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We looked at all the recent evidence on mobile phone bans in schools – this is what we found

We looked at all the recent evidence on mobile phone bans in schools – this is what we found

MOBILE phones are currently banned in all Australian state schools and many Catholic and independent schools around the country. This is part of a global trend over more than a decade to restrict phone use in schools. Australian governments say banning mobile phones will reduce distractions in class, allow students to focus on learning, improve student wellbeing and reduce cyberbullying. However, previous research has shown there is little evidence on whether the bans actually achieve these aims. Many places that restricted phones in schools before Australia have now reversed their decisions. For example, several school districts in Canada implemented outright…
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Understanding how the brain works can transform how school students learn maths

Understanding how the brain works can transform how school students learn maths

SCHOOL mathematics teaching is stuck in the past. An adult revisiting the school that they attended as a child would see only superficial changes from what they experienced themselves. Yes, in some schools they might see a room full of electronic tablets, or the teacher using a touch-sensitive, interactive whiteboard. But if we zoom in on the details – the tasks that students are actually being given to help them make sense of the subject – things have hardly changed at all. COLIN FOSTER, Reader in Mathematics Education, Loughborough University We’ve learnt a huge amount in recent years about cognitive…
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South Africa’s apartheid legacy is still hobbling research – a study of geography shows how

South Africa’s apartheid legacy is still hobbling research – a study of geography shows how

KNOWLEDGE matters. It informs how we think about the world around us. It informs our decisions and government policies, supporting economic growth and development. Knowledge is also power. Certain types of knowledge are given more value than others. This is driven by histories of privilege. In South Africa, apartheid looms large in debates about how knowledge is produced. Though it formally ended 30 years ago, it still influences whose knowledge is considered “right” and whose is sidelined. And this matters in everyday life. For instance, health and medical research and instruction used to focus on white and male bodies. This…
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University rankings are unscientific and bad for education: experts point out the flaws

University rankings are unscientific and bad for education: experts point out the flaws

WE rank almost everything. The top 10 restaurants in our vicinity, the best cities to visit, the best movies to watch. To understand whether the rankings were any good you’d want to know who was doing the ranking. And what it was they were looking for. These are exactly the same questions that are worth asking when looking at the international ranking of universities. SHARON FONN, Professor, School of Public Health, University of Gothenburg Sweden, University of the Witwatersrand Ranking universities started a couple of decades ago. Since then they have become omnipresent, presuming importance and validity. Institutions, especially those…
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How teenagers navigate the nuances of social media – and what adults can learn from them

How teenagers navigate the nuances of social media – and what adults can learn from them

FOR older generations, social media might feel like a specific and often new way of interacting – markedly different from meeting in person or talking on the phone. For most teenagers, though, it is part of an interconnected social landscape. They may not necessarily need to distinguish social connections as either online or offline. These can be fluid across digital and physical spaces. LINDA KAYE, Associate Head of Psychology (Knowledge Exchange and Marketing), Edge Hill University But there are nuances to interacting on social media – and teens are often acutely aware of them. Social media accounts are often characterised…
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Matric results: South Africa’s record school pass rates aren’t what they seem – what’s really happening in the education system

Matric results: South Africa’s record school pass rates aren’t what they seem – what’s really happening in the education system

SOUTH Africa’s matric (grade 12) class of 2023, which wrote final school-leaving exams late last year, has been hailed by the country’s minister of basic education for achieving “extraordinary” results. Of the 691,160 candidates who wrote the National Senior Certificate exams, 82.9% – that’s 572,983 – passed, up from 80.1% of the class of 2022. And more candidates than ever before obtained marks that allow them to study for a bachelor’s degree. MICHAEL LE CORDEUR, Professor and Vice-dean Teaching and Learning, Education Faculty, Stellenbosch University All of the country’s nine provinces managed to improve on their 2022 pass rates. This…
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Learning to read in another language is tough: how Namibian teachers can help kids

Learning to read in another language is tough: how Namibian teachers can help kids

IN a classroom in Namibia’s northern Oshikoto region, a teacher has written English vocabulary words on the chalkboard. She asks her learners to read them aloud. When they stumble with pronunciation, she corrects them. She also helps the youngsters to sound out words. At another school nearby, an English teacher is showing her class cartoon strips on her cell phone to help them create mental images while reading – an approach that’s proven to enhance comprehension. MARTA NDAKALAKO ALUMBUNGU, PhD student, Stellenbosch University NHLANHLA MPOFU , Chair- Curriculum Studies, Stellenbosch University These teachers were part of a study we conducted…
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Three South African universities have new approaches to assessing students: why this is a good thing

Three South African universities have new approaches to assessing students: why this is a good thing

SOUTH African higher education faces many complex challenges rooted in the legacy of apartheid. They include the fact that many students are unprepared for or excluded from higher education. Quality education is not available to all. It’s therefore difficult for many students to remain in higher education and eventually graduate. DANICA SIMS, Lecturer, University of Oxford The data points to two persistent trends. The first is that, according to 2018 figures, 69% of young South Africans (20-24) were not enrolled in education programmes. The second is that racial disparities remain in the profile of those enrolled at higher education institutions.…
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Should Kenya abolish all school exams? Expert sets out five reasons why they’re still useful

Should Kenya abolish all school exams? Expert sets out five reasons why they’re still useful

THE role of examinations in Kenyan schools is under scrutiny. This is because there is a lot that is wrong with the country’s examinations, a situation that threatens to derail education gains made over the decades. For instance, for two consecutive years – last year and the year before – the periods during the country’s national examination period were marred by allegations of leaked tests. These allegations are linked to cartels which make money from parents and learners. BEATRICE M’MBOGA AKALA, Lecturer, University of the Witwatersrand There were also reports this year of high school students receiving contradicting results from…
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Ghana is behind the curve on climate change laws: expert suggests a way to get corporations on board

Ghana is behind the curve on climate change laws: expert suggests a way to get corporations on board

GHANA has introduced some climate change policies and general environmental regulations but has yet to pass a Climate Change Act. This leaves the country without effective legal and regulatory instruments for addressing climate change. Climate change law expert Kikelomo Kila sets out her findings in a recent paper on why Ghana must not follow the “command and control” regulatory approach. KIKELOMO KILA, Lecturer in Law, University of Huddersfield Why hasn’t Ghana introduced specific climate change legislation, and why is such legislation important? Ghana relies instead on two legislative approaches. The first uses generic environmental legislation to govern climate change issues.…
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