“Threshold concepts have five essential traits: 1) they transform the learner’s perception of the field, 2) that transformation is permanent, 3) they are integrative in that the learner perceives interrelated ideas in the same way experts in the field might, 4) they are bounded in that mastery allows the learner to move on to other threshold concepts, and 5) they are “troublesome” for learners. Meyer and Land cite a few examples of threshold concepts in their research: opportunity cost in economics, limits in mathematics, and signification in the humanities.”
“Unlike the flu, which has higher fatality rates in both young children and older adults, coronaviruses tend to only be more dangerous for seniors. In a paper published on Jan. 29, scientists writing in the New England Journal of Medicine recorded 0 cases of 2019-nCoV in children 15 and under. This doesn’t mean that children are immune to the virus, but they may be better at fighting it off if they’re otherwise healthy.”
“Everyone who writes about innovation stood on his shoulders.”
“Givers make up the majority of the worst performers, but also the majority of the best performers.”
“In the report that follows, we share findings on coach workload, the coach-teacher relationship, the use of technology in coaching, professional support for coaches, and funding for coaches.”
“The higher the ratio between the two — the more a teacher praised and the less they scolded — the better kids stayed focused on their lessons.”
“The researchers scanned the forearms of several volunteers and observed common tissue features such as muscle, fat, and bone, down to about 6 centimeters below the skin. These images, comparable to conventional ultrasound, were produced using remote lasers focused on a volunteer from half a meter away.”
“That’s what schools need: more technology to protect them from the harm that the technology they’ve already bought is causing.”
Halstead coordinates an experimental program called Eastern Flex Academy, where a handful of students attend school from 3 p.m. to 8 p.m. They start off with English and math classes, break for dinner and then finish their remaining courses online.”
Copyright
Every week I send out articles I encounter from around the web. Subject matter ranges from hard knowledge about teaching to research about creativity and cognitive science to stories from other industries that, by analogy, inform what we do as educators. This breadth helps us see our work in new ways.
Readers include teachers, school leaders, university overseers, conference organizers, think tank workers, startup founders, nonprofit leaders, and people who are simply interested in what’s happening in education. They say it helps them keep tabs on what matters most in the conversation surrounding schools, teaching, learning, and more.
– Peter Nilsson