The Edutainer: Connecting the Art and Science of Teaching

(Paperback)

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The teacher's role must be redefined to meet the needs and demands of today's culture and the edutainer is the paradigm shift needed for education to be relevant, applicable, and effective in the 21st Century. The Edutainer describes an educational approach that provides teachers with core operational and interpersonal skills to be an effective educator in the twenty-first century. These skills include communication, organization, management, planning, and building authentic relationships based upon respect and personal responsibility. The Edutainer is unique in its perspective that the educator should be fluid and adapting to our current culture, while employing sound academic principles.

The edutainer concept is derived from the principles that we believe make for an effective educator and entertainer. First edutainers are visionaries, who understand that a change in culture requires a change in methods and presentation. These edutainers make their material relevant to present culture. Preparation is also vital to these performers. They organize and plan their material long before they get on stage or their performance would fail. Finally, the effective educator and entertainer have to deliver a stellar performance that is relatable to the audience. The Edutainer offers strategies and ideas to build and nurture authentic relationships with students, parents, and colleagues to build a dynamic educational community.


Suggestions for developing the 3R's of education, which include respect, responsibility, and authentic relationships.

* Explanations of present day cultural influences upon formal education and learning.

* Strategies for teacher empowerment and leadership abilities.

* Methodologies for classroom management and organization.

* Ideas for connecting education to the real world with relevant and engaging lessons.

Reviews

From my years of hosting Are You Smarter than a 5th Grader I have found that learning is most effective when it is fun. Brad Johnson and Tammy McElroy have taken that idea and formatted it in a way to help teachers help students make the most of their valuable classroom time. This can be life-changing for kids. -- Jeff Foxworthy, comedian and host of Are you Smarter than a 5th Grader
Wow! Its all in there! I can remember my first year teaching (1980). I wish I had had this book back then. Its practical. Its logical. Its student-centered. Its hopeful. Give it to a new teacher whos looking for some experienced ideas. Give it to an experienced teacher whos looking for new ideas. -- Lily Eskelsen, vice president, National Education Association
Bravo!!! No more teacher-burnout here! Sensitively challenging prevailing, traditional schooling practices with candor and humor, Johnson and McElroys engaging book, The Edutainer, is written to empower classroom teachers for stellar performances in twenty-first century classrooms. Based on more than thirty years of combined teaching experience at the K12 and collegiate levels, the authors elucidate the role of teachers as skillful performers on stage who know how to manage their professional responsibilities to parents, principals, and peers as well as how to engage their students in relevant learning activities in a rapidly changing age of information and technology. The book is insightful, practical, and clear with informative examples, effective strategies, and affirming advice for both the novice and the expert. The Edutainer should be at the top of the required reading list for classroom teachers. -- Rosemarie Stallworth-Clark, associate professor emerita of educational psychology, Georgia Southern University
Drop the curtain and strike the set on The Edutainer. The concept of combining educator and entertainer principles to make instruction more relevant and student centered is intriguing. However, this account of the implementation of the edutainment philosophy provides only generic teaching strategies and outdated advice. For example, teachers are advised to avoid giving tests on Fridays and to store grade books in locked file cabinets. This advice is as outmoded as the chalkboard in the reality of a 21st-century classroom. Schools today have accommodating schedules (e.g., block, rotating) that allow more flexibility for testing and online courseware management systems that use electronic grade books stored on secure servers. Likewise, this book's appendix consists of traditional and ordinary types of graphic organizers (e.g., parent contact forms, a Venn diagram, and daily homework log) that have been around for decades and are of commonsense construction. But the most alarming notion from The Edutainer is that the theoretical foundations that frame good instruction are "burdensome," and Johnson and McElroy consider the sheer volume of educational theories as "impractical," given the demands of curriculum and other aspects of learning. * Choice Reviews *

Author Bio

Brad Johnson has fourteen years of educational experience as a teacher, mentor, and administrator.
Tammy Maxson McElroy has over twenty years of educational experience at the elementary and middle grade levels.