For students to excel on assessments weeks or months removed from the lesson, it's important that teachers shift from short-term memory tactics and find ways to make what they teach stick. To stimulate long-term memory, engage students with fun and challenging learning experiences. Make learning fun by reintroducing play in the classroom and incorporating games that reinforce content from lessons. This will help strengthen students' retention skills and increase their chances at excelling. 

How do we know this? Research proves it! Gameplay has a positive function in learning, thanks to the ability of games to motivate and engage, with “winning” - or, retrieving the most retained information - the reward. 

Fortunately for students of our new teachers, this important teaching detail has not been lost on those facilitating their learning. It appears our Rutgers Alternate Route teachers are on the right track and ensuring that every student’s experience in school is fun and interactive.

Diversifying the teaching workforce is a priority for the New Jersey Department of Education, and the Alternate Route program at the Rutgers Graduate School of Education is doing its part to address teacher diversity. Alternate Route candidates bring varying backgrounds, ages and experiences to the classroom, which helps students expand their perspectives.

To help new candidates gain real-life teaching skills, Rutgers Alternate Route requires them to complete a pre-professional experience that consists of planning and delivering guest lessons. This requirement allows candidates to apply their textbook knowledge to classroom situations, grow from the challenges, and expand their instructional strategies.  

Twitter is a great digital resource because it connects individuals all over the world with information quickly and concisely. For educators, Twitter is a great platform to connect, share ideas and expand their networks. 

Alternate Route knows Twitter’s power, as we host regular Twitter chats with our candidates, stakeholders and education leaders. This form of communication - where the Alternate Route Twitter account poses questions and participants tweet their answers - introduces new ideas and opinions to our community. Participants walk away having a deeper connection and understanding of a topic, and hopefully also walk away with an expanded network.