5 trends in literacy education for 2017

Literacy, one of the most valuable outcomes of good education, is vital because it helps build critical thinking skills through regular reading and writing. Investing time and effort on this in the classroom brings great reward.

1. Kinesthetic learning – What is clear today is that the old style of ‘chalk and talk’ has less than efficient effects on learning. In the past, we used to label students who moved around a lot as problematic, but now we understand that students learn in different ways, and incorporating movement into learning makes learning more engaging.

2. Early learning – Experts all agree that when children are exposed to books at an early age their literacy level increases greatly and that helps throughout school life. When parents read to their children, they expose them to new vocabulary and they also model language use. Digital storybooks are also effective especially if the parents are busy.

3. Personalised learning – This has been around for a while but it is worth emphasizing that personalised learning and self-directed study using technology and certain software platforms, as well as small group teaching, is key to boosting literacy. Furthermore, because students in a classroom are of different levels, everyone is able to learn at their own pace.

4. Representative text – Teachers should provide materials that reflect and relate to the students’ experiences and interests. When they see themselves in what they are reading, students feel more engaged and identify with it. If this does not happen, they may feel school is not designed for them.

5. Media literacy – In this era of fake news, it is vitally important for students to identify what is real news and what is fake. However many schools give this low, or no, priority. Media literacy focuses on sourcing and delivery of material rather than the actual content, and as such develops critical thinking.

Go to www.educationdive.com/news/5-trends-in-literacy-education-for-2017/442117/ for more details

Making the world a better place through an international education

Have you ever wondered if the world’s problems – the divisions in society and growing intolerance towards others – could be solved by giving our children an international education promoting globalization and cultural diversity? An IB education can achieve this through developing inquiring, knowledgeable and caring young people who will help create a more peaceful world.

According to Robert Harrison, head of MYP development, an international education can create a beacon of hope and positively change the next generation to make this world a better place.

Harrison suggests that populations have difficulty adapting to the pace of change in many parts of the world and one of the major challenges we face is learning how to manage such rapid change. Learning how to manage change, he proposes, can be through internationally-minded education, such as the IB program which promotes global thinking, respect, and tolerance. It helps students answer the question ‘How are we going to live together in this globalized world?’.

Harrison also says that an international education can help students make the world a better place by learning about empathy, compassion, respect, being resourceful and strong when encountering difficulties, and developing thoughtful consideration of their own ideas and the ideas of others. IB World Schools can lay claim to inspiring creative entrepreneurs and ethical leaders, and shaping community members to become responsible, active and well-informed.

Go to http://blogs.ibo.org/blog/2017/01/11/why-international-education-is-needed-now-more-than-ever/ to read more.

Cambridge English: Young Learners 2018 exam updates

Cambridge English has announced some changes for 2018 to keep Young Learners relevant to the evolving needs of learners and schools. A webinar has been provided on background information on the revision process before describing the small number of changes made to the question papers.

All three levels have changes to the question papers. For Starters: a new Part 1 Listening task means the same task type is present through all YLE exams but at the appropriate level for candidates; for the Reading and Writing, Part 1 now has both plural and singular nouns, and Part 4 has a semi-factual text instead of a riddle; for Speaking, previously there were few opportunities to speak so candidates are now asked for his or her name, and Part 1 is a conflation of old Parts of 1 and 2.

For Movers: drawing an item is dropped from Part 5 of Listening because candidates were concerned about their drawing skills, and there is also a new Listening Part 3 task that is the same as the Flyers Part 3; for Reading and Writing, the task order has been changed so that the easier tasks are earlier in the test, the total number of questions has been reduced to 35 down from 40, and the current Part 2 has been removed to allow for a new Part 6 extended writing task. For Speaking, candidates are asked their name and age, and the story now has a title and names of characters.

For Flyers: drawing an item has been dropped from Part 5 of Listening; for Reading and Writing, the task order has been changed, and part 2 has been removed to allow for the new Part 7 Writing task; for the Speaking, candidates are now asked for name, family name and age, and the Part 3 story task now has a title and names of characters.

Go www.youtube.com/watch?v=NSw8RjcHEbE&t=12s to watch the video.