Knowledge is Power

Writing is often thought of as an almost purely mental activity that has very little to do with the state of the physical body. In other words, you should not need to be in good health to write well.

Several well-known examples seem to bear this idea out. One is that of eminent physicist Stephen Hawking, who was in the advanced stages of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis when he began one of his best-known books, A Brief History of Time. By then, he had extreme difficulties moving and speaking, and yet was able to “dictate” his books by moving his eyelid to direct his gaze towards particular letters.

Another example is Jean-Dominique Bauby, a magazine editor who suffered a terrible stroke in the mid-90’s, and as a result became physically paralyzed, even though his mental and intellectual functions remained largely unaffected. He also dictated a book letter-by-letter, which was the memoir of his condition entitled The Diving Bell and the Butterfly. Two years later, Bauby died.

Still, it must be noted that these dramatic stories are exceptions to the rule. Both men had a great deal of talent, determination, and support behind them. Very few writers—even very good ones—would be able to accomplish the same if ever they find themselves in the same health situation. Furthermore, the sheer brevity of Bauby’s book is testament to the arduousness of his writing situation. Bad health, illness, and aging can all take their toll on the quantity and quality of a writer’s output.

That last factor, in particular, can have an insidious but ultimately heavy impact on how a writer writes. Aging is a complex process, but a lot of its results have to do with the decline in your body’s production of human growth hormone. This results in a decline in your immune system, muscle mass and maintenance, and general cellular reproduction. On the more mental side of things, you can also lose your ability to concentrate on things for long periods of time. Emotional stability may also be affected, leading to greater moodiness. Writers are often stereotyped as moody, unreliable individuals. However, a great deal of mental and emotional stamina is needed for long works such as novels. In fact, many writers, such as Flaubert, asserted that a stable emotional life was necessary in order to create excellent work. Unfortunately, it often happens that the effects of aging make this effort much harder, just at the time of life when a writer has more to say about life and art.

Fortunately, human growth hormone production can be stimulated by supplements, which may help slow down these processes, improving the consistent good quality of a person’s writing, as well as their general good health. Of course, anyone taking such supplements must be done cautiously. If a person takes too much, he or she might develop pituitary disorders and tumors.

Some writers are able to produce one great work in a short and/or sickly life. However, the history of literature is littered with writers who might have been able to give even more to the world had they been in better physical health, such as the Bront

Assessment is important in education. In order to reform the education system, it’s necessary to evaluate achievement and how students learn best. Being held accountable for success improves not only student efficiency, but the schools as well.

It’s important for teachers to make classroom activities and exercises interesting enough in order for it to have the power to seamlessly combine assessment and instruction into one, shared field. By keeping assessment in mind while planning their lessons, teachers can plan their curriculum by identifying the results they are hoping for according to their grade level and subject area.

Teachers can assess their students formally and informally. To effectively measure how their students are learning, teachers can gather evidence both ways and eventually determine performance based on all of the information. Each student can have difficulties with different areas and it’s important for a teacher to see these differences in order to assist students better. Some of the difficulties students have that teachers should focus on include test taking anxiety, motivation, and classroom management.

Innovative testing tools come into play with assessment by helping educators and administrators determine what the best practices are and what may not work. These tools give educators ways to evaluate what to do more of and what to get rid of, therefore improving teaching skills as well as student learning. It’s helpful to know what students respond to and what doesn’t register. Teachers should also provide students with these tools so that they can be empowered to assess their own development and become self-directed learners.

Perhaps the most important function of innovative testing tools is to make sure that students and educators are meeting developmental and grade level standards. Sometimes it can be helpful to explore other ways to instruct students in order to enhance their progress. Some of the techniques used should be assessed as well. These assessment tools should help to give teachers the strategies, activities, and tools to get better results.

The difference between qualitative and quantitative learning is something teachers should also understand when assessing performance. Qualitative performance task projects reflect a deeper level of understanding rather than superficial understanding. This is why it’s essential that teachers should strive to develop authentic assignments.

Educators should also keep in mind the latest research when using different assessment techniques. Beyond techniques, assessment is also about communication and feedback between students and teachers. This is why it’s imperative that teachers create a positive learning environment for assessment activities.

Overall, everyone should keep in mind that effectively assessing education and learning can yield great results. This includes higher test scores, more efficient learning, and better teaching. The proper way to use assessment tools is to keep communication open, classrooms positive, and research measurable. It also helps if teachers keep a timeline or chart to keep track of growth t and what might need further investigation. Developing grading guidelines can also be useful in helping students achieve a higher level of academic success and understanding. Overall, these tools can benefit everybody involved in the education system and with education reform.

Vince Welsh is CEO of Teacher Education Institute. TEI offers rigorous, graduate-level professional development courses for K-12 classroom teachers. For more about TEI or innovative testing tools, visit http://www.teachereducation.com

Human resources studies and management development training focus on finding the best ways for people to reach goals and be as efficient as possible at work. In human resources studies managers learn how to stay abreast of complicated and ever-changing policies, procedures, compliance requirements, and best practices. Mangers also learn how to stay on top of everything, which involves setting up goals. One expert, for example, has even named this process SMART Goal. Each letter in the word “smart” represents the five step process of setting and achieving your goals.

Setting up goals using the SMART goal method is also useful in management development training. This way, managers can see what they need to do to ensure that projects are completed correctly and in a timely manner. The first step in the SMART goal method is to be specific. According to the expert, being clear about what exactly you are aiming towards will help you actually get there. The more details provided, the easier it will be to accomplish.

The next step in the process is to be sure that you can measure your goal in terms of what has been achieved and what still needs to be done. Without a way to measure this, you may unnecessarily waste time trying to figure out what the next steps are to accomplish the goal completely. In management development training and human resources studies future managers are given these skills because it is crucial to keeping a company successful and well-organized.

Goals should also be made in partnership with the manager or owner and the worker involved. This is considered the third step in the SMART goal set up, called “acceptable.” Goals should not be imposed on anyone, they should be created together. When it is done in this manner, people will accept the goal and make a commitment to achieving it and therefore make it more likely that it will be accomplished.

Realistic is the next part of the SMART goal. Realistic implies that when you are creating a goal, you must keep in mind the balancing of a goal that would be nearly impossible to achieve versus a goal that would be too easy. The key is to balance this. Being timely with your goals is the last part in the SMART goal process, but it is definitely not the least important of the five. According to the expert, goals should be appropriate for near-term completion. The reason for this is because of the many uncontrollable external variables that affect goals set for too far in the future, such as weather, regulations, economics, and politics. Due to this, it’s important to try to keep all goals within this near-future time frame.

Setting goals is an ongoing process. The success that you can gain from properly set goals is extremely rewarding in many ways. Setting goals and being able to achieve them not only helps in the workplace, it also works for any personal goal you might have as well. By setting realistic goals and then achieving them, you are automatically making higher goals possible in the future. In this way, you can continually improve your performance in and beyond the workplace.

David Shoemaker is Vice President of Learning Solutions and Innovation at eCornell. For more information on human resources studies, management development training, or eCornell, please visit http://www.eCornell.com