School Culture Archives

Posted on April 13, 2020 by Edsys

An effective learning environment is only possible when everyone learns from each other. A strong student teacher relationship can make things easy. Teaching is no more a one-way process where teacher gives lectures and students take notes. Today’s effective classroom comprises interactive learning sessions when teacher and students contribute their roles and students are more responsible for their learning. Maintaining a good relationship with students is very important as kids would better do things out of love than compulsion.

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However, this may not happen all of a sudden but it can be developed, slowly nurtured, and when provided an ample space to evolve. Let us have a look at some of the timeless elements that play a vital part in building a strong student teacher relationship.

1. Consistent Communication

A good two-way communication between teacher and students can do wonders in terms of learning and teaching.

Teachers can in fact interact with students to see if teaching strategies are welcomed and may change their approaches for a better learning environment.

Even when observation and listening are important, open communication is the best medicine to nurture any relationship.

2. Genuine Interest in Each others’ Well Being

Having positive feelings towards each other is important while maintaining a healthy relationship.

Teachers showing interest towards the well being of students and vice versa will make their bonding stronger and healthier.

And there is no wonder why many of the students are still in touch with their teachers even after they pass out of schools.

3. An Emotionally-Safe Learning Space

An open learning environment where students and teachers can freely express their concerns, fears, doubts or ideas without any inhibition is very important.

If students get a feeling that their comments or questions will be listened with respect and patience, they will easily come out of the shelves and give their best.

Building an emotionally safe learning space where everybody can interact freely is crucial.

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4. Compassion and Understanding

An impressive understanding and communication from both ends is vital in building a strong relationship.

Compassion can give way for more trust and students will be more open about their problems and this can slowly build a friendship among them.

Recognizing the needs of kids outside classroom will also help students to approach them without any inhibition.

5. Mutual Respect, Trust, & Feedback

Mutual respect and trust is the basis of a good student teacher relationship.

When teachers show respect and willingness to help students in their difficult times, they get triggered to learn better and give their best to make teachers proud.

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At the same time, it is important to acknowledge their efforts through patience, words of approval or a celebratory applause.

6. Sense of Being in it Together

A student relationship with teacher can get nourished when both of them get a feeling that they are sailing in the same direction.

This can reflect in curriculum and instruction which in turn improves the learning outcome.

When teachers provide enough choices and create relevance, building connection with students is a lot easy.

7. True Equity

Equity is really important whether it is access to literature, technology access, or associated socioeconomic trends.

Focusing on particular individuals or considering their favorites can be a setback for a healthy classroom atmosphere.

Focusing on all students equally with a positive attitude can make a good difference in the way relationship between students and teachers prosper.

8. Constructive Criticisms

It is important for educators to give feedback to students on the areas where they are weak.

But it is also important for them to handle it through constructive criticisms through which students actually feel the importance of improving themselves.

While teachers can correct the students, this also paves way for strong positive relationships.

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9. Active Listening

Just like proper communication, students will value if they are heard well. That is why active listening and body languages matter more.

Minimal distractions and proper eye contact do the trick to give students a feeling of acknowledgement.

There is a tendency for students to perform better for their teachers who value their efforts.

10. Find Small Ways to Connect

Teachers can easily connect with students through similar interests. Bring in some classroom activities, may be in the Monday morning or Friday evenings or may be short 10 minutes activities daily to interact with students.

This builds up a positive vibe in the classroom and students will develop an interest for what they are doing and feel encouraged to give their best.

Some teachers even make chat groups or portals where everyone in the class can get in touch outside classroom hours, as well.

11. Have Some Fun Time

Keep aside some time when class lessons are kept at bay and everyone gets a chance to joke around.

There is no better way to connect with students than humor. Everybody would like to laugh out loud and indulge in fun conversations that boost up their positivity.

There is no wonder why many of our favorite teachers have got a good sense of humor.

12. Share in Activities

It is good to share in activities with students which give a feeling of togetherness.

Teachers can take part in extracurricular activities with students or may attend athletic events or clubs.

It is even a good idea to bring in the family also when everyone can get to know each other and boost relationships.

