Table of Contents

Notes on Contributors

Foreword by Paul Black

Introduction by Philip Adey and Justin Dillon

Part 1: School OrganisationAre there "good" schools and "bad" schools?Is vocational education for the less able?Grouping pupils by ability in schoolsClass size: is small better?Supporting learning?: How effective are teaching assistants?

Part 2: Teaching methodsTraditional versus progressive educationSynthetic phonics: the route to reading?Is informal education better than formal education?The social and emotional aspects of learning (SEAL) programmeComputers good, calculators bad?

Part 3: LearnersLeft-brain, right-brain, brain games and beanbags: neuromyths in educationFrom fixed IQ to multiple intelligencesLearning styles: unreliable, invalid and impractical and yet still widely used“TV is bad for children” – less emotion, more science please!Playing with emotions: why emotional literacy trumps emotional intelligenceThe dyslexia debate

Index

About the Author

Justin Dillon is Professor of Science and Environmental Education and Head of the Science and Technology Education Group at King's College London. He taught science in London schools for 10 years before joining King's in 1989. He has carried out research into children's ideas about science, science teachers' professional development needs and wants and learning beyond the classroom. He is President of the European Science Education Research Association and an editor of the International Journal of Science Education.