Sparking Student Synapses, Grades 9–12: Think Critically and Accelerate Learning, Nov/2011

The Obama AdministrationÆs Strategy for American Innovation is committed to educate the next generation with 21st-century knowledge and skills while creating a world-class workforce. Practical strategies for teaching critical thinking and innovation will be an increasingly important and relevant topic in AmericaÆs high schools for years to come. This shift in required education outcomes has created a gap in many classrooms. Although the curriculum has changed dramatically, many high school educators are still relying on strategies developed to teach rote learning. Learning the core content is merely the starting point. We need students to understand and recall this content quickly, so they can then begin higher order thinking.Based on Rich Allen's Green Light strategies, this book is a compendium of one master teacher's proven processes and strategies, with commentary based on his actual experience of implementing them himself and introducing them to his department. Backed by the research, this provides secondary teachers with a practical guide to developing dynamic lessons that support the development of critical thinking, offering them a tried and trusted process; a plethora of new ideas; sample lessons across the curriculum; and tips for implementation.

About The Author:
Richard Allen is an international consultant with more than 25 years experience coaching trainers and educators. Cofounder and president of Education Illustrated, he has taken the TrainSmart strategies beyond the United States and Canada to such diverse countries as the United Kingdom, Australia, New Zealand, Hong Kong, Singapore, Brunei, Russia, Jordan, and Brazil. Allen is also a popular keynote speaker at international conferences, and he facilitates moti­vational and teambuilding workshops.

Allen started his educational career as a high school math and drama teacher. In 1985, he became a lead facilitator for SuperCamp—an accelerated learning program for teens—and has since worked with more than 25,000 students worldwide. He completed his doctorate in educational psychology at Arizona State University, where he studied how the human brain receives, processes, and recalls information—knowledge that informs all aspects of his training strategies.