Speechless

Rosemary Sage

Description

As the world has rapidly changed, how do we best prepare young people for the future?
How do we adapt to the fact that children may now spend more time looking at a screen than engaging in actual conversation?

Speechless unpicks the political, economic and social issues surrounding education that pose challenges in schools, colleges and universities, as well as workplaces. These suggest that a different approach to learning, assessing, teaching and training is needed to develop relevant experiences that allow all students to achieve their potential.

Learners show a huge range of abilities and interests that they must share, with only a broad, varied, flexible curriculum satisfying their needs.

Heeding student voices and expecting them to pay attention to their teachers and each other is important in building respect for everyone, whatever their background. Sharing knowledge brings awareness of what you know and need to acquire. Speechless, with both facts and humour, makes a passionate case as to why teachers must talk with their students and not just to them.

Sujets

• EDUCATION
• Philosophy

Informations

• Publié par: Legend Press
• Date de parution: 31 août 2020
• Nombre de lectures: 0
• EAN13: 9781789559323
• Langue: English
• Poids de l'ouvrage: 1 Mo

Extrait

REVIEWS OF SPEECHLESS
SUSAN JAMES
In a world where effective communication has never been more critical, the world’s employers report this as one of the major skill gaps. Students in the UK are not adequately equipped for the demands of their future lives and yet more young people than ever are experiencing mental health issues generated by feeling overwhelmed by the demands that they experience at school age. Even more worrying, the link the author forges between a lack of ability to self-talk and likelihood of crime-related activity in the future provides a serious pause for thought.
Rosemary Sage’s Speechless gives voice to the current concerns our society faces with regard to education and how best to prepare our young people for the future. It acknowledges that society, and therefore language, is in a constant state of change. At the heart of this text are two key principles: educators should be given time to understand the circumstances of each child; students perform best when they are given opportunities to learn in a way that is participatory. Understanding the value and importance of language, teaching pupils to function as part of a community, will ensure they can understand and take ownership for their thoughts and actions. This offers society a positive way forward.
This book is an energised, wide-ranging, intelligent, humorous human journey. It sweeps over time, history and a vast array of cultures, societies, studies and ideas in order to provide the reader with a rich but readable response to the challenges that educators, parents and young people face today and in the future.
Susan James is a teacher of English Language and Literature, as well as a Pastoral Deputy Head at Cheadle Hume School. She has been a Head of Lower School at the Manchester Grammar School; a Drama and PSHE teacher; a Form Tutor and an Academic Mentor for English PGCE Students and NQTs. She achieved a Distinction for her MEd in Educational Leadership at the University of Buckingham, UK. Following her work on developing resilience in school pupils, Susan has worked to create a new curriculum for Lower School boys at Manchester Grammar School, from 2018. She is a School Governor, with many community interests and is particularly focused on the holistic development of children for their futures in the new Industrial Revolution (4).
SHERRY BRANDENBURG BENT
The speed of technological advances has ricocheted the educational establishment into seeking solutions and finding answers for the drastic impact it has had on our ability to teach students. Too many hours spent on iPads, phones and on social media has resulted in a lack of focus, underdeveloped oral communication skills and a detachment in responding appropriately to teachers in the classroom. Technology has created a void in how effective we are at reaching our students’ potential intellectual growth and development.
This book is a wake-up call for all teaching practitioners by exposing the damaging effects of too much time spent absorbed in virtual platforms and the implications this has on equipping students for tomorrow’s world. Most importantly, this book highlights the vital necessity we face in schools to improve classroom dialogue and verbal communication so students can effectively navigate a more complex and multi-faceted job market.
The future of our education system’s success lies in developing strong communication abilities that transcend both technology and a rapidly changing global template. Developing interpersonal skills and the ability to respond both orally and in written form is paramount to success in all fields of work. The role of schools to hone oral language, as well as developing a high standard of written language, is vital to 21st-century life.
Language and vocabulary are developed in early childhood and are built throughout years of schooling and throughout adult life. Children are now entering school with insufficient language and vocabulary development which affects their progression in both reading, writing and all areas of the curriculum. Thus, the problems become compounded throughout the primary school years and beyond.
Verbal communication, discussion and dialogue must be at the forefront of education. This book should be required reading in every teacher training college and by all educational professionals.
Speaking, listening, and responding intelligently must be at the heart of the information age.
Sherry Brandenburg Bent (MA Education in Curriculum Development and Supervision) has taught in primary and middle schools in the US for twenty years before coming to England on a Fulbright Scholarship in 1991. Since living in England, she has taught all primary grade levels, as well as at the foundation stage and in secondary schools. She was a literacy consultant for ARK Schools for five years before starting Brandenburg Bent Tutorials Ltd in 2014. Her school specialises in supporting primary students, by building strong literacy and mathematics skills, as well as focusing on problem solving and communication competencies, especially for students sitting for 11+ exams. Sherry is also chairman of a London-based charity that specialises in teaching reading and building literacy skills in disadvantaged children.
 
