Of all the subjects taught in the nation’s public schools, few have generated as much controversy of late as the subjects of racism and slavery in the United States. The attention has come largely through a flood of legislative bills put forth primarily by Republicans over the past year and a half. Commonly referred to as anti-critical race theory […] … learn more→
Author Archives: Kevin
Politicians seek to control classroom discussions about slavery in the US
Another school has banned mobile phones but research shows bans don’t stop bullying or improve student grades
This week, one Sydney high school made headlines for banning mobile phones during school hours. Phones can come to school but must stay in locked pouches allowing teachers to “focus on educating students”. This follows other recent phone bans at both public and private schools around Australia. In 2020, Victoria banned phones for all state primary and secondary schools and many […] … learn more→
Worried about back-to-school inflation? Latest price data on backpacks, laptops and kids’ clothes offers some relief for parents
As summer draws to a close, it is time for many to think about back-to-school shopping, such as notebooks, backpacks and new clothes. As an economist who has studied consumer prices for years, I wondered how soaring inflation was affecting the costs of typical back-to-school gear. Consumer prices rose by about 8.5% in July from a year earlier, according to […] … learn more→
Arctic is warming nearly four times faster than the rest of the world – new research
The Earth is approximately 1.1℃ warmer than it was at the start of the industrial revolution. That warming has not been uniform, with some regions warming at a far greater pace. One such region is the Arctic. A new study shows that the Arctic has warmed nearly four times faster than the rest of the world over the past […] … learn more→
Mature students in universities face 3 kinds of barriers — here’s how to address them
Since the onset of the pandemic, many colleges and universities have reported record numbers of applications from mature students — adults who return to school on a part- or full-time basis while maintaining responsibilities like employment, family and other adult life responsibilities. Both students and post-secondary leaders cite the chance to attend school remotely or to rethink one’s career in […] … learn more→
Australia’s teacher shortage won’t be solved until we treat teaching as a profession, not a trade
Today, state and federal education ministers will meet in Canberra to discuss the teacher shortage. In their first in-person meeting for more than a year, they will also speak to principals, teachers and education experts about the crisis. Not only do we need more people to take up teaching as a career, experienced teachers are leaving the […] … learn more→
Will an AI soon replace your psychiatrist?
Hello Sir. Please sit down. So… how have you been since the last time? » What if, in a few years, this innocuous sentence was no longer pronounced by a psychiatrist in the flesh but by an AI, an artificial intelligence? With the recent resurgence of psychiatry in the public debate , in particular due to the health crisis , the idea of […] … learn more→
‘It hurt my heart and my wallet’: the unnecessary test stressing teachers before they even make it to the classroom
There is no shortage of articles about how teachers are stressed, due to their complex jobs and high workloads. But what is happening before they make it to the classroom? There are lots of reasons why Australia has a teacher shortage and my new research sheds light on one deterrent that is not often talked about. This is the […] … learn more→
Women have always trailed men in research output: how COVID made the situation worse
The under-representation of women in research is well documented. Emerging evidence suggests that the COVID-19 pandemic has exacerbated this inequality and disrupted the research enterprise globally. But none of these studies, mainly from the global north, provide detailed explanations for the scale of this decline. Our research offers the first comprehensive study to shed light on the complex reasons for the […] … learn more→
5 ways students can foster positive mental health at university
For many students, heading off to university means moving away from home and to a new place, facing the prospect of making new friends or adjusting to larger class sizes. For some it will also mean readapting to in-person learning. Amid the normal life transitions from teenage years into adulthood, the pandemic introduced new stressors and interruptions, […] … learn more→
