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Show The National Education Association has cited 210 schools lor their CTeativePPiwck p teaching and hopes parents and educators will use the innovations to improve (heir own classrooms By CLAIRE SAFRAN ITor n4tMiMi it the key to learning at Schenectedy.K.l. X dockland rewind it in more modern patterns, lite day is now organized into school 30-min- btoekaV which can be used singly or in combinations. When time became flexible, so did the schools space and size of classes. Groups can come, together for special films or lectures; split apart for longer periods of study of science, shop, or home economics; use shorter periods when they are called for. Under this system, a student 'of his school day in might spend one-thi' u ,, independent 'study. TW notion of independent study springs from the difference between teaching and learning. One can often take place without the other. At the Cedar Falls, Iowa, high " school, students go to an Iitdividual Learning Center. They come by their own choice or 7 by teacher assignment to improve individual skills, do research, or chase their own rainbows. Within easy reach are all the tools of "' learning: books, records, tapes, transparencies, film strips, accelerators, projectors of all kinds, programmed materials, etc " At Van Antwerp Junior High in Schenectady, N.Y., teachers have found a new way to get to know each child better and give him more individual attention. Four teachers, each, a specialist in English, social studies, math, or science, meet with the same four student sections. Three times a week, the teachers meet with each other to exchange information and insights about these young- ,.- sters. A guidance counselor joins them regularly. When needed, parents are' called in, or the team may confer with the school psychologist or reading or speech specialist takes At Owensboro, Ky., another form. A team of science specialists meets with a large class of students who have been grouped by their ability. Lectures, fihns,rand demonstrations are given before the whole group. Then, since there's a team instead of just one lone teacher, the group can break apart for smaller discussion groups and individual research. in-dep- th rd " - -- team-teachi- -- ng ' Like all cities, Cheyenne, Wyo, wanted to do something about its dropouts. They also wanted to help children who were having probkms with learning and were not achieving what they should. The result: an Educational Diagnostic and Planning Center. Teachers from 30 schools in the district refer children to the Cter. HereVindividual prob-kcan be diagnosed carry and then special currkuh, remedial, and counseling profor the child. grams can be tailor-mad- e Cheyenne's center did not break the city's education budget Most of the 210 model schools used more imagination than money. But where it was needed, money was always where a smart principal could find it ; . Some prospected the rich lodes offered under Titles 1, II, and III of the Elementary and Secondary EdueationAetThese make Federal funds available for such things as after-schoprograms for disadvantaged children, guidance programs, remedial reading plans, library improvements, visual aids, and other equipment and materials. Other principal! tapped the many private foundations that like the government are eager to help finance almost any plan that shows imagination and promises to lead to ." better learning. " x , It's no longer a matter of whether your school can afford to be better. Some recent research showed that American youngsters are lagging near the bottom of the interna tional list far,' far behind the Russians, So now the vital question, in math know-hohas to be: Can your school afford not to imU: prove itself? ms ol LI KmsLzl Teem teaching in (hceneboro. Kg sparks eurieeity, then helps boy to pursue his indiridnei project. w. - you'll ' Kke more information on now can help to get a better education for you own child or if you'd like to know your" how to visit a Demonstration Center nearto: James OKvera, National est your-wriCommission on Teacher Education and Professional Standards, Deft. FW, 1201 1 6th Street NW, Washington, D.C. 20036 r r-- w If if WW 'Kir ' te y - " i behind daily, are for teachers. tUJ'mtMewuAhoiJMon, yub, built-i- n planning sessions i |