SPEECHLESS
Issues for Education
Rosemary Sage
 
The University of Buckingham Press,
51 Gower Street, London WC1E 6HJ
[e-mail] | www .unibuckinghampress .com
Contents © Rosemary Sage 2020
The right of the above author to be identified as the author of this work has been asserted in accordance with the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988. British Library Cataloguing in Publication Data available.
Print ISBN 9781789559330
Ebook ISBN 9781789559323
Set in Times.
Publisher’s Note
Every possible effort has been made to ensure that the information contained in this book is accurate at the time of going to press, and the publisher and author cannot accept responsibility for any errors or omissions, however caused. No responsibility for loss or damage occasioned to any person acting, or refraining from action, as a result of the material in this publication can be accepted by the editor, the publisher or any of the authors.
All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in or introduced into a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form, or by any means electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise, without the prior permission of the publisher. Any person who commits any unauthorised act in relation to this publication may be liable to criminal prosecution and civil claims for damages.
Charts and tables from other authored texts have been requested for use and referenced accordingly.
 
Speechless
Issues for Education
Rosemary Sage, University of Buckingham Press
Dedication
Preface
Professor Barnaby Lenon
Introduction
Riccarda Matteucci
Prologue: A New Conversation about Education
SPEECHLESS
Chapter Summaries
1    The Learner Context
2    Signs, Signals, Symbols and Codes: How We Communicate
3    English as the International Language
4    Multiple Literacies and Perspectives in a Global Society
5    Educating Half a Brain – Unravelling Concerns about Standards
6    Bridging Education and Work – Issues for Teacher Training and Practice
7    Communication Competencies
8    Final Thoughts: The Epilogue
9    Biographical Note
 
DEDICATION
This book is dedicated to today’s courageous children who are growing up in a complex, competitive, confusing world, where they need effective communication and confidence to survive. Have you got a question about this? Reach for your smartphone. Google it. We are deluged with easy-access information at our fingertips 24/7, with the result that our brains are getting weaker, leaving us with the attention span of a goldfish, according to researchers! Those growing up with abundant technology – now referred to as the ‘ Goldfish Generation ’ – could be at a greater risk of memory decline. Academics from Oxford, London, Harvard and Sydney have all found that our brains are changing because of the Internet. Significant reductions in grey matter in the orbitofrontal cortex of the brain, implicated in impulse control and decision-making, have been discovered in research studies. Smartphones are replacing our ability to remember facts and to communicate orally face-to-face.
The other problem with being constantly connected is that we have become easily distracted. Research published in the Journal of Communication found we spend an average of 19 seconds focusing on something online before we flick to the next thing, with 75% of all on-screen content being viewed for less than one minute. A distracted mind will not take in information deeply enough to engage with what we are processing. For example, hyperlinks – even when not clicked on – reduce information-processing capacity for the present content as the mind is on where to go next. Research at the Technical University of Denmark suggests the global attention span is narrowing due to the huge amount of material that we are all faced with daily – labelled as ‘ information overload ’ or ‘ info-besity ’ .
This research has implications for teachers or trainers tasked with the job of helping people to learn. The book is an update of others on the subject of the communicative process for learning, written over a decade ago by the author. It reflects the research of a number of European Commission projects on the subject of education, communication, learning and the workplace . In a plural society, where many languages are spoken, reflecting the culture, values and thinking of a great range of people from across the world, the importance of understanding how to communicate to establish effective relationships and develop higher-level thinking for learning is crucial. Speechless aims to build awareness of the issues and is of inte