LEARN NC

K–12 teaching and learning · from the UNC School of Education

CEU courses open for enrollment

The Civil Rights Movement in Context
Investigate the precursors to the Civil Rights Movement, its leadership, its opposition, and its legacy, including lesser-studied events of the movement and primary sources.
Take this course: Begins February 2.

From the education reference

distance education
Instructional delivery option that takes advantage of various space or technology resources. Distance education enhances options for students to access educational resources to overcome geographic, mobility, or time constraints.
gifted education
Educational programs designed to offer enriched opportunities for students identified as having the highest academic potential, including additional classes, programs, or services. Gifted students are considered to have the capacity to achieve beyond the norm based either on IQ scores, demonstrated ability in the classroom, or both.
experiential education
Instructional approach based on the idea that ideal learning occurs through experience. Learning tasks require the active participation of the student in hands-on opportunities and must connect content to the student's life.
abstinence-only education
Curriculum that teaches abstention from sexual activity until marriage.
bilingual education
Classes taught in a combination of a students’ first language and English, geared toward helping student with limited English proficiency (LEP) become proficient in English as a second language (ESL). Students in bilingual programs receive part of their daily instruction in English and part in a second language. Significant portions of the school day are devoted to ESL instruction, in which each student receives intensive assistance in learning English.
aesthetic education
Education that recognizes the interconnectedness of body, mind, emotions, and spirit. Enabling students to express perceptions, feelings and ideas through reflective shaping of media including paint, clay, music, spoken or written words, and bodies in movement.
character education
Educational initiative that promotes integration of core moral and civic values in the curriculum.
special education
Programs serving students with mental and physical disabilities. Special education programs provide individualized education plans that detail services children will receive.
aesthetics education
Teaching students to critically view art so as to become more reflective and discriminating in their opinions of various art forms.
comprehensive sex education
Sex education programs that teach about abstinence and contraception. Comprehensive sex education includes discussions of human anatomy, reproduction, and sexually transmitted diseases.
multicultural education
Education philosophy and curriculum that expands traditional white Western European curricula, highlighting themes and subjects from diverse cultural, ethnic, racial, and gender perspectives. An important focus of multicultural education is to create equal educational opportunities so that all students can succeed in an increasingly diverse and pluralistic society.
comprehensive sex education
Sex education programs that teach about abstinence and contraception. Comprehensive sex education includes discussions of human anatomy, reproduction, and sexually transmitted diseases.
banking model of education
Model of education in which teachers "deposit" information and skills into students. The emphasis is on memorization of basic facts rather than on understanding and critical thinking. The idea of the banking model was articulated and critiqued by Brazilian liberation theologist Paulo Freire in Pedagogy of the Oppressed (1970).
year-round education
Model of education in which students attend school throughout the year with regular short breaks.
Brown versus Board of Education
Landmark decision of the U. S. Supreme Court (1954) that affirmed the constitutional guarantee of equal opportunity in education. Arguing that the doctrine of "separate but equal" facilities had no place in the American system of education, the court ruled that segregation in public schools was unconstitutional.
continuing education unit
Nationally recognized unit of measurement for participation in non-credit continuing education programs. One CEU is recognized as 10 contact hours of participation in a continuing education experience under responsible sponsorship.
Individualized Education Plan
The Individuals with Disabilities Education Act, IDEA, mandates that each student with a disability who is enrolled in the Exceptional Children's (EC) program have an Individualized Education Plan (IEP). The goal of IDEA is to educate students with disabilities in the least restrictive environment possible. IEPs describe how the school plans to educate each EC student while accommodating the student's disability. IEPs often specify modifications to be provided by teachers.
Individuals with Disabilities Education Act
1975 federal law (amended in 1997) under which schools must guarantee that all children with disabilities receive "free, appropriate public education in the least restrictive environment." The statute requires that children with disabilities be educated with children who are not disabled, and that removal from the regular classroom may occur only when the nature or severity of the disability interferes with the successful delivery of aid and services.

