OECD research shows that frequent use of computers in schools is more likely to be associated with lower results. Among 70 countries, heavy investment in information and communications technology have seen “no noticeable improvement” in Pisa test results for reading, mathematics or science. This is not surprising. As with any technology, it can be “good” …
Continue reading Computers in school do not improve results. Doh! It’s about culture.
Category:Education
Cyborgs are coming to take your job, especially if you’re young.
The prospect of your job being automated is increasing. The convergence of neuroscience, computing, biology and engineering has already made robotic prosthetics a reality and everyone carries a small thinking machine so that they can remember phone numbers, birthdays etc (media device/phone). We are certainly choosing a future in which we don’t work. We haven’t …
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Three things parents must teach children: money, food, autos
The following piece by Leah Holstein on Funderstanding is a simple, fun admonition with some helpful links. Enjoy the read or just note the message: Teach children about finances, cooking and cars because they are essential skills for life which are not taught at school
Pedagogy of cooperation … Maltese National Curriculum!
In work on design of curriculum and pedagogy I came across this quote. It must be shared because it’s good, and it’s Maltese. (Malta is a tiny little country rich in culture being at the centre of history for thousands of years. I’m half Maltese but spend too little time there 🙁 ) a pedagogy …
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Unnoticed by everyone, education is regressing.
Understanding education is not easy. We all think we know what it means but when it comes to defining it and suggesting improvements the challenge becomes amorphous. I’m trying to create a framework to help improve curriculum and pedagogy. One of the biggest problems I see as an educator, coach and parent is the rapid …
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Exercise body and mind to keep them fit; or lose you wits and fade away.
In case you still find it a challenge to get off the couch or do mental arithmetic (when shopping for example) this week more evidence was published showing the dramatic difference between people engaged in life and those waiting to die. A study showing that elderly people who exercise ‘live five years longer’ was published …
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Maths is art. Art is maths. It’s all science. – Govt education report
This morning Eilis, a friend of Pam’s, explained to a councillor that funding for art education should be increased because businesses want creativity and the Renaissance flourished because science and art merged. At the same time a report by The Creative Industries Federation and the Institution of Civil Engineers, saying similar things was being publicised. …
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Good people are dying. It’s going to get worse before it gets better.
Tension is rising is the USA. Two US police officers were shot dead in Mississippi. Last week.a New York police officer was shot in the head while questioning a suspect from his police car. And riots bubbled in Baltimore after a suspect died in police custody. The mood is confused and angry. The issue is …
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Sapiens: Thinking, Stories and Ignorance, then choosing to die.
Yuval Harari’s brief history of humankind, weighing in at a meaty 400 pages, is enjoyable, provocative and very worrying. The wide-ranging, scholarly story is easy to read and sensible. I enjoyed the book from beginning to end, though I had to restrain myself from skipping to the last chapter: The End of Homo Sapiens. For …
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You’re NOT only human …
… you’ve got bits of bug in your DNA, and some of it is missing*. These facts help appreciate the diversity of look and behaviour of humans, but looking deeper, it is the similarities in looks and behaviour, a.k.a. culture, which show that nurture is such a powerful influence on each of us. Research published …
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