It is a great idea to involve students in classroom jobs in their free times which makes them efficient individuals,

13. Share Personal Stories

Keeping aside some time to share personal stories can be a good idea.

Teachers can come up with their inspirational, emotional and success stories from their life and give opportunities for students to share interesting incidents from their life.

Also Read: 24 Best Classroom Rules that will improve student behavior

Everybody gets a chance to know each other better and make relationships more transparent.

14. Team-Building Games

Don’t forget about some team building games which can make the classroom live and energetic.

This will take away the boredom of regular classroom lessons while fostering students and teachers to grow as a team.

It can lead to an enjoyable learning environment with improved participation and attendance of students.

Students usually react positively to a structured setting which is one of the best signs of positive students-teacher relationships. More sensible and constant reinforcements of rules and regulations also play a vital role.

Moreover, it is important to encourage efforts, validate feelings, give affection and provide support whenever needed.

Rather than calling home only to report the bad behavior or failures of students, take initiative to report their good deeds and achievements too.

It is always good to maintain an eye contact while teaching. Engage students with questions and give opportunity for them to ask doubts.

Take extra effort to incorporate child’s interests whenever possible which gives them a feel of belonging which may enhance their performance level.

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Posted on June 17, 2019 by Edsys

Please allow us to start by explaining what corporal punishment in schools environment means. Any kind of punishment in which force is used to inflict pain, discomfort any type of distress to the student is called corporal punishment.

This could be physical or emotional ache caused, however light. It’s petrifying for any parents who love their kids.

We do realize that some or, most of you are believers that your child does not go through corporal punishments in their school.

Well, the light slap or a pinch that you may feel harmless is considered corporal punishment.

No matter how innocuous the punishment is, it is corporal punishment if the intent was to hurt the child.

Also, as we mentioned in the beginning, causing emotional discomfort is also corporal punishment.

This includes any punishment that causes your child embarrassment in front of their peers or scares them.

Corporal punishment in Schools

To explain about corporal punishment in schools, know that 2 out of 3 children that go to school are victims of corporal punishment.

This was published in 2007 in a survey report by Ministry of Women and Child Development.

We need no survey to tell us this, anyone who studied in the USA at least for a short amount of time period can vouch for this information.

Corporal punishment is a standard tool used for behavior management in children in both government and private schools alike.

In the USA, 19 states still justify corporal punishment to mold students in a better way.

If statistics are shown then almost 160000 students go through this evil every year succumbing to depression or bullying fellow mates.

Corporal punishment is not a practice seen only in US public schools. This is a global issue in almost all schools.

There are rules in multiple countries against corporal punishment; however, the lack of monitoring structures makes it difficult to track and take action against the ones involved.

Does Corporal Punishment actually Work?

We know that there is a for and against every topic and this is definitely a topic you would want to discuss extensively.

We want to understand if the corporal punishment is actually of any help to children after all the humiliation, they go through with it.

Many people are advocates of corporal punishment in schools. Corporal punishment is the go-to corrective method in schools since its inexpensive.

They consider that this is the only way to get children to listen to the elders sometimes.

Oh, we get it. All the times your child got into your nerve flashing through your mind? We know that’s not a great picture. So, obviously, corporal punishment seems like the best option to get a child to act obediently.

Then there are those who are against the very idea of corporal punishment in schools.

There is a large number of people who believe that children can be taught well with no violence in the picture. Love and Care are what they resort to, to teach children valuable life lessons.

There are multiple global organizations that are working on researches to understand the impact corporal punishment in school leaves on children.

Let’s have a look-see at the Power of Corporal Punishment on a Child and its Repercussions.

