Your Classroom

NO. OF CREDITS:

6 QUARTER CREDITS
[semester equivalent = 4.00 credits]

WA CLOCK HRS:  
OREGON PDUs:  
PENNSYLVANIA ACT 48:  
60
60
60

INSTRUCTOR:

Brenda McKinney
bbbrain@comcast.net

 

COURSE DESCRIPTION:

Scientists now know so much more about how our students learn than they did thirty years ago and it is time to upgrade your learning. Did you know that our brains are not really designed for thinking? Did you know that most of what we learn is forgotten immediately? This book offers you the research and arguments to explain why and much, much more. All K-12 and university educators in all disciplines will benefit greatly from understanding the biological and cognitive basis for learning explained in this book. The nine principles are presented with clear, easy-to-understand applications for the classroom; the text is packed with strategies that will be useful in your classroom. If you are a teacher who is looking to increase your effectiveness, then this is the best teachers’ guide around.

LEARNING OUTCOMES: Upon completion of this course, participants will have:

  1. Understood why people are curious but not naturally good thinkers.
  2. Discovered the valuable role of factual knowledge and understanding what students know.
  3. Developed a plan from a cognitive perspective that will consistently provide pleasure and success when solving problems.
  4. Reflected on the concept that proficiency requires practice, repetition, and mastery over time.
  5. Determined if learning styles and multiple intelligences are still a valuable tool for the classroom.
  6. Discovered the new research about IQ what can be done to optimize environmental factors with genetic ones.
  7. Reviewed teaching practices based on conscious effort and feedback.
  8. Learned how to maximize time in the classroom based on focused and knowledgeable planning.

COURSE REQUIREMENTS:
Completion of all specified assignments is required for issuance of hours or credit. The Heritage Institute does not award partial credit.


HOURS EARNED:
Completing the basic assignments (Section A. Information Acquisition) for this course automatically earns participants their choice of CEUs (Continuing Education Units), Washington State Clock Hours, Oregon PDUs, or Pennsylvania ACT 48 Hours. The Heritage Institute offers CEUs and is an approved provider of Washington State Clock Hours, Oregon PDUs, and Pennsylvania ACT 48 Hours.




 

UNIVERSITY QUARTER CREDIT INFORMATION

REQUIREMENTS FOR UNIVERSITY QUARTER CREDIT
Continuing Education Quarter credits are awarded by Antioch University Seattle (AUS). AUS requires 75% or better for credit at the 400 level and 85% or better to issue credit at the 500 level. These criteria refer both to the amount and quality of work submitted.

  1. Completion of Information Acquisition assignments 30%
  2. Completion of Learning Application assignments 40%
  3. Completion of Integration Paper assignment 30%



 

CREDIT/NO CREDIT (No Letter Grades or Numeric Equivalents on Transcripts)
Antioch University Seattle (AUS) Continuing Education Quarter credit is offered on a Credit/No Credit basis; neither letter grades nor numeric equivalents are on a transcript. 400 level credit is equal to a "C" or better, 500 level credit is equal to a "B" or better. This information is on the back of the transcript.

AUS Continuing Education quarter credits may or may not be accepted into degree programs. Prior to registering, determine with your district personnel, department head, or state education office the acceptability of these credits for your purpose.

ADDITIONAL COURSE INFORMATION

REQUIRED TEXT

Willingham, Daniel T. 2021. Why Don't Students Like School?: A Cognitive Scientist Answers Questions About How the Mind Works and What It Means for the Classroom 2nd Edition. NJ:  Jossey Bass.
ISBN-13: 978-1119715665
New from $13.99

  • Why Don't Students Like School?: A Cognitive Scientist Answers Questions About How the Mind Works and What It Means for the Classroom
    ISBN# 1119715660
    by Willingham, Daniel T.
    Jossey-Bass

    Buy from Amazon

MATERIALS FEE

Text, Why Don’t Students Like School?, is approximately $14 from Amazon.com.

