Blog Archives

New research suggests girls in single-sex schools do slightly better in exams than girls in co-ed environments

New research suggests girls in single-sex schools do slightly better in exams than girls in co-ed environments

Students at all-girls’ schools do slightly better in their exams than girls at co-educational schools, according to new research from the United Kingdom. This goes against previous studies that suggest it does not matter if students attend single-sex or co-ed schools. What is the study? This research was done by FFT Education Datalab. This is an independent research team specialising […] … learn more→

Our research shows children produce better pieces of writing by hand. But they need keyboard skills too

Our research shows children produce better pieces of writing by hand. But they need keyboard skills too

Children today are growing up surrounded by technology. So it’s easy to assume they will be able to write effectively using a keyboard. But our research suggests this is not necessarily true. We need to actively teach students to be able to type as well as write using paper and pen or pencil. Our research Our research team has […] … learn more→

Billions are spent on educational technology, but we don’t know if it works

Billions are spent on educational technology, but we don’t know if it works

During the COVID lockdowns, schools and universities worldwide relied on education technology – edtech – to keep students learning. They used online platforms to give lessons, mark work and send feedback, used apps to teach and introduced students to programs that let them work together on projects. In the aftermath of school closures, the market […] … learn more→

New faith schools in England could soon allocate all their places on religious grounds – here’s why that’s a bad idea

New faith schools in England could soon allocate all their places on religious grounds – here’s why that’s a bad idea

The government has proposed dropping the cap on faith admissions for new and existing free faith schools in England. This would mean that oversubscribed faith schools in this category – those established as new academies, rather than converted from existing council-maintained schools – would no longer have to offer 50% of their places to children from outside […] … learn more→

“Ban screens” or “digital education”: the unsustainable alternative

“Ban screens” or “digital education”: the unsustainable alternative

At the end of April 2024, the “Screens Commission” submitted its report to the President of the French Republic to regulate the digital practices of young people. Entitled “Children and screens: In search of lost time” , the text has since provoked numerous reactions, particularly focused on health issues. The application of some of its recommendations, […] … learn more→

Why are algorithms called algorithms? A brief history of the Persian polymath you’ve likely never heard of

Why are algorithms called algorithms? A brief history of the Persian polymath you’ve likely never heard of

Algorithms have become integral to our lives. From social media apps to Netflix, algorithms learn your preferences and prioritise the content you are shown. Google Maps and artificial intelligence are nothing without algorithms. So, we’ve all heard of them, but where does the word “algorithm” even come from? Over 1,000 years before the internet and […] … learn more→

Expelling students for bad behaviour seems like the obvious solution, but is it really a good idea?

Expelling students for bad behaviour seems like the obvious solution, but is it really a good idea?

Two male students have been expelled from a Melbourne private school for their involvement in a list ranking female students. The two were part of a group of four high school students suspended from Yarra Valley Grammar last Friday, after sharing a spreadsheet of photos of female classmates, ranking them with terms including “wifeys”, “cuties” and “unrapable”. […] … learn more→

Homeschooled kids face unique college challenges − here are 3 ways they can be overcome

Homeschooled kids face unique college challenges − here are 3 ways they can be overcome

Homeschooling is the fastest-growing education setting in the United States. More than 3 million students were educated at home in the 2021-22 school year, up from 2.5 million in the spring of 2019. Current estimates from the U.S. Census Bureau indicate that there are 3.62 million students homeschooled in the United States. That’s a meteoric increase from about 1 million […] … learn more→

The importance of emotional intelligence in professional decisions and relationships

The importance of emotional intelligence in professional decisions and relationships

The concept of intelligence has been historically debated. What does it mean to be intelligent? Why do we consider some people more intelligent than others? These questions have a difficult solution, but one of the most accepted is that there is not a single type of intelligence but rather multiple intelligences that are used in […] … learn more→

How to encourage participation in class, also at university

How to encourage participation in class, also at university

The interaction between teachers and students in university classes is crucial in any context, whether online or in person. But how can teachers make this interaction effective? Self-awareness and the development of multimodal interactional competence may be the answer. This is a teaching competence based on understanding the multimodal nature of communication, that is, the […] … learn more→