Children often fear teachers who practice corporal punishment in school. However, this is an unhealthy rapport to maintain with the teacher. Children are more inclined to listen to teachers they admire and respect than the teachers they fear and dislike.
Corporal punishment in school is commonly used to attain swift resolution to a child’s obedience issue, and there is no doubt in the fact that a child is most likely to amend their behavior for fear of pain. However, out of sight, out of mind. These amends are soon history when the teacher is no longer in the vicinity.
Corporal punishment in school also makes children submissive to abuse. Children being in an environment of corporal punishment at an early age are more likely to think that abuse is a part of life. We definitely do not want our children to think of the society as an abusive group and succumb to the pressure without even trying.
It is noticed that more often than not, a teacher uses corporal punishment as an outburst to their personal life and its issues. There have been issues where teachers use corporal punishment in school as a means to let out frustration in their personal life. This affects children in more ways than we could think of.
It is seen that children that go through corporal punishment in school not only perform poorly in academics but also have low self-esteem.
Corporal punishment makes the child self-doubt themselves, and this plays a significant role in how the child’s character is built as they grow up.
Also, it is not uncommon for corporal punishment in school to escalate over time. A mild smack initially escalates to spanking as time goes by. There have been multiple reports of children made to kneel under the hot sun and their hair being pulled out, all for an issue as small as errors in homework or students chatting in class. The degree of humiliation and distress a child feels increases with the degree of corporal punishment.
Violence breeds violence. Corporal punishment in school inflicts the idea that violence is the right path to correction into a child. Children that faced corporal punishment in school are more often seen implementing this in their personal life as a correction method.
Studies have shown that the chances of children subjected to corporal punishment being more violent adults when they grow up are higher when compared to children that were not subjected to corporal punishment.
Children also have difficulties in understanding why teachers are not being punished for physically abusing them. This sets a wrong example for children. This makes primary reasons why children get the idea that adults can get away with anything, even wrongdoings. This is precisely the reason they grow up to be abusers themselves since they consider that they could get away with it now that they are adults now.
The chances of children that go through physical abuse turning out to be bullies and display other anti-social behaviors are higher than others.
It is also seen that children who were a victim of extensive corporal punishment in school grow up to be abusers and continue to abuse their children and spouses.
Corporal punishment in school will most definitely harm the child’s physiological health considering the emotional damage it causes. Researches show that children are known to suppress their anger, sorrow, and pain, and this acts as a piled-up pressure as they grow up.
It is also seen that children often display signs of deep hurt in their behavior; however, this goes unnoticed often times than not. This only increases their ideology that violence is the right choice of corrective measure.
We see how the advantages are minimal when compared to the harm corporal punishment in school causes to a child. This is precisely why it is frowned upon and banned in most countries. There are also constant awareness programs conducted to help teachers and parents understand the repercussions of corporal punishment in school and home.
With this, we come to the next topic of how the attitude towards corporal punishment in school can be changed. It is known now that corporal punishment in school does more damage to the child’s emotional growth than good.

So, how can we help in ensuring that corporal punishment stays out the window and not in the child’s life? Well, we are glad you asked.

According to the Survey Report by India today, 80 to 100 percent of students experience corporate punishments in schools

Corporal Punishment in schools – how can we change it?

It is crucial to have a monitoring plan to ensure corporal punishment is not practiced in schools. Teachers, Principal of the school and other staff members have to work as a team to ensure that such incidents do not go unnoticed.
Parents also play a significant part in the monitoring plan. Parents need to ensure that corporal punishment is not practiced at home so that the child understands that corporal punishment is not the right method of correction. This opens a portal of discussion to children so that they can share their discomfort about corporal punishment practiced in school. We need to understand the fact that all children may not be comfortable sharing complaints about their teachers to school management. It is the responsibility of all adults in their life to ensure that such issues do not go unnoticed and hence, parents working along with the school authority is a critical aspect to ensure this.
Teachers need to be trained with alternate coaching and corrective methods. We know kids. They are mischievous and will definitely end up doing something that should not have been done. Without an alternative to corporal punishment, there is no way a teacher can ensure that children do not repeat them again.
In fact, it is even important for teachers to understand the emotional impact of corporal punishment in children. Having insight on this will help teachers understand a child’s psychology better, this will, in turn, ensure that teachers stick to the plan of No Corporal punishment in school.
Parents and children having an open discussion with the school Principal or other school faculties will also help the school in understanding if the policies are in place. Considering the fact that there is no definitive monitoring method to measure and understand if teachers are sticking to the no corporal punishment in school rule, such slightly unorthodox methods need to be kept in practice. This will help the management monitor the teacher’s behavior in classes.
The government needs to ensure that strict laws are in place against corporal punishment in school in all states. This will inflict the awareness in teachers that continual practice of corporal punishment in school would lead them to face severe law and order causalities. Also, explaining about student rights to teachers will ensure that the corporal punishment is kept at bay.
Other private pieces of training to teachers on sensitivity and alternative corrective measures can also be helpful for teachers.

