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FILTERS: The brain is very selective about what enters your head.

CHILDREN go to school to learn something new without being told how new can change the way they see the world.

It’s all in the head, let’s say.

A teacher wishing to be known only as AJ wrote in to me last week after reading about the dangers of stereotyping. “We stereotype our students all the way, sometimes consciously but more often unconsciously,” he said.

I receive many emails from teachers and they have taught me a great deal.

Sometimes I take it back on them and blame them for my inability to work out in my head how much change is due to me. I was terrified of my maths teacher is my excuse for being innumerate in my adult years.

There are two gatekeepers in our brain that look after all information flow. Everything that comes your way is information — information that entices you and information that terrifies you. And the brain takes them to the appropriate channels.

In learning you’d want all that useful information to go into the prefrontal cortex, your thinking brain.

This is where the information is processed and the brain helps you to retain it as new learning.

The environment for new learning has to be calming, safe and free from internal doubts about the val ue of what is flowing your way.

In fact, not all information that come your way do go through and stay in your head as new learning. Most are rejected, avoided or dismissed as threats to your very survival.

The brain is very selective about what enters your head from the billions of bits of information that come your way every second of your waking life.

“Filters in your brain protect it from becoming overloaded,” says neurologist turned teacher Judy Willis.

“These filters control the information flow so that only approximately 2,000 bits of information per second enter the brain.”

by Wan A. Hulaimi.

Read more @ http://www.nst.com.my/opinion/columnist/how-the-brain-retains-new-information-1.260455?cache=03D163D03edding-pred-1.1176ur%3

Students at SM Bandar Sri Damansara (1) participating in a game show during the programme.

CULTIVATING and nurturing effective memory skills are important whether one is a child at school or a working adult.

With this in mind, specialist education group The LearningHub Asia has embarked on an outreach programme called MemoryMania! to equip upper secondary students with memory techniques that can help them in their studies.

“Research shows that almost 60% of what you learn now will be forgotten within 24 hours if no conscious effort is made to remember it,” said Thila Batumalai, a learning specialist and facilitator at The LearningHub Asia.

Stressing that developing memory skills is more than just memorising, Batumalai said it was about understanding and associating what one has learnt.

The programme was developed by the company in collaboration with overseas experts and is based on research that shows how the brain “comprehends” information and the science behind memory retention.

Each 90-minute session conducted included games and activities that encouraged active interaction amongst students.

Each student also received a workbook that contained useful tips on memory retention.

SMK Tengku Ampuan Jemaah, Klang student See Ming Wan felt the memory enhancement tips shared were effective.

“This will definitely come in handy when I’m studying for exams,” said Ming Wan.

Read more @ http://thestar.com.my/education/story.asp?file=/2013/3/17/education/12824312&sec=education

BEAUTIFUL EXPRESSIONS: Good writing is like archaeology rising from the dirt.

WRITING is thinking, let us count the ways. You need ideas in your head before you write; you need to understand what you are thinking before you put your ideas down on paper; on paper you will be able to see what’s been jumbling up in your head; you will be able to see your ideas clearly in words, you move them about, your organise and re-organise your thought.

And then you make them sound right, you try to make them persuasive, attractive and not drive away the crowd. You begin to choose your words.

In the process you learn that words have meanings, they are nuanced, carry rhythms and have sounds, even when they are floating in your head. Why does poetry make you happy or sad, take you to distant places, stir your feelings and make you laugh or weep? It is merely a collection of words, but words gathered in a deep moment of thought. “Emotion recollected in tranquility,” so Wordsworth said.

The idea that writing is only for the humanities is bunkum; writing cuts across the board. To learn a person must write.

Writer and teaching instructor Steve Peha could not understand how a fourth grader he met was having difficulties trying to add up two fractions until he made him write down the method he was using to reach his conclusion.

“We never do this in math. This is writing,” the student protested.

Peha coaxed him to do it anyway and it was then that Peha realised where he had gone wrong. Peha, in other words, had got into his head and understood how he was developing his thought. What was also happening here was that the student was looking into his head too, and realised how he was jumbled up.

