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The Secret to a Good Robot Teacher
The New York Times: Why is educational technology such a disappointment? In recent years, parents and schools have been exposing children to a range of computer-mediated instruction, and adults have been turning to “brain training” apps to sharpen their minds, but the results have not been encouraging. A six-year research project commissioned by the Department of Education examined different cybertechnology programs across thousands of students in hundreds of schools and found little to no evidence that they improved academic performance. Unfortunately, it appears the same goes for cognitive-training programs.
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How Friends Become Closer
The Atlantic: “Friendships don’t just happen,” says William Rawlins, a professor of interpersonal communication at Ohio University. “They don’t drop from the sky.” Like any relationship, friendships take effort and work. But they’re often the last to receive that effort after people expend their energy on work, family, and romance. And as I’ve written before, as time goes on, friendships often face more hurdles to intimacy than other close relationships. As people hurtle toward the peak busyness of middle age, friends—who are usually a lower priority than partners, parents, and children—tend to fall by the wayside. ...
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What Should We Be Teaching Young Children?
NPR: Early-childhood and elementary school programs reflect a diverse set of commitments about what children ought to learn, and about how they ought to do so. Some focus on academic preparation and advancement, with extra attention to reading and mathematics. Some emphasize social-emotional development and community values. Others tout their language classes, or their music program, or the opportunities for children to engage in extended projects of their choosing. Some praise structure and discipline; some prize autonomy and play. Alongside this profusion of options is a rich diet of advice: parenting books, articles, Facebook groups, and friends who swear by one approach or another.
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Good News for Young Strivers: Networking Is Overrated
The New York Times: Not long ago, after interviewing a venture capitalist onstage, I announced to the audience that we would take questions but no pitches. The first person at the microphone asked the investor to fund his start-up. I cringed as the second person started to pitch, too. Our educational event had quickly turned into a bad episode of “Shark Tank.” The following week, at a similar event, I saw a student ask a C.E.O. for her personal email address in front of the crowd.
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Mindfulness would be good for you. If it weren’t so selfish.
The Washington Post: We may live in a culture of distraction, but mindfulness has captured our attention. Books on the practice are numerous, including guides to “A Mindful Pregnancy,” “Mindful Parenting,” “Mindful Politics,” “The Mindful Diet” and “Mindfulness for Teachers.” Corporations, sports teams, even the military and police departments provide mindfulness training to their employees. A bevy of podcasts offer tips for living a mindful life, guided mindful meditation and interviews with mindfulness evangelists. Another sure sign of cultural saturation: You can order “a more mindful burger,” at Epic Burger in Chicago or an “Enjoy the ride” trucker hat from Mindful Supply Co.
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Artificial Intelligence Helps in Learning How Children Learn
Scientific American: In science, we use statistics and experiments to figure out causal relationships. Researchers in artificial intelligence and machine learning have started to design software that allows computers to learn about causes the way that scientists do. Over the past 15 years, researchers in my laboratory have shown that children learn in much the same way. In one experiment, we showed preschool children a simple machine with a switch on one side and two disks that spin on top. Then we showed them what would happen if you performed some experiments on the machine; for example, you take off one disk, flip the switch and see what happens to the other disk.
