The popular notion that children from high socio-economic status (SES) are more intelligent and perform better at school is outdated. The relationship between socio-economic background, as measured by monthly or annual income of parents,…
It is difficult to believe that a low-cost and “unsophisticated” movie like Slumdog Millionaire could win eight Oscars. However, there is one thing about this particular movie that made an indelible impact in the lives of its viewers, and…
To test out how difficult it is to engage in an act of listening, try sitting with someone and letting that individual talk for five minutes, without any interruption on any topic of his or her interest. Chances are, you will not even go…
Every now and then, we all experience a “delay” in understanding something, usually a new concept. This delay is just a temporary blockage that inhibits a complete grasp of a new idea. The delay is invariably short-lived and we soon find…
It is relatively easy to get an answer to the question, “How are you today?” Teachers often start their classes with this question expecting the most obvious answer, all the time – “Fine, thank you! And you?” However, being a psychology…
In a workshop for a group of Thai teachers in Saraburi last year, I was asked the question, “What do we do to deal with students who are more interested in playing computer/TV games than coming to school, opening their books, and…
While we are familiar with and to some extent believe in the idiom, “two heads are better than one,” we rarely put it to practice. Our long-held belief about efficiency is that “like-mindedness is time-, energy-, and cost-effective.” Hence…
Working in a relatively small and new school, I ask myself this question quite often: “What really makes a school, a school?” Parents choose big and well-established schools because they trust in them. They trust big schools because almost…
It is impossible to imagine a situation where a teacher instructs students in her class to keep away school work, take some time off, and let their minds wander around – thinking about anything, everything, or nothing. The reality is quite…
According to Jean Piaget and Lawrence Kohlberg, 20 th century psychologists who are famous for cognitive and moral development theories, acquisition, assimilation, and application of moral values take place alongside the development in…