Alternative corrective measures

We have curated a bunch of other corrective measures that teachers and parents could follow instead of corporal punishment.

If done right, these methods will ensure to have a positive impact on a child over time without the other emotional distress a child would go through when corporal punishment is practiced.

Negative consequences – Negative consequences are when the child endures any kind of negative repercussions for their action or behavior.

This will help the child understand that their teacher is punishing them minus the distress they go through in corporal punishment.

Time out – This is a popularly used correction method by many teachers and parents alike as an alternative for corporal punishment.

This requires the misbehaving child to stay in the corner of the room, away from all the friends, toys and any other source of entertainment.

This idle period provides the child with ample time to think of the action/s that leads to the time out.

Also, missing the fun and games will cross their mind the next time the child thinks of making a ruckus again. That should teach them a lesson.

For Time out to be an effective positive re-enforcement, teachers and parents need to ensure that there is quality Time in for the child to miss the entertainment during Time Out. Failing which, the activity miscarries its purpose.

Also, there has to be an effective Time out area for the task to be successfully fulfilled.

For toddlers or children who are most likely not to sit still, a Time out room would be ideal. Else, a corner of the room or the bottom of a flight of stairs is effective as the child does not have a source of entertainment in the area and is forced to stay idle.

Understand Behavior that caused Time out

All behaviors may necessarily not call for a Time Out in the first instance.

An IF statement could come to play in many situations. “If you keep throwing the pencils down, you are going into Time out.”

This statement has to be followed with Time out if the child continues the behavior.

Multiple warnings only make the child doubt the credibility of the warning. Crucial behaviors that require immediate change will call for an immediate Time out.

Children need to understand what behavior calls for immediate Time out and what doesn’t.

This will help them in understanding what behavior of theirs has to be changed immediately and what’s them just being naughty.

Considering Time out as the first option for all negative behaviors wouldn’t make the child understand what crucial changes need to be bought in immediately.

Also, they are kids. They will be naughty. All children will end up in infinite Time out if they are placed in Time out for every mistake they do.

Consider Resistance – The child resisting Time out is a common possibility. They may not be willing to go to time out or may just simply not want to stay in time out for long.

Teachers are usually advised to warn the child of additional consequence should they not abide by the Time out rules. The IF rule comes in handy here too.

“If you do not stay in Time out, you will not be allowed to play time for the next two days.” The thought that they may lose their play time for a whole of 2 days will urge them to stay in the Time out.

It is important to ensure that the larger consequence is followed out so that the child knows to correct their behavior. Failing to follow through the larger consequence, the child will lose faith in the process of Time out and will no longer comply with the Time out rules.
Following through the larger consequence, however, will ensure that the child knows that there is an impending larger consequence any time they do not follow through Time out, and this will encourage them to improve their behavior better.

Effective Consequences – Consequences have to be consistent for a child to understand the importance of it. Only then will the punishments prove to be effective.

For instance, if a child gets into a fight with their friend five times, they need to face the consequences 5 times. Three consequences against five fights will not teach them the right lesson.

Positive Consequences –Now that we know what punishments like Time out do let’s look at some methods of positive consequences. Showing children their positive qualities is as important as changing their negative qualities.

Also Read: 13 Tips to Tackle Cyber Bullying among Students

Also, a child may have improved their behavior and inculcated a positive habit as a result of Negative consequences, and this needs to be rewarded. Only then will a child understand the benefits of improving themselves.

Positive attention – It is important to ensure that the child receives enough positive attention when they accomplish a task or display positive behavior.

Failing to exhibit positive attention on the kid when they display a positive trait will not show the child that what they just did was a good deed. Good and Bad will only get imprinted in their brain when an adult displays an emotion associated with their behavior.

Praise – This is something that works well on kids of all age, and we know, on adults too.

A simple “It’s really nice of you to help your friend with it,” will go a long way with kids, especially when the praise comes from their beloved teacher.

