Category: Research

The impact of shared book reading on children’s language skills (Best Evidence in Brief)

There is a new Best Evidence in Brief  with – amongst others – this meta-analysis: This meta-analysis, published in Educational Research Review, explores whether shared reading interventions are equally effective across a range of study designs, across a range of different outcome variables, and for children from different socioeconomic status (SES) groups. Studies were included… Read More The impact of shared book reading on children’s language skills (Best Evidence in Brief)

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Two very similar theories but from two different backgrounds: CLT and the Scarcity Mindset

John Sweller’s Cognitive Load Theory has been quite successful for the past few years, with e.g. Dylan Wiliam calling it the most important theory in present day education. The essence is that our short term memory is limited in the number of elements it can contain simultaneously. I do prefer the distinction Sweller originally made… Read More Two very similar theories but from two different backgrounds: CLT and the Scarcity Mindset

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A new 8-year long longitudinal study on time spent on social media shows a non-impact on mental health

I’m sure this still will come as a big surprise to many, but it’s pretty difficult for results to be as clear:   Time spent using social media was not related to individual changes in depression or anxiety over 8 years. This lack of a relationship was found even in the transition between adolescence and… Read More A new 8-year long longitudinal study on time spent on social media shows a non-impact on mental health

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Parents’ vocabulary and grammar as an influence on bilinchildren’s acquisition of English

A new study examines for first time the parents’ vocabulary and grammar as an influence on children’s acquisition of English. From the press release: The way a highly proficient speaker of English talks to a child is different from the way a less proficient speaker does. Even for two-year-olds, these differences matter in how they… Read More Parents’ vocabulary and grammar as an influence on bilinchildren’s acquisition of English

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Again: better sleep habits lead to better college grades (and can maybe explain gender differences!)

Of course I won’t promote sleeping during my classes, but still… Two MIT professors have found a strong relationship between students’ grades and how much sleep they’re getting. “What time students go to bed and the consistency of their sleep habits also make a big difference. And no, getting a good night’s sleep just before… Read More Again: better sleep habits lead to better college grades (and can maybe explain gender differences!)

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New review of evidence on parental engagement (Best Evidence in Brief)

This review in the latest Best Evidence in Brief focuses on an important partner in education that often is overlooked: A review of evidence published by the Education Endowment Foundation in the UK shows how parental engagement can have a positive effect on a child’s academic achievement – regardless of age or socioeconomic status. The review, conducted by… Read More New review of evidence on parental engagement (Best Evidence in Brief)

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A new meta-analysis about interleaved practice, some nuances

Interleaving is a very effective tool in every teachers’ toolbox, but this new meta-analysis shows some interesting nuances: Interleaving is clearly effective for inductive learning of complex visual material with high similarity between categories but not within categories. In contrast, results concerning the interleaving effect for learning with expository texts are mixed. Thus, interleaving should… Read More A new meta-analysis about interleaved practice, some nuances

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