Giselle and Joanne’s newest book describes a framework for effective teaching that can be applied to any subject area and grade level. Their detailed review of the structures, processes, and content of effective teaching provides practical tips that can be used right away, and the stories that are woven throughout directly and explicitly relate theory to practice and results.  Areas of focus include addressing both the depth and the breadth of your curriculum, questions that engage and support student learning, specific scaffolding techniques, and tips for using student portfolios to both document and promote student learning.

Blending theory of “best practice” with classroom reality, this handbook focuses on the development and use of effective instructional techniques and practices in K-5 mathematics. Including concrete problems, lessons and activities that are rigorous and engaging, it explores the topics of diversified assessment, establishing and communicating explicit criteria, using various questioning strategies to support and extend math learning, and the role of problems in providing context for teaching and learning math skills. One chapter, comprised entirely of lessons, provides examples of teacher and student centered learning experiences, as well as suggestions for differentiating lessons to meet students’ diverse needs. Each section concludes with a series of processing and design options to help teachers apply the material to their own context.

This book provides K-12 educators with key information about some of the most effective teaching and learning tools available today-in one convenient publication. Each of the innovations has a long history of use and has been researched and evaluated in a variety of settings. Giselle Martin-Kniep chose these specific innovations because, as a whole, they foster a student-centered classroom environment that is both equitable and rigorous. In separate chapters for each topic, she addresses:
1. Essential Questions
2. Curriculum Integration
3. Standards-Based Curriculum and Assessment Design
4. Authentic Assessment
5. Scoring Rubrics
6. Portfolios
7. Reflection
8. Action Research
Annotated lists of recommended resources provide suggestions for further exploration of each topic.

Readers new to these topics will gain a basic understanding of each topic and learn how to use them to create a student centered-classroom. More experienced educators can also benefit from re-examining these topics as parts of a comprehensive whole. Numerous examples from all grade levels, along with design modules, templates and checklists, make this an invaluable guide for teachers and administrators.

This book is a testament to the process of professional development inherent in the creation and use of alternative assessment. It offers demonstrable proof that when teachers engage in sustained inquiry, reflection, and communication about assessment, they can discover and define their own professionalism and refine their art of teaching. Why Am I Doing This? is based upon Giselle Martin Kniep's work with over one hundred teachers in the Hudson Valley Portfolio Assessment Project. Under her direction, these teachers spent three years learning about, experimenting with, and reflecting on their use of assessment and its relationship to student achievement. Martin-Kniep reveals what she learned from the program, describing key assumptions and design components that drive not only powerful assessment experiences, but also changes in teachers' practices. Then eight program participants speak for themselves. They chart their own professional odysseys, focusing on changes in their own thinking and practice. Although Why Am I Doing This? includes lots of practical ideas on the design and use of alternative assessment and showcases many examples of best practice, its overriding purpose is to document a change process. As such, it will have special appeal to readers who want to implement or study the impact of alternative assessment, as well as those who participate in professional development experiences focusing on conditions that support teaching and learning.

This introductory guide has all the steps and strategies you need to create your own professional portfolio and help your school develop a system wide portfolio effort. Explore types of portfolios, what to include in each, and how to make sure your portfolio reflects your abilities and accomplishments.