Students were able to recall a list of words better if they made a guess than if they memorized the list, according to a study. Study author Nicole Anderson explains that guessing can provide students with "stepping stones to remembering the right answer."

Collaborative writing teaches students valuable workplace social skills and builds their confidence as writers, educator and author Jeremy Hyler writes. In this article, Hyler shares lesson and assessment ideas for collaborative writing projects and includes details on technology tools to ease the process.

Students in Texas school districts are learning math in a more conceptual way instead of relying on rote memorization. The process can be confusing for some parents when it comes to homework, says Marcy Corley, Frisco Independent School District's elementary and math coordinator, so her district created online videos to help parents understand the methods.

Early results of a recent report show about 20,000 unfilled freshman seats in Chicago Public Schools, with 13,000 expected to remain empty once enrollment is completed. Researchers point to various causes of "excess capacity" in neighborhood schools, but they say more accurate data will come after the beginning of the school year.

Executive-functioning skills should be taught to help students improve their productivity in school, writes educator and consultant Gary Abud Jr. In this blog post, Abud suggests that students need more than planners to develop organizational skills, such as learning to plan ahead to complete tasks on their to-do lists to improve their time-management skills.

Leadership coaching for principals and teachers can be effective when they approach it with a growth mindset and are ready to have their beliefs challenged, writes author and former principal Peter DeWitt. In this blog post, he outlines the benefits of coaching as a form of professional development.

Educators can incorporate social and emotional learning into the classroom by modeling and discussing skills such as problem-solving, empathy, flexibility and teamwork, writes Katie Pozil, a teacher and lead educator for EQtainment. In this blog post, she introduces some tips and tools make SEL a success.

The US Congress is considering a measure that would fund research into how children are affected by media and technology. The Children and Media Research Advancement Act, if approved, would provide the National Institutes of Health with $95 million over five years to study the effect of social media, television, video games, virtual and augmented reality and other media on children's development.

The nonprofit Learning Stewards offers a free reading support tool that allows readers to select an unfamiliar word to view a pronunciation guide and definitions. Some teachers in Kentucky are using the program to support struggling readers and allow them to access the same texts being read by peers.

Rhode Island Department of Education Commissioner Ken Wagner says students could understand math concepts better if educators were trained in more effective teaching methods. Wagner wants to implement a "professional learning circle" model of professional development that would let teachers share best practices.