Blog Archives

School and disability: exam accommodations, a real guarantee of equality?

School and disability: exam accommodations, a real guarantee of equality?

Since the implementation of the 2005 law on equal rights and opportunities , inclusive schooling has become a major objective of the French education system. Today, it is a question of setting up a quality education intended for all pupils, whatever their differences and their needs. If the financial and human resources allocated to the support of students […] … learn more→

What is that voice in your head when you read?

What is that voice in your head when you read?

What is that voice in your head when you read? – Luiza, age 14, Goiânia, Brazil When you first begin reading, you read out loud. Reading aloud can make the text easier to understand when you’re a beginning reader or when you are reading something that’s challenging. Listening to yourself as you read helps with comprehension. […] … learn more→

Math teachers hold a bias against girls when the teachers think gender equality has been achieved

Math teachers hold a bias against girls when the teachers think gender equality has been achieved

Math teachers who believe women no longer face discrimination tend to be biased against girls’ ability in math. This is what we found through an experiment we conducted with over 400 elementary and middle school math teachers across the United States. Our findings were published in a peer-reviewed article that appeared in April 2023 in the International […] … learn more→

UK students are abandoning language learning, so we’re looking for a more creative approach

UK students are abandoning language learning, so we’re looking for a more creative approach

There is a storm brewing for modern language education in the UK. The uptake in higher education has more than halved in the past 15 years. And in the same period, ten modern language university departments have closed, while a further nine have been significantly downsized. Meanwhile, language provision in schools is patchy. There are substantial regional […] … learn more→

Biodiversity in primary school: worms, bees and neighborhood stores

Biodiversity in primary school: worms, bees and neighborhood stores

From an early age, boys and girls get closer to fauna through visits to zoos, stories and children’s movies. They know many animals, although they are usually species from faraway places and, basically, large mammals, such as the lion or the kangaroo. However, they present more limited knowledge about the animals in their environment and their value to […] … learn more→

School phone bans seem obvious but could make it harder for kids to use tech in healthy ways

School phone bans seem obvious but could make it harder for kids to use tech in healthy ways

School phone bans may seem like the answer to reeling in young people’s technology use. But if we ban phones and bury this issue under the sand, when and how do our kids learn to have a healthy relationship with technology in a world becoming more tech-focused by the day? Existing bans in Australian schools School mobile […] … learn more→

Keeping a diary can improve teachers’ wellbeing – here are some ways it can work for all of us

Keeping a diary can improve teachers’ wellbeing – here are some ways it can work for all of us

Teachers in England are struggling. A recently released government report on the working lives of teachers found that teachers’ wellbeing levels are lower than the general population. More than half of the 11,177 teachers and school leaders surveyed said that their job was negatively affecting their mental health. Teacher wellbeing should be addressed at a structural level. […] … learn more→

Why don't we take comics seriously?

Why don’t we take comics seriously?

Despite its indisputable importance in popular culture, the comic does not enjoy a similar status in the Spanish-speaking world as it does in other countries. Among other reasons, this may be due to the very origin of the modern comic in the daily press, much weaker than in the United States, and which linked the comic to […] … learn more→

Ofsted inspections cause teachers stress and aren’t backed up by strong evidence – things could be done differently

Ofsted inspections cause teachers stress and aren’t backed up by strong evidence – things could be done differently

The school inspectorate in England, Ofsted, has faced criticism recently following the death of headteacher Ruth Perry. According to her family, Perry’s death was a “direct result” of the pressure resulting from the Ofsted inspection process which resulted in her school being judged as “inadequate”. This has sparked debate about whether the current Ofsted framework should be […] … learn more→