Issue link: https://digital.copcomm.com/i/189657
editor's Note D E PA RT M E N T S Chock-full of stories Know&Tell Know & Tell introduces useful and fun tips and provides the latest on scholarships, grants and resources. Perspectives Perspectives amplifies members' voices and includes the ever-popular Point/Counterpoint series, plus guest columns, and book and movie reviews. Advocacy Advocacy showcases the great work of CTA members in the bargaining, member rights and legislative arenas. Learning Learning highlights members' best practices and practical advice and showcases education trends. CTA&You CTA & You covers all things CTA, including events such as State Council, trainings and conferences, plus member benefits and services. "Hold your breath!" whispered my daughter and her friends as we passed a cemetery. As an 11-year-old, Casey and her friends believed the superstition about holding your breath lest you breathe in the spirit of someone who recently died. I think death is scary at any age. It takes empathy and sympathy to deal with the loss of loved ones. That's why the story about Community College Association members teaching mortuary science (page 28) is so fascinating. They're preparing students for a necessary career while learning so much about life. This magazine is chock-full of provocative articles. High-stakes standardized tests, the ones you've spent way too much time drilling students for, are being shelved for the time being so you can prepare for the computer-based assessments aligned to the Common Core State Standards (page 38). And how do locals bargaining accountability, instructional and bread-and-butter issues get the best settlement for students and educators alike? Coordinated Bargaining Councils empower them (page 34), as many chapters discovered. Read about an Oakley teacher who is advocating for a law to promote breast cancer awareness (page 26). Perhaps you can help? Meet another member, a Republican in Santa Clarita Valley, and see how she promotes public schools (page 39). And see what members who are changing the discussion on concussions (page 11) say about brain research. With high schools in the middle of football season, this topic is timely, and so important. I hope you like the instructional topics this month. See advice for and from substitute teachers on page 50. And for you gamers, check out using Minecraft to teach geometry on page 46. I'm collecting questions about instructional issues and asking members of CTA's Think Tank, which includes National Board Certified teachers, to provide counsel in a new column. The advice about dealing with challenging parents (page 21) is from a Palo Alto member. If you have topics, please email me at editor@cta.org. You have emailed me about the redesigned magazine. Thank you. I'm pleased you find content easier to find within the five new departments and your topic suggestions are intriguing. You'll see some of those topics in this month's Educator. Your comments and suggestions are always welcome. Cynthia Menzel EDITOR IN CHIEF editor@cta.org Read about the rest of the story online! Read behind-the-scenes stories in the California Educator at blog.cta.org, and see additional photos from stories in this magazine at cta.org/educator. 8 Educator 10 Oct 2013 v2.1 int.indd 8 O C T O B E R 2013 10/7/13 9:38 PM