Thoughts on learning

  • Avatud kool ühendab uut ja vana

    See artikkel ilmus Sirbis, 04.09.2015. Praegu alustavad kooliteed lapsed, kelle vanemad käisid koolis enamasti 1990. aastatel. Meie kunagised õpetajad said oma väljaõppe 1980ndatel või isegi varem. Mõeldes oma kogemusele, milline on hea õpetamine, siis see jääb mitmekümne aasta taha. Lapsed, kes on praegu kuue-seitsme aastased, alustavad iseseisvat elu 10–15 aasta pärast. Seega peaksimegi küsima: mil… Continue reading

  • Luxury or necessity? Critical thinking and problem solving should be at the core of learning for all

    This article appeared in Unlocking a world of potential, a publication by British Council. Even in a world where most children are still learning basic skills, critical thinking and problem solving can and should be taught. In a low-income community in South Delhi, India, students are reading Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone. Today’s discussion… Continue reading

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  • The puzzle of how teachers learn best

    How do teachers learn best? What is the best way to improve professional practice so that this has a positive effect on student learning outcomes? These questions have been puzzling me for years and here is why. A newly qualified teacher was having a really tough time at school. He was teaching in a secondary… Continue reading

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  • Reinvent teachers’ professional development

    New and more effective models of teachers’ professional learning are needed. These have to take into account the challenging reality, including long working hours, the pressure of inspections and exams. Creative Generation is an organisation trying to reinvent teachers’ continuing professional development. We hope that our efforts contribute to teachers regaining a sense of professionalism… Continue reading

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  • Uutmoodi õppimine ja õpetamine

    See artikkel ilmus Postimehes 11.03.2014. Õppimine tuleb muuta mõtlemist, loovust ja koostööd arendavaks selleks, et parandada Eesti inimeste elukvaliteeti ning arendada oskusi, mida muutuval tööturul kõige enam hinnatakse. Aastal 1999 alustasin õpinguid Oxfordi ülikooli esimesel kursusel. Alt laienevad püksid jalas, kahtlus hinges: kas ma saan hakkama? Esimesel nädalal selgus, et ma ei pea loenguid kartma.… Continue reading

  • Learning to solve problems

    “Robots – memorising formulas, regurgitating facts. Pretending that we understood when we didn’t have a clue. Playing by the rules of the examiner. That’s before we met Mr G, who rescued us from the education system that failed us all. He was a teacher who relished making you think, and not telling you the answer.… Continue reading

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  • Better start now

    This happened about two weeks ago. I get a phone call from my wife a few minutes after she left home on her bike. “I was hit by a car. The guy just didn’t see me.” My heart sank. This was the third time in the past couple of years that someone very close to… Continue reading

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  • On excellent teaching and human excellence

    Spending a week in Mumbai during the Synergies workshop and a day in Pune – the other city where Teach For India places its fellows – helped me clarify one of the big questions I’ve been asking myself for a long time. Four years ago we were setting up Noored Kooli, the Estonian programme within… Continue reading

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