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Where AP teachers go to learn what they teach

Ohanian Comment: Here's an account of teachers putting in a lot of extra effort trying to do a difficult thing--at the same time having doubts whether this difficult thing is the "right" thing. Since the St. Petersburg Times forbids me to print their articles, I give you a teaser and a link to the rest.

by Ron Matus

Twenty-six high school teachers stood with straws in mouths and spoons at the ready. Bowls of M&Ms rainbowed before them.

Pretend the M&Ms are fish, the instructor said, and pretend the straws are fishing poles.

The teachers sucked up the M&Ms with the straws. They scrapped for them with the spoons. As the candy disappeared, a lesson about regulation and natural resources took its place.

This is what Advanced Placement teachers do when they step away from the front lines of an education revolution.

More than 230 of them were at the University of South Florida St. Petersburg last week for a "summer institute" designed to give them tips and how-to's. Across the country, about 30,000 AP teachers are attending similar events.

Preparing them has never been more important.

A tidal wave of high school students is crashing over college-caliber AP courses, and nowhere is that more true than Florida. Between 2004 and 2008, the number of students taking AP classes in Florida jumped from 68,000 to 118,000. The hope is that exposing more students to the rigors of AP will give them the skills to succeed in school - and in life after it.

But many of the new students aren't as prepared as the brainiac AP students of old. Many have never taken a challenging class. Some don't know how to write essays or take good notes. . . .

In response to teacher concerns, the College Board is piloting new classroom materials that address different learning styles. It's also piloting a 4-day "achievement institute." It is like the summer institute but it is focused on how to teach instead of what. . . .
Go to the url below for the rest of this story.

— Ron Matus
St. Petersburg Times
2009-06-21
http://www.tampabay.com/news/education/k12/article1012101.ece

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