Rewards – A tangible reward for good behavior will be a constant reminder of the positive consequence they faced over positive behavior.

A tangible reward does not have to be pricey or very materialistic. It could be as simple as a star on the book from a teacher or a toffee for them to enjoy during lunch.

Teaching New Skills – One of the major reason children throw temper tantrum is that they do not know how to perform a certain task.

Helping them learn a better way to function every day will solve a lot of problems they have and hence eliminating the need to have a negative or positive consequence.

Natural Consequences – It’s okay if the child eats one too many chocolates in spite of you warning them not to.

You know the child is most likely to have a stomach ache later, but the child does not. It is sometimes best to let nature do its thing and teach children a thing or two.

By falling sick once and going through the pain, they remember that you know better in most situations.

Please understand that we are not advocators of not taking care of a child on purpose.

However, given the circumstance, such small cough, cold or stomach ache they get from not listening to you will work wonders when compared to you initiating negative consequences or even corporal punishment.

Difficulties of implementing Alternate corrective Measures

These ideas are tough to follow through. We do understand that they are easier said than done considering various other factors at play.

Crowded Classroom – A classroom is filled with children. It is close to impossible for a teacher to pay attention to individual students and reinforce all these methods all day long.

Also, the fact that many private schools overfill the classrooms makes it extra difficult for teachers to pay attention to each child.

While there is no practical solution to the issue, there are some workarounds that could be performed for the betterment of the situation:

Appoint more than one teacher for a single classroom in primary classes. This will help divide the attention, and this will help teachers to devote more time to each child.
Have class monitors as children grow. Teachers can interact with this monitor to understand the difficulties children are facing.
Ensure to show at least one positive and negative consequence in a classroom every day.

Different teachers for different subject

Having a single teacher trained on these alternative methods for corporal punishment would not be effective considering there are different teachers for different subjects in all schools. 1 or 2 teachers following positive and negative consequences and the others still following corporal punishment would only send mixed signals to children. It is even not capable of resolving the issue at hand either.

The school management has to ensure that all facilitators are trained on and implement the alternative behavior improvement programs at classes and do not resort to corporal punishment in school.
Children need to have an open line to communicate about a fall out to ensure that action is taken against these teachers. This will help in ensuring that teachers are aware of the impending consequences they face should they continue to practice corporal punishment in school.

Cultural differences

Diversity is not an alien topic in the classroom. There are children from different families, states and even countries in the same classroom. It is close to impossible for a teacher to learn each child’s background and understand what is offensive and what is not to each child. There could be instances where a child could be more hurt than you intended to when corrective action is applied.

Wrapping up

The best and probably the only option against the corporal punishment is to explain the intent to the child and ensure that you clear things out with them. You may also include their parents in this discussion to better understand the child’s perception and to better explain your ideology.

Posted on May 22, 2019 by Edsys

Top 20 Countries with the Best Higher Education System in the World

Education is of paramount importance to an individual as well as society. No matter which region or country we are living in, we must preserve our education system so that it helps us in preserving our knowledge.

Education System

Education helps an individual to grab a basic understanding of civilization and their role as a civilian.

But as the geographical region differ, the education system in different countries differs.

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Therefore, in this article, we will get a brief glimpse of 20 such different education systems of the present world and their ranking through a yearly poll.

Note: The list is prepared by considering some factors like developed education system for the public, quality of basic and higher education and rate of students attending university.

Below is a list of 20 education systems in the world.

Sl no	The country with Top Education Systems
1	Finland
2	Japan
3	South Korea
4	Denmark
5	Russia
6	Norway
7	United Kingdom
8	Israel
9	Sweden
10	Hongkong
11	Netherlands
12	Belgium
13	Germany
14	China
15	Singapore
16	Portugal
17	Hungary
18	Estonia
19	France
20	United States

The list of 20 Education Systems

1. Finland

The title is yet to be official; however, according to a survey made recently, Finland has the world’s best education system. The country has been in the limelight since the year 2000 and successfully made into the year 2018.

