Blog posts April 2012
Why we need Engaging Schools - delivering 21st century schooling
In yesterday's blog we presented a number of statistics that evidence the problem with student disengagement. Our resultant Twitter dialogue showed that many organisations were not surprised by these statistics and recognise the need to do things differently. We have demonstrated the problem at a student level. While the ‘micro’ case for change, based on student experience, is clearly important, we see an broader and equally compelling rationale for rethinking school structure and pedagogy in...
Tiger Mothers Revisited - Wesley Yang on the 'bamboo ceiling'
Last year, I wrote about Amy Chua’s Battle Hymn of the Tiger Mother in this blog,
I’m returning to the subject because I’ve just read Wesley Yang’s essay for New York Magazine, 'Paper Tigers', which has just been nominated for a National Magazine Award.
Yang scrutinises Chua’s basic contention – that exacting absolute obedience from your...
Why we need Engaging Schools - solving the problem of disengagement
It’s no secret that many young people are bored in school, or simply don’t see the point of it. There’s a wealth of evidence for this problem – usually described as ‘disengagement’ – across the developed world. Recent studies suggest that engagement declines as students progress through school. The majority of students are disengaged in their learning by the time they reach 16, with students from poor families faring worst. Educators are also aware of another, harder-to-measure problem; that of ‘disengaged achievers’ – students who are adept at achieving good grades, but are turned off...
