Another update of new ideas and findings about how we should educate
1. ‘Preschool Matters’ is the title of a perspectives piece published in science (15 July 2011) by E.C. Melhuish. In his article he measures the effective size of preschool programs on educational outcome is consistently huge across many cultures. Even the chairman of the Federal Reserve System, Ben Bernanke, has weighted in on arguing for the effectiveness of early childhood programs.
2. Some states (i.e., North Carolina) are pushing hard to fund pre school programs for all kids. This is based on the strong evidence available that demonstrates the long term educational benefits of preschool program particularly for disadvantages children (see earlier posts on this site that provides some of the evidence of the benefits of pre school programs.
3. The value of reversing traditional teaching methods in which the classroom is used for tutoring and reviewing homework while lecture material is delivered via e-leaning (the internet) is reviewed in an article entitled ‘Flipping the Classroom’ published in the Economist (September 17, 2011). Bill Gates is just one of the supporters of this approach to education. The trick is to provide superior lecture materials on line rather than to rely on highly variable quality lectures by classroom teachers. The Khan Academy software provides an example of the power of excellent on line delivery of knowledge. I would urge you to take a look at what powerful lectures can provide the learner. It should be pointed out that for years teachers, professors, experts have made their lectures accessible on the Internet.
4. Five billion dollars are spent annually on private tutor industry products. The industry seems to be recession resistant and highly profitable. Tutor sites are everywhere. For example the Kumon Math and Reading Centers has 26,000 franchised sites around the world and services 240,000 students annually. The need for the industry is based on perceived unmet needs of special students such as those with learning disabilities, those kids who seen as being lost in large classrooms, and the increased challenge of getting into elite schools. There value is based on one on one interaction with tutors rather than any unique tutoring methods. The industry is open to introducing new methods for one on one teaching environments in this competitive industry
5. Many countries have embarked on reforming education. Some of attempts at reform around the world are reviewed in an article entitled ‘The great schools revolution’ published in the Economist (September 17, 2011). Some of what has been learned has been known for some time, like the fact that non-school factors such as family income accounts for more than half of the child’s performance in school. Some of the ideas for reform that seem to work well include decentralization of school initiatives’ (successfully tried in Ontario Canada and in Poland). Once again the quality of the teacher makes a huge difference in educational outcome in schools. Both Finland and South Korea recruit only the best student graduates for teaching positions and pay them well for teaching. In addition diversity in the recruitment of teachers can make a big difference in who ends up in the classroom and their effectiveness in the role of teacher (see an earlier posting on this site for more data on the effect size of teacher quality).
6. The Washington DC schools have adopted the use of a method called Tools of the Mind to teach executive function skills to young children. The method is based on the use of guided play to, for example, teach kids to avoid distractions as they learn. The approach is an old one developed by Lev Yygotsky almost a century ago. More recently Adele Diamond used this method to teach executive function skills to preschools with huge success (and the results were published in the journal Science 3 years ago and also highlighted in a posting on this site).
7. It is clear that education is the key ingredient in driving social mobility. Overwhelming evidence points to the need to improve our education if we are going to improve the national standard of living or even to merely maintain our economic well being.
8. Stanford University has an on line program for high school students, “Program for Gifted Youth’. The students enrolled in the program have been highly successful (in acceptance to the best Universities in the country). About 275,000 students are enrolled in on line high school programs. Make room for a many programs. Tuition for the online program isn’t cheap, about $15,000. You get what you pay for. Perhaps profit motive can drive more effective education.
9. There is quite a flourishing industry of gadgets and computer ‘toys’ that are touted to provide news avenues for learning in kids and adults. A web search provides a picture of these devises (where documentation of their value is generally missing).
None of these developments are surprising. Why are we not willing to take what we know works in education and place on resources there?