Publishers have got very good at bringing out new editions of textbooks which do little except renumber the problem sets in some fields. A little light bribery of academics to get them to set the new… (View Post)

Thank god for that. It was pretty awful for my kids. Phonics seems to be an effective but mechanistic way to teach kids to read that is completely irrelevant for the kids that catch on quickly regard… (View Post)

So, they’d like to fund something that’s /not/ DARPA by ignoring everything that makes DARPA work? Sometimes, finding a way to insulate politicians from their own worst instincts is the only way to m… (View Post)

Yes, Gove et al meddled deeply in teaching english in primary school. No one anywhere needs to needs able to spot a “fronted adverbial” at ten paces, yet seven year olds are graded on their ability t… (View Post)

I’m told that some hospitals have implemented “reverse waiting rooms” for precisely this reason - you get to sit in a nice room with tea & biscuits on demand whilst everything gets lined up. Ther… (View Post)