When writing teacher William Zinsser was at the Gustavus Adolphus College in Minnesota in the 1980s to train teachers how to make their students write better, a philosophy professor gave him justification for his work. The best students’ papers were the ones that showed him how they couldn’t arrive at places they were trying to reach

By Wan A Hulaimi
Read more @: To learn, a person must write – Columnist – New Straits Times http://www.nst.com.my/opinion/columnist/to-learn-a-person-must-write-1.200434#ixzz2I5szF1GH

Metacognition can be a word that gets in the way of students’ understanding that this “thinking about thinking” is really about their awareness of themselves as learners. Most students don’t spend much time thinking about learning generally or how they learn specifically. In order to become independent, self-directed learners, they need to be able to “orchestrate” their learning. That’s the metaphor the National Research Council uses to describe planning for learning, monitoring it as it occurs, and then evaluating both what has been learned and how it was learned.

Kimberly Tanner’s excellent article on “Promoting Student Metacognition” expands those three fundamental activities (planning, monitoring and evaluation) into a set of questions that students can use to begin to develop this awareness of themselves as learners. She proposes planning, monitoring and evaluation questions for three central learning activities; a class session, an active learning activity or homework assignment, and a quiz or exam, plus a set of questions about the course overall. [Find her article and a table of sample questions to promote student metacognition at: http://www.lifescied.org/content/11/2/113.full.pdf+htm]

I worry a bit about giving students all these questions at once. I can see them skimming through the list and quickly deciding there are too many questions to answer. Besides, these are not questions with easy, obvious answers, especially if you haven’t thought about them before. To get students started, you may want to try one of these approaches—credit goes to Tanner for some of these ideas.

How have I prepared for class today? Have this question on a PowerPoint slide as students arrive in class. Ask them to write the answer in their notes. Comments could include, “I did the reading.” “I know what we’re covering in class today and have some ideas about it.” “I was in class last period.” Then show this question: What’s the best way for me to prepare for a class like this one? You might solicit some suggestions and then challenge students to try coming to class better prepared or to use a different preparation method to see if it makes the material easier to understand.

What questions do I have? Ask students to write questions in their notes as the material is presented in class. Writing the questions shouldn’t prevent them from asking questions but lots of students have questions that they never ask or write down. At the end of the period, have students circle the questions in their notes that they still can’t answer. They could ask someone sitting next to them one of those questions or see if they can find answer in the text. You could begin the next session by asking for any questions that students still can’t answer and you might solicit a couple of examples of questions they can now answer.

Why did I miss those exam questions? As part of the exam debrief, have students circle or list three exam questions they missed and then have them share in writing (on the test or in a note to you) why they think they missed those questions. You’ll likely get comments like, “I wasn’t in class the day this material was covered.” “I didn’t think there’d be a question about this on the test.” “I didn’t understand the question.” “I couldn’t remember how to do the problem.” “I didn’t read the material carefully.” Then give them this follow-up question: What do I need to do to avoid missing questions like these on the next exam?

by Maryellen Weimer, PhD.

Read more @ http://www.facultyfocus.com/articles/teaching-professor-blog/teaching-metacognition-to-improve-student-learning/

KOTA KINABALU:  — When you walk onto the premises of Sekolah Menengah Kota Marudu in Sabah, you will be pleasantly surprised by a palpable sense of enthusiasm that starts in the office of the principal and is carried through to the staffroom and classrooms.

The source of the excitement is a new methodology for teaching and learning that centres around eight thinking processes, each represented by a thinking map, aimed at facilitating an innovation culture in primary and secondary school students.

The new methodology, dubbed i-THINK, was introduced to 10 Malaysian schools in January 2012 as part of a pilot programme initiated by the Education Ministry and Agensi Inovasi Malaysia.

It is aimed at inculcating thinking skills in students. Since its introduction, the feedback from parents, teachers and students alike has been very positive.

In the nine months since it was introduced to SMK Kota Marudu, it has changed the way students think about their lessons.

They are now more eager to come to school because the new methodology is more student-centric and encourages them to participate in classroom activities and become more involved in the learning process.

The project demonstrates how human talent can be instilled in Malaysian students through the development of thinking skills. Students will need to learn and develop these skills as well as learn how to become self-directed, independent and interdependent.

This will require a shift from a teacher-centred to a student-centred classroom.

No one is more excited about i-THINK than the school’s principal, Setia binti Ken, 47.

“It’s a really good thing. Having applied the maps in my science class, I can personally vouch for them,” said Setia, who teaches science to a Form Four class at the school.

