Kids will need recess more than ever when returning to school post-coronavirus
By Lauren McNamara and Pasi Sahlberg School leaders globally are tasked with the unenviable challenge of planning for school reopenings after COVID-19 pandemic shut downs. Having experienced their own isolation, anxiety, exhaustion and challenges of taking schools online, they are now challenged to redesign their schools to mitigate the effects of a pandemic. Amid concerns about social distancing, it would be easy for education…
read moreFive things not to do when schools re-open
So much has been said already about teaching and learning during the Covid-19 pandemic that it is hard to say something new. More focus on social and emotional learning, student and teacher wellbeing, authentic assessments, distance learning with technology, relationships in schools and recess during school days. Fewer high-stakes standardized tests, less unproductive consequential accountability, more direct instruction in school,…
read moreStudents less focused, empathetic and active than before – technology may be to blame
Teachers say most students have lost the ability to focus, are less empathetic and spend less time on physical activity. These are some of the results from our Growing Up Digital Australia study, in which we surveyed almost 2,000 teachers and school leaders across Australia. We asked them how students from primary school to year 12 have changed in the last five years, and what might explain these changes. Nearly four out of…
read moreThe Long Island Play Revolution
In 2015, a school district in New York State declared an educational revolution. Teachers and parents decided to rise up and liberate their schools and their children — by giving them more play. The revolution erupted at the Patchogue-Medford district on Long Island, which serves 8,700 K-12 students, over half of whom are economically disadvantaged, and it is being led by Michael Hynes, the athletic, passionate young district…
read moreSchools are moving online, but not all children start out digitally equal
By Amy Graham and Pasi Sahlberg More than one billion young people around the world are now shut out of classrooms due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Even in Australia where many schools remain open, many parents have chosen to keep their kids home. Some Australian non-government schools have already shut their doors and moved classes online. Victoria, South Australia and Tasmania have ended the term early so teachers…
read moreA proposal for what post-coronavirus schools should do
This essay was written with William Doyle and originally published in Washington Post on April 8, 2020 The coronavirus crisis has shattered one of the most dysfunctional pillars of childhood education. On March 20, U.S. Education Secretary Betsy DeVos suspended the federal requirement for the mass standardized testing of children, announcing “Neither students nor teachers need to be focused on high-stakes tests during this…
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