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https://www.morizioeducation.com/post/technology-as-a-means

Tech as a Tool for Ed, or Ed as a Tool for Tech? UNESCO's latest report on technology in education, recommending the ban of smartphones in schools, urges educators to reflect upon the role of technology in the learning process. For some teachers, this consideration may be challenging as they have been trained to fully embrace technology in their t...

For those who enjoy reading, this novel makes them renew their appreciation for books. For those who cannot stand reading, it helps them learn the value of books.

"Fahrenheit 451": A Great Book for the Reluctant Reader When I read Ray Bradbury's Fahrenheit 451 for the first time, I had recently graduated from high school. I remember wishing I had read it in one of my English classes. It was one of those very interesting books, full of ideas that would have made for great classroom discussions. Among the many theme...

While Gardner's theory of multiple intelligences has influenced current teaching methods, it has been met with criticism from the scientific community. Knowing what we know, should this theory still have a place in education?

Multiple Intelligences: Flawed but still Useful Howard Gardner's theory of multiple intelligences is well-known in education. However, it is not universally accepted. I remember, during my undergraduate studies, most professors would expect you to refer to it when using differentiated instruction. On one occasion though, a professor with a backgr...

Being busy, just like being perfect, often stands in the way of being productive. You can be productive, accomplish a lot, and not be busy. What therefore helps counter a perfectionist attitude is being result-oriented.

Perfectionism: A Busy Trap An article by Natasha Frost has been making waves on LinkedIn recently. It is about a recent study that suggests that perfectionism is not ideal in the workplace. Being a perfectionist does not add a net benefit to performance, nor does it make you popular with your colleagues. Rather, people prefer...

Logic is one of those terms, like morality and creativity, that has a place in education, yet the path through which students develop it is not clearly defined.

Teaching Logic to Elementary School Students I started teaching Math and Logic to a group of Grade 5 students this summer. Coming up with material for the Math component is simple enough; I look through government documents, online programs, school textbooks, review workbooks, and take what I need from these abundant resources. Teaching Math i...

"And each agreed they would have failed / If either had worked alone."

The Importance of the Parent-Teacher Partnership I dreamed I stood in a studio And watched two sculptors there. The clay they used was a young child's mind And they fashioned it with care. One was a teacher - the tools she used Were books and music and art. One was a parent with a guiding hand, And a gentle loving heart. Day after day, the teacher...

Congratulations to all students for having completed the 2019-2020 school year! It was a year like no other. Responsive Tutoring will continue to offer tutoring during the summer and post articles to assist parents and fellow educators, starting with this summer reading list.

2020 Summer Reading List for High School Students The summer months are pivotal in child development. Left to play and learn in an unstructured manner offers them a chance to discover things about themselves and the world around them. They often return to school the following year more mature. That maturity level can be benefited from the choice of...

Too much challenge, and the student becomes stressed out, loses hope, and gives up. Too little challenge, and the student either becomes too self-confident and is set up to fail, or the student simply loses interest and their potential is wasted.

When Challenging Becomes Discouraging Spending time with a student 1-on-1 is a privileged position. Not only do you get to know them as individuals, you also develop a good understanding of how they are as students. One of the ideals that educators must strive for is providing differentiated instruction - a form of education that caters...

This statement works because it is a healthy way to elicit student compliance. It is courteous, while at the same time straightforward. It preserves the student's need for autonomy, and might even have a positive influence on their identity.

Words and Their Effect on Student Identity Every child wants to be good. It just happens that some don't know how to be good. I have found that no matter how much a child challenges authority or neglects their work, they want to succeed, both socially and academically. By socially, I mean that they want to be accepted at once by an authority...

While I usually do not use contracts, given their sometimes formal and dry nature, I recommend using the Contract for Increasing Commitment for a number of reasons:

It works.

It provides structure for the child's intrinsic motivation to grow.

It encourages the child to be autonomous and accountable.

It puts the focus on the child's effort.

It helps the child reflect upon and overcome potential obstacles.

It makes the child feel supported by an adult.

It allows the child to develop their own consequences, which they are likely to want to avoid.

It is fair.

Increasing Student Commitment When a fellow educator uses a token system of sorts to reward a student — whether it be a series of check-marks or smiley faces on a chart leading up to a prize — I always wonder if the child would be inclined to commit to any productive task in life without expecting an unrelated reward in retu...

"Reading, studying, solving math problems - Not every kid is a fan of that. Therefore, they have not naturally trained themselves to be able to do those challenging tasks for more than a couple of minutes at a time. But it's never too late to start."

The Pomodoro Technique: A great way to improve attention and time management Maintaining focus is possible for every student. While some have difficulty concentrating on their homework for over five minutes, they can spend hours playing a sport or watching TV. Why is that? Well, it's just easier to train your mind to focus on doing something you like. Reading, studying, solv...

A parent spoke to me yesterday about how his 9-year-old son doesn't want to do any of the work his teachers are sending him.

"Every time we tell him to do something, he starts screaming. We keep telling him to do it, but he just won't have any of it. Kids these days don't listen to their parents."

Choice and Motivation A parent spoke to me yesterday about how his 9-year-old son doesn't want to do any of the work his teachers are sending him. "Every time we tell him to do something, he starts screaming. We keep telling him to do it, but he just won't have any of it. Kids these days don't listen to their parents." I...