She added that it has become so popular with the students that they not only use it for their lessons but also for their co-curricular activities.

“Many of the teachers have said they like the maps and they have become comfortable using them in their lessons. They see the benefit because they can see how good the maps are, as opposed to the traditional teacher-centric method of talk and chalk,” Setia told Bernama recently.

“Before we applied the thinking maps, students would just listen or read the text but didn’t know how to extract the information that was relevant. With the i-THINK programme, the maps allow them to visually depict the important information, making it easier for them to learn, remember, analyse and present it,” she said.

Setia added that the introduction of the i-THINK methodology is a positive step for education in Malaysia. “The thinking maps are extremely beneficial to both students and teachers. There is no problem implementing them as we can use the materials and resources we already have,” she said.

She has noted a great difference in the morale of students since the thinking maps were introduced in classrooms. “The weak or unmotivated students are not idle anymore as they have a chance to participate in finding the information to fill up their maps. I see them enjoying themselves in class now,” she commented.

She said the full impact of the maps would only be seen in the long-term and she is confident that in time to come, there will be statistics on attendance and academic results to prove their effectiveness.

by Mikhail Raj Abdullah.

Read more @ http://education.bernama.com/index.php?sid=news_content&id=703840

PETALING JAYA: There are many gold schemes available on the market but if the “consultants” offer deals that are too good to be true, the advice is: think twice.

Fund manager Danny Wong said investors should be careful of companies offering double-digit returns with no risk of losses, adding that it was unlikely that a company could get high returns without taking high risks.

“Investors should ask for more information about the companies they plan on investing their money in. Suspicious companies usually won’t provide details like papers on studies or analysis,” he said.

Wong said the public should also avoid investing in companies without proper endorsement from Bank Negara Malaysia (BNM) or the Secu­rities Commission (SC).

“A company that is licensed to take deposits or is in investment-related businesses will definitely be listed on BNM and SC websites,” he said.

The list of companies and funds registered with SC are available under the Data & Statistics section of its website (www.sc.com.my).

BNM provides a site (www.bnm.gov.my/microsites/fraudalert) which has guidelines on how to avoid being defrauded by doubtful banking and investment institutions.

The central bank’s fraud alert site enhances public awareness on the dangers of falling prey to illegal financial schemes and lists information such as the definition of financial fraud, how to avoid becoming a victim, available enforcement action, how to report a fraud and a Freq­uently Asked Question (FAQ) section.

The list of financial fraud activities prohibited by BNM includes illegal deposit taking, illegal Internet invest­ment schemes and unauthorised use of credit or debit cards.

“Generally, if the offer is too good to be true, people are advised to be wary and make an effort to verify the validity of the promised high returns,” BNM said on the website.

by Qishin Tariq.

Read more @ http://thestar.com.my/news/story.asp?file=/2012/10/3/nation/12117101&sec=nation

I would say that IQ is the strongest predictor of which field you can get into and hold a job in, whether you can be an accountant, lawyer or nurse, for example. ~ Daniel Goleman

Intelligence Quotient (IQ) is one of the measures for calculating a person’s intellectual capability. This term was coined in 1912 by a German psychologist, William Stern to analyze one’s intelligence. According to the Webster dictionary, intelligence quotient is defined as – “a measure of a person’s intelligence as indicated by an intelligence test; the ratio of a person’s mental age to their chronological age (multiplied by 100)”. The average score is 100 and, above 130 is a superior high score and those who score 130+ are considered to be intellectually gifted.

Pointers to Enhance Your IQ

In this section, I am going to provide you with some tips that you can make use of to increase you intelligence levels. They are as follows:

Learn and Practice Aptitude Problems
Solving quantitative maths problems like probability, permutations and combinations, mixtures and allegations, distance-time problems, etc., associates mathematics with our daily life and improves our mental mathematical ability. Data interpretation and problem solving improve your analytical skills. These conceptual problems help us to increase IQ levels and aptitude skills. Solving such problems can surely enhance your logical and reasoning ability thereby, increasing your IQ.

Practice Reading and Verbal Comprehension
When you read comprehensions, your understanding ability and knowledge increases. Verbal passages improve your vocabulary skill and work power, which helps you to get a good IQ score. Try to inculcate the habit of reading good books like classic novels, etc.

