> No, sorry, I can't cite the research off-hand,
> it's been shown to me by others and I don't
> have the references
We're not really arguing different points here - we're both saying it's bloody difficult to do "proper" research in this area, and even harder to come up with anything that's guaranteed to work.
I've seen a lot of papers written and witnessed a lot of different techniques. I've seen first hand several fads, and most things work for some children with the right teachers. But I am concerned with the way the whole thing is approached, in part because I have a PhD in math and I know that "research" when in an area that involves people is really, really hard.
Especially with children.
I know that things have to be done differently in education research, and people who do the work are doing their best. I observe that the situation is still appalling - there's more that needs to be done.
I have my personal opinions about what might work, but they are unsupported by anything like scientific evidence, and I'm working closely with both teachers and education researchers to see if my ideas can be tested, and if so, whether they can be made to work. But I won't air them here.
ADDED IN EDIT: Wow - a down-vote. Wonder what I said that made someone feel that this comment is of negative value. Interesting.
I've seen a lot of papers written and witnessed a lot of different techniques. I've seen first hand several fads, and most things work for some children with the right teachers. But I am concerned with the way the whole thing is approached, in part because I have a PhD in math and I know that "research" when in an area that involves people is really, really hard.
Especially with children.
I know that things have to be done differently in education research, and people who do the work are doing their best. I observe that the situation is still appalling - there's more that needs to be done.
I have my personal opinions about what might work, but they are unsupported by anything like scientific evidence, and I'm working closely with both teachers and education researchers to see if my ideas can be tested, and if so, whether they can be made to work. But I won't air them here.
ADDED IN EDIT: Wow - a down-vote. Wonder what I said that made someone feel that this comment is of negative value. Interesting.