Monday, May 12, 2014

The Learning Curve

Pearson Education which is based in the United Kingdom is one of the supporters of a new information spot called the The Learning Curve

Of note, the Learning Curve has issued its first report. Included is the executive summary. Most importantly for the Common Core is #1. Nothing is possible without the basics!


Executive summary

The value which education can provide through the inculcation of skills is enormous. Looking at economic outcomes alone, the OECD estimates that half of the economic growth in developing countries in the last decade came from better skills. How best to give those abilities to students is therefore a matter of great importance.

This report considers what new lessons we have learned about how to inculcate skills in students; it examines how to maintain or expand skill levels among adults and explores the relevance of developed-world answers to these questions for emerging markets.

The main findings are as follows:

East Asian nations continue to outperform others, while Scandinavia shows mixed results

In the latest edition of the Global Index of Cognitive Skills and Educational Attainment, South Korea tops the rankings, followed by Japan (2nd), Singapore (3rd) and Hong Kong (4th). The success of these countries highlights the importance of having clear goalposts for the educational system and a strong culture of accountability among all stakeholders. Scandinavian countries, strong performers in international education rankings since the 1990s, display mixed results. Finland, the 2012 Index leader, has fallen to 5th place, due to its performance in the 2012 PISA tests. Sweden has also declined (from 21st to 24th), fuelling the debate over the country’s free schools policy. Denmark and Norway, however, have made gains (rising to 11th and 21st position, respectively). Other notable improvers this year include Israel (up 12 places to 17th), which achieved major gains in PISA maths and science scores, Russia (up seven places to 13th) and Poland (up four places to 10th).


PISA results show the value of engaging all of society in education

Many of the messages about educational success from this year’s PISA reinforce those from earlier years. A wider range of survey questions accompanying the test, however, point to the importance of widespread engagement with the education system. Schools in which principals work with teachers on school management, and thus can function autonomously, tend to produce better results; parental expectations have a measurable impact on student motivation; and student interest has an effect on outcomes in a variety of ways. Effective education requires a broad range of actors, which points to the benefit of having a broadly supportive culture.


Better adult retention of skills depends on how often, and the environment within which, they are used

All adults lose skills over time, but better skill retention depends on the environment in which they are used. The OECD’s PIAAC study found that from around 25 years of age, skill levels tend to decline, even when accounting for the quality of initial education. Skills need to be used in order to be maintained; greater levels of personal or workplace reading and mathematical activity lead to a slower decline in skill scores over time. An adult learning infrastructure, possibly outside the formal education system, is likely to facilitate this.


Lifelong learning helps slow age-related skill decline mainly for those who are highly skilled already

It is difficult to determine the impact of adult education and training on individuals because those who engage in it are almost always already highly educated and skilled. Teaching adults, therefore, does very little to make up for a poor school system; a strong foundation is important not just for inculcating skills in the first place, but also for maintaining them. Moreover, those with high skills continue to maintain them for a reason; adult education needs to find ways to convince low-skilled individuals of its value.


Before focusing on 21st century skills, developing countries must teach basic skills more effectively

Many, but not all, of the lessons of PISA and PIAAC for developed countries are useful for developing ones. The unique needs of developing countries can differ widely from those in the OECD. As a result, nations such as Brazil and South Africa may be able to derive useful insights about investing in teachers and the status of the teaching profession, as well as the importance of accountability. But the 21st century skills debate will have less resonance in systems that often have difficulty teaching more basic skills successfully.


Four lessons in adult learning

1. Little is possible without the basics

Strong early education is a prerequisite for effective adult learning. Education systems that teach children early how to learn set students up for more effective learning later in life – in part by instilling a desire to learn. For developed and developing countries alike, the best route to good adult education is investment in good initial education.

2. Skills must be used to be maintained

Even when primary education is of high quality, skills decline in adulthood if they are not used regularly. Greater involvement in reading or number crunching at home or at work appears to correlate with higher overall literacy and numeracy, and may slow the decline of skills as adults age.

3. Countries must take adult education seriously

Nations which perform better in surveys of adult skills have established some type of adult learning infrastructure outside of the formal education system. And an economy which makes proper use of the population’s skills also reduces the risk of individuals losing their abilities over time.

4. Technology is helpful in fostering adult learning, but is no panacea

Mobile technology and the internet can remove some obstacles to adult skills education, particularly in the developing world. These and other technologies ease people’s access to adult education, but there is little evidence that their use helps individuals actually develop skills.

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