In fact, when five new parameters were added in the year 2017 for the categorization of best education systems worldwide, Finland managed to perform well and gave a strong competition to South Korea and Japan. The country ranked higher on indicators, like;

Teachers to student ratio
Number of passing students in primary schools
Number of passing students in secondary schools

Power Ranking score: 114

Why does Finland rank as the Top Education System in the World?

Finland offers free education to citizens with no dead ends.
The country has been a top performer on every program for International Student Assessment Survey.
Finland follows American education research and philosophers.(Ex: John Dewey), and are inspired by them

The education system of Finland is celebrated in great esteem and is considered as one of the best education systems in the world. For years, this country outperformed the United States in science, math, and reading.

What are the Major Principles outlaying Finland’s Education System?

There are a couple of facts behind this:

They have shorter school days(190 days per year)
There are certain core principles underlying the education system of Finland
Students are free to choose their educative path

Let’s see how the Education System works in Finland

Finland’s early education system is laid around the concept of learning through play. Until the age of 6, students aren’t required to attend schools.

They provide basic education when the child turns 7. For the next nine years, they follow a single structure education. They take special steps to revise and revamp their curriculum to meet the needs of each individual.

The Finnish National Agency for Education promotes self-evaluation for both teachers and schools to help them improve them. Also, Finland does not incorporate national standardized testing but they do evaluations for testing learning outcomes. One of the other striking features is the free meals.

The upper secondary education is split into two- General and Vocational.

In general education, students have all the freedom to choose their study schedules and in the end, they need to attend a matriculation exam. And these scores are counted for their college applications.

Vocational education is job focused whereas school learning and apprenticeships go hand in hand. Students achieve competence-based qualifications after this.

Higher secondary education is also completely free. Students need to pay only for their books, transportation, and other school supplies.

The colleges of Finland are divided into two- Universities and Universities of applied sciences.

The Universities in Finland, focus on applied sciences, whereas, the Universities of applied sciences stress on practical applications.

How is Finland able to provide universal and comprehensive education to all citizens?

The Finnish people value education and put their time to build a system that adheres to the best education research.

2. Japan

Like Finland, Japan has also maintained its second position for three years. Despite such tough competition by South Korea and other countries, it has been bragging the second position without fail. The main indicator contributing to its success has been – development of an understanding of students between the age of 5 to 14.

Power Ranking score: 104

3. South Korea

South Korea has been a three-time winner of poll (World’s 20 education systems), and it has successfully earned the third position every time. It has given a strong competition to Japan for the second position.

After Japan, only South Korea has worked well in the sector of bringing immense development in students in the age of 5 to 14 years. As per surveyors, the country would have been a strong contender for the 2^nd position, but a few indicators made it lose.

A few indicators which denied South Korea second position in the poll are-

Fall in test scores of high school students (calculated annually)
Fall in test scores of graduation students (calculated annually)

Power Ranking score: 101

4. Denmark

Denmark has never been a celebrated country for its ranking in the poll yet it has been known for its developed education system among elites.

Earlier, Denmark was on position 8, but due to passing the five newly included indicators, it has taken a giant leap from 8^th position to 4^th.

The indicator that helped Denmark to jump on the 4^th position is – increased teacher-to-student ration for secondary and primary schools.

Power Ranking score: 94

5. Russia

No matter Russia has gained the 5^th position, yet it should be applauded for being in the top 5 countries with the world’s best education system. Russia’s education system is known for preparing students’ workspace ready. It also has a good teacher-to-student ratio.

If we talk in numbers, then Russia has a ratio of 1 teacher to 9 students approximately.

Power Ranking score: 91

Also Read: General Knowledge For Kids(230 + Simple GK Questions and Answers)

6. Norway

Norway was in the 16^th position in the earlier quarter. However, with certain changes in its education system, it has jumped ten positions and successfully landed in the 6^th position. If we talk about its teacher-to-student ratio than it is ‘1 teacher to 10 students approximately.’

It has competed well with Russia and Japan in terms of teacher-to-student ratio.

Power Ranking score: 82

7. The United Kingdom

Although this country would have been a great competitor to all the five-pointers in the list, yet current clashes between government and teachers have made it fall back on the 7^th position.

The United Kingdom could get better if the government prudently handles the current situations like giving better wages to teachers, enhanced classroom support to students, and rendering each class with modern educational facilities.

