The narrative about learning at our school is changing and parents are increasingly in on the secret. Students are asking the question of their teachers: how do I learn how to learn (in this subject)? Parents are asking their children to explain to them what they are learning about learning too. One wonders what their answers […]
“The best time to plant a tree was 20 years ago. The second best time is now.” “Fight evil, read books.” These two quotes are my favourites for the year. Pithy and profound, they seem to share great truths with some hope that one can start doing something positive right now. When so many issues […]
The current October edition of National Geographic has an interesting article on the ‘teenage brain’. I do not usually buy this magazine but waiting for ferries in Hong Kong, and the incredibly inexpensive cover price compared with Australia, has led me to buy a couple recently for articles of ongoing interest. The New Science of the Teenage […]
After watching this talk I feel a little depressed about the graph on the ability of adults to aquire a second language. I also feel that so many of us native English speakers are increasingly going to be disadvantaged in a multilingual global environment. Q: Can anyone comment about their experiences learning a second language […]
Asperger’s syndrome has been explored in a number of creative ways in recent years but many people in the community are still relatively unaware of the impact of the syndrome on the individual’s life. Dean Groom posted this video on the weekend. It resounds with me too. It is both informative and a good short animation. [vodpod […]
Tim Kastelle posted this video talk by Jeremy Rifkin which I repost here and am sure you will enjoy. [vodpod id=Video.3625992&w=425&h=350&fv=%26rel%3D0%26border%3D0%26] more about “RSA Animate – The Empathic Civilisation“, posted with vodpod I like the point Tim’s emphasises, that when, “you develop…deep connections with the people you serve, the ideas that you give them […]
Now, having finished David Shenk’s, The Genius in All of Us, I’d like to continue my reflection on the importance of this work to educators, students and parents. The notes I made while reading, using that function on my Kindle, highlight that our quintessential thinkers, in Western civilisation, have always suspected that giftedness’ was a […]
‘Intelligence is not an innate aptitude…’ It is difficult to shift paradigms and I have just started a book that may assist us to change perceptions about the potential of all our students – and ourselves. Steven Johnson, one of my favourite authors and thinkers, recommended via twitter last week, The Genius in All of Us: Why Everything […]
Brain Rules: 12 Principles for Thriving and Surviving at Work, Home and School by John Medina is an excellent, must-read for book teachers, parents and students. I am listening to the audiobook version, read by the author, at the moment and am finding it both informative and entertaining. I am considering releasing one principle a week to […]
“More and more research is showing that our brains change constantly with learning and experience and that this takes place throughout our lives…we have shown that what students believe about their brains — whether they see their intelligence as something that’s fixed or something that can grow and change — has profound effects on their […]