QUALIFICATIONS FOR TEACHING THIS COURSE:

Brenda McKinney, CEO of Vancouver, WA based BrainVolution, is a developer and dynamic facilitator of workshops that teach practical thinking and learning tools for raising student achievement with the brain in mind. She has trained educators throughout the Pacific Northwest and is a popular presenter because of her ability to motivate, make things fun, and teach practical techniques for the classroom that can be used immediately. Brenda continues to read hundreds of books and articles on the subject of neuroscience and searches for the answer to success for every student. Her work with at-risk students and those with reading problems have made her a popular speaker at the state, regional and national level.

Brenda is able to synthesize the new research and continues to address the role of how to use the latest findings to create high achievement classroom. She brings 30+ years of experience at the elementary, middle school, high school and university level as a mentor teacher, consultant, motivational speaker, university instructor, and reading specialist. Brenda has her Master’s in Education from Washington State University and is nationally certified in Brain Based Learning through the renowned  Jensen Corporation, led by Eric Jensen, a noted international spokesperson for neuroscience and education.

 

Brenda will inspire and motivate you with her energy, enthusiasm and knowledge. Her wisdom, techniques, and brain based approach to education will inspire you and challenge you to meet the demands of this ever changing world.

 

BIBLIOGRAPHY

REASONS STUDENTS DON’T LIKE SCHOOL: Mind & Your Classroom

Foer, Joshua. Moonwalking with Einstein: The Art and Science of Remembering Everything. New York: NY. The Penguin Press. 2001. ISBN 1-101-46763-0.
This book draws on cutting-edge research, a surprising cultural history of memory, and venerable tricks of the mentalist's trade to transform our understanding of human remembering. Using methods that have been largely forgotten, Foer discovers that we can all dramatically improve our memories. Foer learns to apply techniques that call on imagination as much as determination-showing that memorization can be anything but rote.
 
Heath, Chip and Dan. Made to Stick: Why Some Ideas Survive and Others Die. New York: NY. Random House. 285 pages. 2008. ISBN-13: 978-1-4000-6428-1
Why do some ideas thrive while others die? And how do we improve the chances of worthy ideas? In Made to Stick, accomplished educators and idea collectors Chip and Dan Heath tackle head-on these vexing questions. Inside, the brothers Heath reveal the anatomy of ideas that stick and explain ways to make ideas stickier, such as applying the “human scale principle,” using the “Velcro Theory of Memory,” and creating “curiosity gaps.”
Made to Stick is a book that will transform the way you communicate ideas. Made to Stick shows us the vital principles of winning ideas–and tells us how we can apply these rules to making our own messages.
 
Johnson, LouAnne. Teaching Outside The Box; How To Grab Your Students By Their Brains. San Francisco, CA. Jossey-Bass. 320 pages. 2011. ISBN-10: 0470903740.  Johnson is the author of The New York Times bestseller Dangerous Minds (originally My Posse Don't Do Homework) and her writing is fun to read and has lots of tools you will want to have. It includes some great engaging questions for reflection at the end of each chapter. I love this book and you will too!
 
Medina, John. Brain Rules. Seattle, WA. Pear Press. 285 pages. 2009.  ISBN-10: 0-9797777-0-4. In Brain Rules, Dr. John Medina, a molecular biologist, shares his lifelong interest in how the brain sciences might influence the way we teach our children and the way we work. In each chapter, he describes a brain rule—what scientists know for sure about how our brains work—and then offers transformative ideas for our daily lives. Medina’s fascinating stories and infectious sense of humor breathe life into brain science. In the end, you’ll understand how your brain really works—and how to get the most out of it.
 
Schacter, Daniel. The Seven Sins of Memory: How the Mind Forgets and Remembers. Houghton Mifflin. 2001. 250 pages. ISBN-0-618-04019-6. A groundbreaking work by one of the world's foremost memory experts. In this intriguing study, Daniel L. Schacter explores the memory miscues that occur in everyday life: absent-mindedness, transience, blocking, misattribution, suggestibility, bias, and persistence. Schacter illustrates these concepts with vivid examples -- case studies, literary excerpts, experimental evidence, and accounts of highly visible news events such as the O.J. Simpson verdict, Bill Clinton's grand jury testimony, and the search for the Oklahoma City bomber. He also delves into striking new scientific research, giving us a glimpse of the fascinating neurology of memory. Together, the stories and the scientific results provide a new look at our brains and at what we more generally think of as our minds.