One year after the government banned cellphones from schools to help students focus and reduce distractions in class, we’re beginning to see how it has been implemented and how successful it’s been. As part of that process, our new research asked young people about the ban. Unsurprisingly, they had a lot to say. Schools around the world, including […] … learn more→
Blog Archives
School phone ban one year on: our student survey reveals mixed feelings about its success
‘It is a seriously difficult role and only getting harder’: school principals speak about stress, violence and abuse in their jobs
School principals around Australia are responsible for about 4.5 million staff and students in almost 10,000 schools. Not only do they oversee students’ progress, but they are also responsible for the performance of staff and the wellbeing of everyone at their school. Their jobs are huge. As we have previously tracked in our annual survey of principals, […] … learn more→
How to give feedback that motivates and improves learning
It is impossible to learn without feedback (literally, in English, evaluative or corrective information about an action, event, or process to the source that originated it), understood as the comments, opinions, responses, or suggestions that students or members of a work team receive about their performance. In schools, colleges, and universities, where skill acquisition and the development […] … learn more→
Mississippi’s education miracle: A model for global literacy reform
In a surprising turnaround, Mississippi, once ranked near the bottom of U.S. education standings, has dramatically improved its student literacy rates. As of 2023, the state ranks among the top 20 for fourth grade reading, a significant leap from its 49th-place ranking in 2013. This transformation was driven by evidence-based policy reforms focused on early literacy and teacher development. […] … learn more→
Education and technology in the 21st century
The goals of education are the transmission of a society’s culture and the personal development of the learner; technology is a publicly traded industry that is accountable to its boards of directors and investors for its achievements and problems. Their speeds are radically different. Education is slow in its transformation processes and is governed by […] … learn more→
Why history instruction is critical for combating online misinformation
Can you tell fact from fiction online? In a digital world, few questions are more important or more challenging. For years, some commentators have called for K-12 teachers to take on fake news, media literacy, or online misinformation by doubling down on critical thinking. This push for schools to do a better job preparing young people to differentiate between […] … learn more→
Can a virtual reality residential school, developed with Survivors, improve empathy toward Indigenous people?
Virtual reality is a rapidly developing technology. As the technology expands, becoming more portable and affordable, the potential uses have expanded as well. One virtual reality creator calls virtual reality the “ultimate empathy machine.” Promising research shows that virtual reality can improve empathy toward groups such as people experiencing schizophrenia, children who are refugees and people who are unhoused. […] … learn more→
Mass layoffs at Education Department signal Trump’s plan to gut the agency
The Trump administration on Tuesday slashed staff at the Department of Education – firing roughly 1,300 employees – as part of its long-planned effort to eliminate the agency entirely. The move leaves the department with 2,183 employees, down from more than 4,000 at the beginning of the year. The cuts also follow recent leaks that President Donald Trump was planning […] … learn more→
Homeschooling: The Answer to School Phobia?
Schools have always sought to supervise students and their teachers, with a teaching method long based on authority and discipline. However, pedagogical knowledge, psychological knowledge, public policies as well as social transformations (mass schooling, rise of individual rights, new educational expectations) have largely contributed to transforming educational standards and the way in which we interpret, […] … learn more→
5 ways schools have shifted in 5 years since COVID-19
The U.S. educational landscape has been drastically transformed since the COVID-19 pandemic shuttered school campuses five years ago. Access to high-quality teachers and curriculum developed by teachers is shrinking, for example. Likewise, there has been a loss of emotional support for students and a decline in the school use of technology and social media. As education scholars focused on literacy practices […] … learn more→
