EDUCATION - The African Mirror

May

20

2021

Machines can’t ‘personalize’ education, only people can

EDUCATION

IN the past year, COVID-19 abruptly disrupted schooling, and forced the question of how much kindergarten to Grade 12 education should or will rely on online teaching in the near and distant future. Education has taken a decided technological turn in its massive adaptation to online learning. This is precipitating a critical debate in education right now, with a most uncertain future and much depending on its outcome. MICHAEL MASER, PhD candidate - Faculty of Education, Simon Fraser University Read more: Ontario's ‘choice’ of fully online school would gamble on children for profit One key concern when considering both online…

Conflict kills education: Rwandan experiences show how lost years can be recovered

EDUCATION

HUMANITARIAN situations, especially protracted violent conflicts, are a serious barrier to accessing education. This is why, for 30 years, aid practitioners have been advocating for “Education in Emergencies”. The idea is to try to ensure “the right to education in emergencies and post-conflict reconstruction”. MIHO TAKA, Assistant Professor, Centre for Trust, Peace and Social Relations, Coventry University But violent conflicts pose significant challenges to deliver education in emergencies. For instance, in Rwanda, schooling rapidly deteriorated when the 1990 civil war began. Schooling came to a complete stop in April 1994 and reopened again in September 1994. By this time the…

Grit matters when a child is learning to read, even in poor South African schools

EDUCATION

SCHOOL quality is important in determining children’s success at school. But individual characteristics of the child also play a role. In particular, researchers and teachers are starting to pay more attention to the part that social and emotional skills play in academic success. These are also known as character skills or soft skills. HELEEN HOFMEYR, Postdoctoral fellow, Stellenbosch University This interest in the “softer” side of learning stems from a movement in economics. It looks for statistical evidence of the importance of soft skills in a number of domains, including the labour market and even marriage. One question this research…