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Education glossaries on the web
Can't find what you're looking for in LEARN NC's education glossary and reference? Here are some additional references.
Format: bibliography
Education Reference: Collection Policy
The purpose of LEARN NC's Education Reference is to provide definitions of common terms in K–12 education as well as information that contextualizes the terms and, where appropriate, links to examples and resources that will help teachers implement teaching ideas in their classrooms. These guidelines explain our policy for including entries in the Education Reference.
Format: article/help
Bridging Spanish language barriers in Southern schools
These articles provide background on Latino immigrants in North Carolina, administrative challenges in binational education, and strategies through which teachers can build on what Latino students bring to their classrooms to create a learning environment that meets the needs of all students.
Format: series (multiple pages)
The Missing Revolution: K–12 Education should unleash the genius of the web. Why hasn’t it?
James Boyle, William Neal Reynolds Professor of Law and co-founder of the Center for the Study of the Public Domain, Duke University Law School, and founding board member of Creative Commons, spoke at LEARN NC's Tenth Anniversary Conference in October 2006...
Format: video
Public Works Commission Watershed Education Center
Students will learn how to be stewards to their local watershed when they take a tour at the Watershed Education Center in Fayetteville.
Format: article/field trip opportunity
Frequently asked questions
Answers to frequently asked questions about LEARN NC.
Format: article/help
Cartoon analysis worksheet
A worksheet for students to use when analyzing a cartoon, especially a political cartoon. It may be used directly on the computer as a PDF form.
Format: document/worksheet
Lake Higgins Environmental Education Center
See a fish hatchery, take a guided nature walk, and see models of fish and animals found in the area, all at Lake Higgins and the Lake Higgins Environmental Education Center.
Format: article/field trip opportunity
Writing for the Web
How teachers can more effectively communicate information and ideas via the World Wide Web, to students, parents, colleagues, administrators, and the world.
Format: series (multiple pages)
Photo analysis worksheet
A worksheet for students to use when analyzing a photograph. May be used directly on the computer as a PDF form.
Format: document/worksheet
Artifact analysis worksheet
A worksheet for students to use when analyzing a physical artifact. It may be used directly on the computer as a PDF form.
Format: document/worksheet
Sea Grant North Carolina
With a variety of research and outreach programs, this organization provides several educational opportunities for marine science educators including workshops, marine science and environmental education curriculum development, research opportunities and grants, and field trips.
Format: article/field trip opportunity
Sound Recording Analysis Worksheet
Worksheet for students to use when analyzing a sound recording. The worksheet assumes historical recordings produced in the United States, but could easily be adapted for other purposes. It may be used directly on the computer as a
Format: document/worksheet
National Estuarine Research Reserve Systems - The Rachel Carson Component
Located in one of North Carolina's fastest growing areas, the Rachel Carson site is a center of marine research and education. The reserve is a diverse and productive estuarine system for birds, mammals, and fish.
Format: article/field trip opportunity
Poster analysis worksheet
Worksheet for students to use when analyzing propaganda posters. The worksheet assumes posters created by the United States government during the Depression and Second World War, but could be adapted for other purposes. It may be used directly on the computer...
Format: document/worksheet
Map analysis worksheet
A worksheet for students to use when analyzing a map. The worksheet assumes that the map is used in conjunction with studying a specific historical event, but may easily be adapted for other purposes. It may be used directly on the computer as a
Format: document/worksheet
Written document analysis worksheet
A worksheet for students to use when analyzing a written document. May be used directly on the computer as a PDF form.
Format: document/worksheet
MarineQuest
Ocean education and marine environmental education programs providing "hands-on, feet-wet, high-tech" experiences for K-12 students.
Format: article/field trip opportunity
Millis Regional Health Education Center
Visitors are sure to have fun while they learn about the human body and how to stay healthy at this health education facility.
Format: article/field trip opportunity
Eastern 4-H Environmental Education Center
Located a few miles outside Columbia, North Carolina, the center provides programming dealing with ecology, ecosystems, and animals and their habitats to area school groups.
Format: article/field trip opportunity