Saturday, December 29, 2007

How about 10 extra minutes for critical thinking?

USA Today reports:

The idea that more time in school produces better results could get a small boost today with the release of international data from the Brookings Institution. The study finds adding 10 minutes of math instruction to an eighth-grader's day translates into a jump in math skills…

…Most U.S. eighth-graders got 45 minutes of daily math instruction in 2003, down from 49 in 1995, but their scores on the Trends in Mathematics and Science Survey improved slightly.
Come again?

Researcher Tom Loveless says that is an anomaly, and more time in class could
help boost scores.
Tom needs to be sure his definition of an anomaly isn't a fact that runs counter to a pre-ordained conclusion (see also Global Warming ...)

Originally posted in UNCoRRELATED 11 Dec, 2007

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