Do you struggle to visualise how to rotate your shoes so that they nest together in a shoe box? How are you with flat-packed furniture? Are you good at giving directions? These everyday activities require spatial thinking. Spatial thinking is important for mathematics, and it is what we use to understand the properties of objects, […] … learn more→
Blog Archives

How spatial thinking could help children learn maths – and go on to use it in their careers

School uniforms are meant to foster a sense of belonging and raise achievement – but it’s not clear that they do
In France, MPs have recently considered whether to reintroduce compulsory school uniform, with first lady Brigitte Macron adding her support to the idea. “It erases differences, it saves time,” she said. These perceptions of the benefits of uniform are widely held – but do they hold up? French MPs voted against the idea, but uniform is the […] … learn more→

My child isn’t happy with their final exam results. How can I support them?
Every January, the day arrives that South Africans know can decide their fates: the “matric” exam results are announced. In 2022, 753,964 full-time and 167,915 part-time candidates registered to write the secondary school exit exam – the largest cohort ever. They’ll receive the results on 20 January 2023. Many probably feel ambivalent about this massive moment in […] … learn more→

Why are there more cases of bullying in Physical Education class?
It is a cliché of cinema that is still based on reality: many of us can remember traumatic situations, either as victims or as witnesses, during Physical Education class at school or high school. Unfortunately, many students experience this subject as one of the least safe and comfortable situations of their childhood and adolescence because […] … learn more→

Video gaming can bolster classroom learning, but not without teacher support
One highlight of my Grade 3 life was dying from dysentery at the hands of a video game. I was ahead on schoolwork, and allowed to use the classroom computer to pioneer a family across America in the game The Oregon Trail. It was odd that I played this in a Canadian school — rather than […] … learn more→

Preventing writing difficulties is possible, with the help of families
“With that handwriting it is impossible to understand what he writes”; Three out of every two words are misspellings. Concerns like these are shared by teachers when we talk about learning difficulties in writing. However, writing is not just having legible handwriting and respecting spelling rules. Writing involves basic calligraphy and spelling processes, but also complex planning and […] … learn more→

When agri-food brands invite themselves into schools
If, from the end of the 19th century, any form of commercial communication was excluded from the perimeter of French schools, certain school marketing practices multiplied over the 20th century , until being legalized at the beginning of the 21st century . . The Official Bulletin of National Education of April 5, 2001 established a Code of good conduct for business intervention in schools , […] … learn more→

Teenagers in class: a challenge with long-term rewards
The word motivation appears in an unavoidable way in any interview between a teacher and the family of an adolescent student: “It is that he is not motivated.” It is the moment in which the teacher begins to notice some concern and to assume that the interview may not achieve the objectives that are proposed in […] … learn more→

Information literacy courses can help students tackle confirmation bias and misinformation
When it comes to the news these days, what we choose to regard as trustworthy has more to do with our own world view than what kinds of news practices are worthy of trust. Many people are seeking out news that aligns with their politics. But there’s just one problem with this: we are not always good judges […] … learn more→

What is the ethical and social responsibility of teachers and how to transmit it in the classroom
The pandemic has undermined possibly prosperous dreams and has even put an end to stories that have not had a chance to begin. Poverty, injustices and inequalities have increased. Faced with this situation, as humanity, we must follow the ethical horizon proposed in the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. It defines 17 objectives and 169 goals that challenge us […] … learn more→