Play Games
Playing games such as tennis, basketball, table tennis, badminton, etc., stimulates mental acuteness and sharpness. Rapid movements while playing enhances blood flow to the brain and focused eye-hand coordination helps to improve concentration. Playing chess improves your IQ level by making you a logical thinker and an intellect. It makes you stay concentrated for a longer period of time and shapes you to become a good problem solver.

Try Solving Rubik’s Cube and Crossword Puzzle
Rubik’s cube and crosswords are mental stimulating puzzles that can surely boost your IQ level. The puzzles improve your memory level and help to maintain short-term memory and concentration power. These activities are proved to ward off dementia that usually occur at an old age. Scientific studies reveal that mind stimulating and challenging exercises such as solving crosswords, Rubik’s cube, etc., generates new cells and keeps neutrons alive for a longer period of time in our body. Apart from improving your IQ level, solving these puzzles can be a good pass time activity also. Solving crossword puzzles can improve your general knowledge as well.

Eat Nutritious Food
It is a scientific fact that continuous and regular consumption of junk food causes damage to the brain cells, so avoid such food items. Eat food that is rich in vitamins such as citrus fruits, green vegetables, walnuts, etc. It has also been proven that inositol improves mental concentration and increases physical activity.

Techniques Used to Increase IQ

Now that we have gone through some tips to raise IQ levels, let’s glance through a couple of techniques to help you enhance your IQ.

by Suganya Sukamar.

Read more @ http://www.buzzle.com/articles/tips-to-raise-your-iq.html

“Every man builds his world in his own image. He has the power to choose, but no power to escape the necessity of choice.” ~ Ayn Rand

One question often comes to our mind, as worded in the famous soliloquy from Shakespeare’s ‘Hamlet’ To be or not to be: that is the question and often enough, we are baffled by the choice we make. We seldom give a thought, on what children go through especially when we constantly daunt them for the choices they make. But hey, they are kids and need a guiding hand while taking decisions that will affect their life. Even as a grownup, I adhere to my mom’s words of wisdom originally borrowed from Dr. Shad Helmstetter – “No one else can ever make your choices for you. Your choices are yours alone. They are as much a part of you as every breath you will take, every moment of your life.” As a parent, teaching your child how to make a wise decision, is an advice, that goes without saying. Besides, the future of your child lies partly in your hands, as much as it lies in his/hers.

Teaching Kids to Make Good Choices

Are you a parent who gives in to your child’s demands, even though your kid is only a year old? Stop before you go any further and regret your pampering later in life, when your child becomes spoiled for choice.

Start Early: Don’t Let Them be Spoiled for Choice
Kids apparently find a way to get things done according to their wish and being a parent, you should be wary of their demands. Begin teaching your kids to make choices early in life, it will help save you from pesky teenagers in the future. Making decisions should be taught when the child learns how to walk; in short, as soon as the child learns to stand on his/her own feet and talk. Your child will respect you more if, as a parent, you teach him/her to differentiate the right from the wrong. Remember, your child is an individual and sooner they realize their responsibilities, the better.

Simple Things Matter
Your child will grow up to be a mature individual, capable to make the right choices, only if you as a parent, will allow them to discern the right from the wrong when they are small. Teach your child the importance of making decisions by setting the right example. Explain the difference between a good choice and a bad one and support it with your actions. Nothing beats a reward; not necessarily material things but a simple pat on the back can do the trick, especially when they follow your instructions well. Think from the child’s perspective, you wouldn’t want someone constantly bickering over you about your choices, would you?

Learning from Mistakes
Children will be children and are bound to make mistakes; chances of your child learning to make the right choice through their faults is high, as long as you take time to make them realize that their actions are wrong. Be patient and compassionate about their choices, they might come to you asking for help in deciding, it’s invariably your duty to guide them well. Ask your child questions instead of simply burdening them with suggestions. Besides, if giving them a choice allows them to learn and gain a sense of control, then what’s the harm?

Responsibility Comes from Doing
Imagine if your parents never permitted you to enjoy the freedom of choice, and restricted your every move, would you have turned out to be a responsible citizen? If the choices that you made in your childhood have molded you to be just who you are, then why hinder your child’s ability to take up responsibility. Give your child an option to choose from, make it a point to consider his/her views as well. Taking up responsibilities like helping out in household chores, or caring for pets will enable your child to develop self-worth and a sense of contribution.

