A long stint in education is good for people's blood pressure, according to researchers in the US.
High blood pressure, or hypertension, is linked to heart attacks, strokes and kidney failure. Higher levels of education have previously been linked to lower levels of heart disease. The researchers suggest that blood pressure could be the reason why. The study also shows the link is stronger in women than in men.
Published in the journal BMC Public Health, the study looked at 30 years of data from 3,890 people who were being followed as part of the Framingham Offspring Study.
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Monday 28 February 2011
Sunday 20 February 2011
Protein dose reverses learning problems
Learning and memory problems have been reversed in mice with a syndrome that mimics Down's.
Researchers have found they could prevent developmental problems in mice engineered to have Down's syndrome by injecting their mothers with proteins while they were still in the womb. Can learning disabilities and mental retardations that were considered permanent now be treated?
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Researchers have found they could prevent developmental problems in mice engineered to have Down's syndrome by injecting their mothers with proteins while they were still in the womb. Can learning disabilities and mental retardations that were considered permanent now be treated?
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Saturday 19 February 2011
Reading test for six-year-olds to include non-words
In another initiative - like the use of linguistics terminology - the government is introducing changes which seem to make learning to read more confusing for six-year-olds. A number of made-up words such as 'koob' or 'zort' are to be included in the government's planned new reading test for six-year-olds in England.
The idea has drawn criticism from literary experts who say the approach will confuse those beginning to read. The government said non-words were being included to check pupils' ability to decode words using phonics.
Phonics is an important part of learning to read but current thinking relies too heavily on it and seems to reduce the importance of recognising words as shapes. Phonics rarely gives the correct pronunciation of a word that is new to the child - unless, of course, you make up non-words which follow the 'rules' of English pronunciation. I also believe that phonics is the worse method for teaching dyslexics to read. By all means include non-words in a pronunciation test - but not as part of a reading test.
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The idea has drawn criticism from literary experts who say the approach will confuse those beginning to read. The government said non-words were being included to check pupils' ability to decode words using phonics.
Phonics is an important part of learning to read but current thinking relies too heavily on it and seems to reduce the importance of recognising words as shapes. Phonics rarely gives the correct pronunciation of a word that is new to the child - unless, of course, you make up non-words which follow the 'rules' of English pronunciation. I also believe that phonics is the worse method for teaching dyslexics to read. By all means include non-words in a pronunciation test - but not as part of a reading test.
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Thursday 3 February 2011
Genes 'play key role in classroom performance'
Politicians may be keen to measure schools' effectiveness, but the quality of the school environment is only half of the story, researchers have found.
Academics at King's College London's Institute of Psychiatry say the genetic factors children bring to the classroom are just as influential.
In a study of 4,000 sets of UK twins, nature and nurture was found to have an equal effect on their achievements.
Does this mean that educators should focus on helping people achieve their potential rather than reaching fixed targets?
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Academics at King's College London's Institute of Psychiatry say the genetic factors children bring to the classroom are just as influential.
In a study of 4,000 sets of UK twins, nature and nurture was found to have an equal effect on their achievements.
Does this mean that educators should focus on helping people achieve their potential rather than reaching fixed targets?
More from the BBC
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