Cuban Education

August 19th, 2008

This class Katherinne, Pedro and Fabian presented their topic and debate about Cuban Education.

Some important facts:

- Cuba maintains the highest rate of literacy in Latin America.
- If they graduate from the preparatory college school, they can attend college for free if they choose.
- The record of Cuban education is outstanding: universal school enrollment and attendance; nearly universal adult literacy.

And they have:

- Great attention to teachers (extensive pre- and in-service training, high status and morale, incentives, transparent system of accountability, strategies for developing a culture of professionalism, rewards for innovation)
- Low-cost instructional materials of high quality

After the presentation with valuable information, they presented the question for the debate which was:

Is it possible to apply this kind of educational system in our country, considering the differences between both cuban and chilean society?

The class was separated into 'for' group and 'against' group. We discussed the possibilities of having a cuban educational system in Chile but the main conclusions were that we are not ready for it because of money and resources for education that our government gives (very low) and the lack of importance in teachers and educational employees in general regarding wages mostly.

They made a great job i think. The topic was very interesting and we all had something to say.

British Educational System. 'Public Schools'

August 12th, 2008

This class Evelyn, María Teresa and Rodrigo presented their debate about Public schools in Britain. They started explaining the vocabulary that we were going to see and then they started their presentation.

A public school in Britain is usually a prestigious and historic school, which charges fees (amount of money), doesn't not arbitrarily restrict admissions, and is financed by bodies (groups of people) other than the state, commonly as a private charitable trust. (organization or group that has control over money used to help)

It is traditionally a single-sex boarding school for children between 11 or 13 and 18.

Schools where instruction is provided free of charge are called 'state schools'.

The debate question was whether we preferred public schools or state schools in Chile. Our arguments were very valid 'against' and 'for' and this group made a good job controlling the debate, besides giving valuable information about this topic.

Learning to learn

That same class that we talked about issues on education we also were assigned to do a little research about "Learning to learn".

Learning is a very personal matter. There isn't one study/learning skill or strategy that works for every person in every situation. Therefore, learning to learn strategies are about learning what you know, learning what you don't know, and learning what to do about it.

Your path for most effective learning:

1- Know Yourself
2- Manage Your Time and Life
3- Improve Your Concentration
4- Know What Study Means & How To Do It
5- Develop A Thinker's Vocabulary
6- Become An Active Reader
7- Become An Active Writer
8- Build Listening & Note taking Skills
9- Know How To Study For & Take Exams
10- Master Every Course

The idea is to develop better learning strategies that work for you. You decide how to study and when to study. These are just recommendations for a better learning.