Be Compassionate
Your child will develop his/her ability to make good choices if you as a parent genuinely support and encourage your child. Positive encouragement received from an elder, puts the child in the right stead to make a correct decision. Do not judge and doubt your child on one wrong choice, for as most grandparents say, listen with an empathetic ear and judge with a compassionate heart. It is advisable that you encourage positive friendship and choices, and make them aware about negative choices and their impacts.

Learning by Imitating
Have you ever observed your child closely? If you have, then I’m sure you might have noticed your child’s inclination to imitate every action performed around him/her. Your child learns more from imitating than from any other source. Be prudent in your actions, your child is observing every move you make and every decision you take. Your child will learn from you, and your choices will definitely affect his/her future choices; besides making good choices will only help develop your child’s character. Think twice before you ask your kid to lie on the phone to your boss, he/she might do the same one fine day and no guesses who will be at the receiving end!

Love Unconditionally
Finally, do not forget to love and trust your child and his/her decision-making powers. If you put a lifetime in trusting your child, in making the right decisions, the possibility of him/her making a right one is a surety.

by Cheryl Mascarenhas.

Read more @ http://www.buzzle.com/articles/teaching-children-to-make-good-choices.html

Critical thinking, as it pertains to teaching and learning,
can be considered an open-minded process of

• discovery and understanding
• analysis and application
• synthesis and evaluation.

These three groupings and their six components reflect B. S. Bloom’s (et al-1956) hierarchical taxonomy or breakdown of cognitive educational objectives.

Teaching students to be critical thinkers presumes an environment
where learners, building upon their knowledge and experience set, strive to understand how data and information can be used to develop, recognize, and/or critique general patterns of knowledge. The facility to work in patterns may be affected by the learner’s “intelligence” as defined by Howard Gardner in three groupings:

• object related: visual/spatial, body motion/kinesthetic, naturalist
• symbol-related: verbal/linguistic, logical/mathematical, musical
• person-related: interpersonal, intrapersonal, existential

What does the application of critical thinking look like in the class or school room?

• New learning is introduced with what is already known
  (Ausubel 1968)
• Goals and objectives, and their framework, are clear
  for considering and acquiring new material
• Generalization and conceptualization are integrated
  into the learning process; and are frameworks for understanding what is taught
• Internalization of knowledge is a goal,
  and a risk
• Learning not only draws upon the teacher,
  but also fellow learners and content in many media formats, and can follow non-traditional avenues
• Inquiry and questioning are teaching tools;
  as is lecture
• Demonstration of learning is integral to the learning process
• Standards of evaluation are clear at the outset

What does a typical class period look like?
(accommodates 20 minute attention spans)

• Introductory phase
  Review previous day, homework assignments
  Bridge new material with advanced organizers
• Lecture or content presentation
  Perhaps through Socratic method of questioning
• Small group discussions and tasks
• Period of reflection or exercises in applying new material,
  or review
• Reports
• Summaries/exercises/developmental/application/demonstration activities

Helpful Techniques & Guides related to teaching critical thinking

• Questioning
  Strategies for using questioning in the classroom
• Socratic method exercise
• Problem-based learning
  An active learning technique
• Thinking aloud
  Demonstrate thinking through problems, also that answers are not always readily available
  Model the process of developing ideas, solutions, etc.
• Active listening
• Cooperative conflict resolution
• Concept mapping
  As an alternative to outlining or environment for brainstorming
• Learning portfolios/records of progress
  Develop opportunities for individuals and groups to develop documents
  that reflect learning progress over time (minutes/journals; blogs/media productions; speeches/presentations)
• Classroom space accommodates interaction
  between small and larger groups of students as well as the teacher
• Seize the moment/Gestalt/ah ha
  Intentionally attack a current controversy or issue
  Strive to develop mutual understanding of the issues on both sides
  as well as the alternative processes of arriving at resolution(s)
• Illustrate concepts
  with examples out of the students’ own experiences to correlate concepts and applications
• Provide feedback to the learner; considerations:
  Were the objectives and standards understood?
  What external events influenced behavior/outcome?
  What will feedback contribute to the learner’s self-understanding and development?
  Is feedback based upon the results/answers/etc. or how they were developed (process)?

Read more @ http://www.studygs.net/teaching/crttch.htm

Read more @ http://www.onlinecollege.org/left-or-right-brain