MASTERY GOALS PROMOTE MOTIVATION
Mariale Hardiman and Glenn Whitman have written a really interesting piece about assessment and the learning brain. The article starts out by noting, "Research on the connection between motivation and learning has focused on two types of mindsets that students develop, based on the kind of experiences (including assessments) we present them with in school. Students tend to develop either performance-related goals or mastery goals (Ames & Archer). Performance-related goals are those linked to more traditional types of assessments. Students become motivated by the grades they achieve, their rankings compared to other students, and extrinsic rewards such as honor rolls or school awards. In contrast, students who develop mastery goals are motivated by the actual learning experiences. Their rewards arise from the challenges of acquiring and applying new knowledge and skills. While students may possess a combination of both types of goals, those motivated primarily by performance goals tend to lose motivation and confidence when faced with difficult academic challenges or when set back by failures. In contrast, students who are motivated by mastery goals are more likely to persevere in the face of such challenges. Difficult tasks or setbacks do not diminish their motivation or self-esteem (Pintrich; Grant & Dweck). Students with mastery goals mindsets are more likely to choose more difficult but rewarding ways to demonstrate learning."

I CAN SEE THAT
Do you see pictures in your head as you are reading? Dr. Mark Sadoski has a solid article outlining the research he did on mental imagery. He notes, "The mental imagery that we experience while reading, either spontaneously or induced by instruction, is now known to have powerful effects on comprehension, memory, and appreciation for text. This may seem self-evident today, but it was not long ago that purely language-based theories of cognition and memory prevailed. If imagery was recognized at all, it was held to be incidental and of little importance." The article goes on to provide some relevant research that, while not comprehensive, is extremely thorough and the implications include a suggestion that we might want to use imagery in our assessment of learning.

EXPAND YOUR TECHNOLOGY TOOLKIT
The summer break (for some of us) is always a good time to upgrade your technology resources. Are you looking for an easy way to create a game or short video? You should check out ClassTools. Socrative is a smart student response system that empowers teachers to engage their classrooms through a series of educational exercises and games via smartphones, laptops, and tablets. Do you enjoy the Ted Talks as much as I do? Visit this website to discover how you can use the material in the presentations to help your students learn. Looking for videos that you can use in your face-to-face classes or perhaps to post on your Blackboard site as part of a flipped lesson? Take a look at what PBS has to offer.