The oversimplification trap
Are we in danger of making learning too simple? When it comes to students in the classroom, we can simplify an explanation of a concept into PPT where complex phrases become glossy icons. Books can become short booklets. Subjects become revision guides. Tricky topics can get distilled into knowledge organisers
The problem with mindfulness in schools
Mindfulness is hugely popular across the world and there is a question to be asked about whether it could prove useful at scale in schools and colleges. It is clear that mental health referrals are up across young people, from around one in eight children and young people in 2017
Reading every day matters
In Brazil in 2012, the government offered prisoners the chance to read for their lives. Their novel approach saw prisoners granted four days of remission for each book they read and reviewed. Prisoners had the opportunity to submit up to 12 reviews per year, which equates to a maximum of
Is it better to read on paper or an e-reader?
Should we ditch the Kindle and pick up a paperback? Or put away the plain ol’ textbook and dive into digital learning instead? In our brave new world of ever-present technology, we are left with questions about what is best: tried and tested traditional methods or innovative new technologies. New
5 ways to revive form time reading
Tutor time reading has experienced a wave of popularity in English secondary schools over the last few years. As schools responded to plummeting reading habits, along with a focus on reading in inspection and across curriculum, it became a popular fix for promoting and practising more reading during the school
Rosenshine on Knowledge Structures
Barak Rosenshine is most famous for his principles of instruction, but what did he have to say about building knowledge? In his writing on ‘Advances in research on instruction’, he put forward the important – and familiar notion – of ‘knowledge structures’. Put simply, this is how information is organised and stored
