EDUCATION GLOSSARY
The education glossary is a list of terms used in the education arena. If you would like to see other terms added to this page, please feel free to contact us at info@flunkedsolutions.com and we will see if we can add it to our list.
American Federation of Teachers (AFT):
The American labor union founded in 1916 which represents teachers, paraprofessionals and school-related personnel, higher education faculty and staff, and more. The AFT is the second largest education labor union in the United States.
Bilingual Education:
Involves teaching most subjects in school through two different languages.
Charter School:
Elementary or secondary schools established by teachers, parents, or community groups. Charter schools are funded with public money, and must meet the terms of a charter with a local or national authority. They have been freed from some of the rules, regulations, and statutes that apply to other public schools. Most charters are renewed every 3-5 years, during which the school's academic performance is measured.
Cyber School:
An institution that teaches courses entirely or primarily through online methods.
Distance Learning:
A method of education in which students receive instruction from teachers who aren't physically present, such as online or through other technological tools.
Gender gap:
The difference between boys' and girls' academic performance.
National Assessment for Educational Progress (NAEP):
Also referred to as "the nation's report card," the NAEP is an assessment of what America's students know and can do in various subject areas. Assessments are conducted periodically in mathematics, reading, science, writing, the arts, civics, economics, geography, and U.S. history.
National Board for Professional Teaching Standards (NBPTS):
NBPTS is a private, nonprofit organization that develops professional standards and voluntary certification for teachers.
National Education Association (NEA):
The largest union in the U.S. representing public school teachers and other education employees.
Performance Pay:
Performance pay, or "merit pay," is tied to the results achieved by an individual or group of employees, teachers or administrators.
Phonics:
A method of teaching reading by correlating sounds with letters or groups of letters in an alphabetic writing system.
Programme for Internaional Student Assessment (PISA):
The PISA is a triennial worldwide test of 15-year-old school children's scholastic performance, the implementation of which is coordinated by the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development.
Special Education:
The education of children with disabilities (including, but not limited to, physical and mental handicaps) whose needs cannot be met in an ordinary classroom.
STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics):
An education coalition consisting of over 600 diverse groups representing all sectors of the technological workforce that promotes the study of science, technology, engineering and math.
Trends in International Mathematics and Science Study (TIMSS):
TIMSS is an international assessment of the mathematics and science knowledge of fourth and eighth-grade students.
Vouchers:
A certificate issued by the government that parents can use to pay for the education of their children at a school of their choice, rather than the public school to which they are assigned.
Weighted Student Funding:
A public education finance formula in which per-student funding varies according to the child’s need and other relevant circumstances.
Whole Language:
A method of teaching children to read at an early age that allows students to select their own reading matter and that emphasizes the use and recognition of words in everyday contexts. A literacy philosophy which emphasizes that children should focus on meaning and strategy instruction.