Product Description

What's the Point of School? takes the reader beyond the sterile debates about City Academies and dumbed-down exams in order to reveal the key responsibility of education today: to create students who enjoy learning. With their emphasis on stressful exams and regurgitation of information, Guy Claxton claims that schools are currently doing more harm than good, primarily making students fear failure. Instead, schools must encourage students to develop their curiosity, ask stupid questions, and think for themselves. He explains scientists latest theories about how the human brain learns, and reveals some of the core habits needed to create a strong, supple mind. He then goes on to explain how these are already being successfully implemented into some schools - all without chucking out Shakespeare or the Periodic Table.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #12671 in Books
• Published on: 2008-07-10
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Paperback
• 272 pages

Review
Why is our current school system failing so many children? How can we best educate the next generation to face the challenges of the 21st century? Professor Claxton provides a masterly analysis of what's wrong with education and how we can put it right. Every parent, teacher, and politician should read this book. --Sue Palmer - Author of Toxic Childhood

With a focus on the demands of a new century, the information revolution, and the need to help young people find their own learning powers and passions, Guy Claxton reveals the true essence of education. Enjoy the book and remember the point of school: to open hearts and unlock minds. --Mick Waters - Director of Curriculum, UK Qualification and Curriculum Authority

A highly readable and provocative book, which both confronts and challenges us to seriously re-think current assumptions about educational practice. Claxton is one of the most relevant educational writers for our time. --Clarissa Williams - President of the National Association of Head Teachers

Review
"The book has much worth, not least for its eloquent and powerful critique of today's educational malaise."

About the Author
Professor Guy Claxton is Professor of the Learning Sciences at the University of Bristol, and the author and editor of over 20 books on learning and creativity.

Customer Reviews

A must read for all those involved in schools
This book was the basis of one of our best ever INSET sessions. The book not only sets out what has long been wrong in the way we learn in our schools but gives a clear outline what all of us in schools can do about it. It does not matter if you are the Head or a classroom teacher. The book will inspire and make you think about what you are doing and reflect how you are teaching.
This is the best book on learning that I have read for many years and I recommend it to all those who want to rethink the way they work. It is a book free of jargon and full of thoughtful and thought provoking ideas.

The book to kickstart a national debate?
Everyone has an opinion about education. But, for years it seems, as a nation, we've been arguing about standards, structures, performance tables - the debate is about instruments, (how we can 'reform' schools) and it's about increments (how much we can change). Guy Claxton has dared to question the whole purpose of compulsory schooling, and in a way which is not only authoritative (he undoubtedly knows his stuff) but also humane (not surprising for anyone who has heard him speak, or shares his philosophical and spiritual interests). We need this fundamental debate now, as more kids find their learning outside school, and this is a brilliant summation of the issues which - because of its accessibility -could finally bring into the discussion the people who've been largely excluded: parents.
If you care about how we make schools the kind of places our kids actually want to be in, buy this book!

Inspirational
This is required reading for anybody working in education today . Our young people are being let down by the current limited curriculum on offer and lack of support in making them robust and resilient adults of the future . This books supports the thinking that we need to alter our approach and question excatly what children are learning in school. We need to examine the difference between teaching and learning. This is a very thought provoking text. What's the Point of School?: Rediscovering the Heart of Education