Power Ranking score: 78

8. Israel

No matter Israel is kept on 8^th position in terms of the education system, it ranks second in terms of the better upbringing of kids and a developed childhood. If we compare the development with yesteryears, people can gather immense changes and betterment.

The enrolment rate in primary schools and graduation has increased a lot, but still, it could not help Israel to grab a position in top 5 until the next year.

Power Ranking score: 77

9. Sweden

Like its other Nordic mates, Finland, Norway, and Denmark, Sweden has really performed well to keep the pace.

Its progress in the field of education has been impressive from 2015 to 2018. In terms of increased enrolment of students age between 15 to 18, it has ranked third among the countries.

However, it still has to work hard to improve its world’s top-ranking to get in the first five.

Power Ranking score: 75

10. Hong Kong

If we take account of the last year’s poll of the world’s top 20, then Hong Kong was in 14^th position. It has really worked hard on prime indicators and managed to reach the top 10.

The indicator that helped Hong Kong lift its position is – higher enrolment rate of primary age students.

If it works out on enrolment of all age students and their passing test scores then, it could even raise its position and get counted among the top 5.

Power Ranking score: 70

11. Netherland

Unfortunately, Netherland has lost one spot and dropped from 10^th position to 11^th. The reason behind its negative acceleration is decreased international test scores in subjects like science, Maths, and reading.

If the country works on this indicator along with others, then it could possibly regain its former position.

Power Ranking score: 67

12. Belgium

With the most complex education system, including three different communities like Flemish, German and French, Belgium shines on 11^th position.

During annual surveys, it secured a 4^th and 9^th position for teacher-to-student ratio and 5^th position for increased enrolment of students’ primary and secondary age in school.

To score a position in top 20s, Belgium has to work hard with two primary indicators,

1) students’ enrolment rates and, 2) teachers-to-students ratio.

Power Ranking score: 65

13. Germany

Germany is known for its social and economic justice worldwide. The country has worked hard to reach the top 10 but couldn’t due to a lack of improvement in a few indicators in the last two years.

Currently, the country is fighting to retain a position in the top 10 but it couldn’t until it brings desired changes in the education system.

Power Ranking score: 63

14. China

No doubt china’s employment rate is pretty high, but still, this factor could not make the country bag a secured position in the list of top 10 this year.

It was in position 9 in the year 2016, but it failed to repeat the same in 2017. Since then, China is improving its education system to get it a position among top 10 countrieṣ.

The only thing which could help China is improving the enrolment rates of students at early age.

Power Ranking score: 62

15. Singapore

Known as the world’s best test-taking country, Singapore had ranked highest in primary and secondary international tests in subjects like Maths, science, and reading in the year 2016.

Later, the score somewhere settled and made the country struggle to get the highest position back. They failed to achieve two indicators, enrolment of students of primary and secondary ages, and international test scores in maths, science and reading.

A good investment in the education sector could make this country shine again and grab a position among the top 10.

Power Ranking score: 57

Also Read: 151 Widely Accepted Methods in Teaching

16. Portugal

Portugal has always shown a pendulum movement between below average, average, and good.

In 2018, the country was predicted to secure a position in the top 20, but it failed. However, this year, the country not only entered the top-20 list, it even secured the 16^th position which is comparably good.

In terms of better enrolment rates of primary and secondary ages, it ranks 2^nd highest. If it works hard, it could make it into top 15 soon.

Power Ranking score: 54

17. Hungary

Last year, Hungary secured the 20^th position, but this year, it managed to jump three ranks up. If Hungary maintains its highest teachers-to-students ratio in secondary school, there are chances that it could finish in the top 15.

The only indicator, Hungary is unable to fulfill, is higher graduation rates.

Balancing higher graduation rates could slip Hungary to top 15.

Power Ranking score: 52

18. Estonia

Out of Northern Europe, Estonia is an 8^th country to grab a rank. In 2018, it failed to grab even a position in the top 20 whereas, this year, it managed to get the 18^th position.

If the country works a little on indicators like higher enrolment rates of primary and secondary school students and higher international test scores, it could grab a better position this year.

The only helping indicator in its growth is – a higher completion rate of primary school students.

