Distance learning
Where will it stop?
A primary school has hived off maths tuition to graduates in India because they are cheaper to hire than home-grown teachers.
Pupils at the North London school are taught online by tutors 4,000 miles away.
The company behind the service expects more schools to follow suit as the public spending squeeze takes hold.
Breaking with tradition: As public sector spending cuts take hold, a school in North London is turning its back on tradition and looking to India to provide maths tuition for pupils
Moving back-office work or customer service centres to the subcontinent is commonplace in the private sector. But this is believed to be the first time it has happened in teaching.
Education experts expressed concerns over different cultural conventions in certain subjects.
At Ashmount Primary in Islington, half of ten and 11-year-old pupils are given one-to-one tuition in maths on top of normal lessons.
Each is given a headset and logs on to a website where they can interact with the tutor while following their instructions on the screen.It costs the school £12 per hour per pupil. Tutors in London often charge £40 an hour.
Ashmount assistant head teacher Rebecca Stacey said: ‘We quickly realised it was having a positive impact so now half of our Year Six pupils are using it,’ she told the Times Educational Supplement. The school plans to extend the service to Years Four and Five, she said.
The future of learning? Call centres in India are commonplace alternatives for back-office work, but education experts expect that long-distance tutoring will also take off due to its affordability
‘It provides one-to-one help which would otherwise be too expensive to facilitate. Each of our pupils who have used it have improved and become more confident in their ability.’
The service, BrightSpark Education, was set up by UK-based entrepreneur and former tutor Tom Hooper.
The company employs more than 100 tutors, all maths graduates with teaching experience, based in the Punjab university town of Ludhiana.
Each tutor undergoes security checks and is trained in the English maths curriculum.
The sessions are supervised by the teacher. Mr Hooper said: ‘It just seemed to make sense to provide live learning online.’
Dylan Wiliam, director of the Institute of Education at London University, agrees that such services could become commonplace, but benefits depend on how good the tutors’ English is.
‘They will also need to understand cultural conventions. For example, long division is laid out differently in different countries,’ he said.
‘As with many things in education, it’s not a silly idea, but as we’ve discovered in recent years, a lot of things that appeared to be good at the time turn out to be useless, or worse.’
Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1310682/The-distance-learners-Pu...
nothing like blackboard,chalk and stick
did not say that i dont want my kids to know how to use a computer - i just dont believe they should be taught by one! i think having good teacher/student relations are a backbone of a good education.
Like i said its an opinion mate.
You are using the very media you want your kids to stay away from to complain!
The computer is everywhere, and used for everthing!
In days of yore, you could get things done without one, but in the real world of today you will not be competitive or skilled for anything other than a labor! How many time have you heard this "The system is down, so we can not process your request at this time!"
If you want this for your children thats fine with me. But I will not allow my childrens future to suffer.
My 2yr old can mouse about and play basic games, were as my 6yr old can brouse the internet, install basic games and programs. Of course it is your job as a parent to police or supervise what they view online.
Modern technology and outsourcing at a new level..
I must agree though that there is something special about good old fashioned teaching.. You build a relationship / understanding which is impossible via the net..
why is it crazy talk? if i want my children to have a life away from the computer screen then thats my choice - and my point is what happened to good old fashioned teaching anyway, as it is the people who were taught this way that invented the cell phone 100x more powerful than the computers you used in grade school!
Everyone here who is complaining (online) about your kids are gonna be on the computer to much... Now thats just crazy talk! Your children will learn and master the use of a computer at a minimum of 5yrs faster than you did. They will use it more than you do today... The cell phone in my pocket is at least 100x more powerful than the computers I used in grade school.
as there are multiple effects (-ve) on the child in the long run.
maths doesnt have much to do with the language or the acsent and so i guess, its ok for the students.
there are many call centres in india which work on behalf of experienced indian medical professionals for online treatment in the west. its just because medical services are so expensive in the west.
well, money drives such innovative modes of businesses..who cares about the social aspects.
but, i am certianly not in its favour.
we were brought up to be able to socialise - these kids will be unable to tell a joke in a one to one talk because they would be unable to put a smiley face on the end!
Only my opinion mate.
I have never been a fan of distance learning and this is simply ridiculous. As it is kids are spending way too much time in front of the computer and this will increase it even more.
Don't we adults do the same. Kids are just imitating us.
your right tcom, kids go to school and sit infront of the computers and then go home and sit infront of computers again - makes for a bright future.
more on teaching..
http://videosift.com/video/Indian-English-Professor-Explains-the-Word-Fuck-To-Students
Why should it stop.