Who hasn't at some point seen a headline that links screen time with terrifying outcomes like diabetes, obesity, poor communication, and cancer? However, with school closures forcing teaching and learning to go digital, screens are playing a bigger role in education than ever before. So, what does the research actually say about the impact of screen time on children's well-being?

In this episode we are sharing an excerpt all about the research behind screen time, from our new book, ‘Integrating Technology: A School-Wide Framework to Enhance Learning’, out now from Heinemann. We share our thoughts about why “screen time” isn’t very helpful as a phrase, and explain what the research says - and doesn’t say - about screen time and its effects on children.

Managing behavior in the classroom can be a challenge: how do you reward and recognize the good behavior of your students? How do you record and address negative behavior? How do you motivate students to maintain the behavior you want to see, and change the behavior that prevents them, and others, from learning?

Many teachers turn to, or are required to use, behavior charts. From smiley faces to traffic lights with named clothes pegs or magnets, Pinterest and Teachers Pay Teachers are awash with examples of behavior chart designs you can copy or buy.

But do they work? And if so, how, when and why do they work? Do behavior charts really help our students learn to behave, and behave to learn?

Have you pushed your “Brain Buttons” lately? No? Well, have you been keeping on top of your “Ear Unlocking”? Us neither. BrainGym is a tool used by teachers around the world on the basis of the promise that it helps students to process information faster, improves balance and coordination, and “synchronize your system”.

But… does it actually work? Are the minutes and tax dollars spent on BrainGym actually helping our students to learn?

In this special episode, we chat with Professor Guy Claxton, respected cognitive science and education researcher and author of the Learning Power Approach series. We get his take on the big issues in education research today, why there is a gap between academic research findings and classroom instructional practices, and get his thoughts on steps teachers can take to bridge that gap.

Homework.

Did you shudder when you read that? If so, you’re probably a parent of a child who hates it, a teacher who hates assigning it, or remember being a student who hated doing it. It’s one of those topics that really divides people: you tend to be for homework or against it but what does the research tell us about homework?

If you are a teacher, or have ever even been in a school, you’ve definitely seen a word wall. They are a staple feature of most elementary and primary classrooms, and are also common in pre-school and up into high school. But… do they actually help students to learn, remember and use new words in their writing?

Why? Why not? And is there more to making word walls work than simply having them?