Power Ranking score: 50

19. France

Having the highest enrolment rate of early childhood made France stay in the top 20 last year.

If it works hard and continues to invest wisely in the education system, it could retain its position successfully in top 20.

As the present government is taking extra care and investing in the educational system, it could secure a position in the top 10 by the year 2020.

Power Ranking score: 50

20. The United States

Because of the transition in the State’s government, it has to stay put at the 20^th position. In the last year, it had secured 7^th position but catastrophically failed to maintain it in this year.

The indicators are suggesting that the United States will either get its position back or jump a position backward.

Power Ranking score: 47

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Wrapping up

The listing of above World’s Top 20 Education System has been done on certain parameters and recently carried surveys worldwide. If you have any take on the above listing, do tell us by commenting.

Posted on May 8, 2019 by Edsys

The school or college attendance is the primary principal point in which students lack these days.

If you take a look at the most pressing issues in colleges regarding students, you will find student attendance levels to be in the top 3.

The situation has deteriorated to such an extent that students no longer care about the potential consequences of a low attendance tag while attending schools/colleges.

Frankly speaking, are not aware of the drawbacks of low attendance, or we can say that they are not aware of the benefits to attend the school/college regularly.

Low attendance can harm their studies and build immense pressure during exam times.

Therefore, the attendance of any college or school should be 100%. To achieve the scenario, here we have 13 proven strategies to improve student attendance in the classroom.

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Strategies to Improve Attendance

Low attendance is directly proportional to low achievement. These days most students miss their school/college due to various reasons like social anxiety, poor performance, bullying, etc.

However, they do not understand that low attendance is only impacting their ability to learn.

So, the responsibility is shifted towards school/college to apply strategies which could make attendance 100%.

Some strategies

1. Link attendance with the Grades:

School/college management should link the attendance percentage directly to the student’s overall grades.

When a student is aware that, low attendance means low grades, then he will always try to improve his attendance.

2. Informing their Parents:

Many schools/college have used this strategy, and it has come up with excellent results.

While applying this strategy, the school management has to inform the irregular students’ parents about their low attendance.

For students who love to bunk their classes more often, fear of being scolded by parents will never encourage them to miss classes.

Students who obey parental authority can be persuaded, in this manner, to improve their attendance records.

For example, getting students and parents in one room and informing them of their ward’s behavior can jolt them into action.

Parents are often the most productive people who can convince their children to do better.

This must be leveraged upon by management.

3. Developing a Friendly Atmosphere:

The management should try to establish a friendly atmosphere within the institution which will attract the students.

It will help to regularize the irregular students. This strategy works in a positive way which affects the minds of the students who have a fear of hard and harsh atmosphere which is prevailing in 90 percent of the institutions.

If the atmosphere gets modified into friendly-one, the student’s attendance will surely improve in a positive manner.

It will enhance their academic performance as well as their attendance; they will not feel bored with their institutions.

4. Adding Curricular & Co-Curricular activities:

Schools, as well as Colleges, should take essential steps to add different curricular as well as co-curricular activities. Measures like these would prompt them to actively participate in several activities with their classmates.

This can prove to be an incentive for higher attendance levels. Curricular activities like Internships, Cultural Clubs, Debate teams, Volunteer works, etc. and Co-Curricular activities like Theatre, Music, Dance, Drawing, Recitation, Poetry, etc. should be introduced, so that the students are led to take an active part in them, thereby causing them to attend the school regularly.

5. E-Education:

E-Education setup should be installed in the classrooms to reinvent teaching methods.

Institutions should be fully upgraded with the latest technology like computers, I-pads, projectors, etc.

With the involvement of technology, students interest will incline more toward coming to school/college rather than bunking.

The 21st Century has been marked by a shift towards modern mediums of learning. Students these days tend to prefer education systems that utilize technology to make their content more engaging.

To take advantage of this, you should ensure the complete modernization of teaching equipment at your school.

PCs, iPads, projectors and smart learning devices must be installed and used while teaching.

This system cannot work without the active involvement of the teachers. Therefore, you must ensure that the teaching staff is up to date with modern teaching practices.

Once you show students what your institution’s teaching capabilities are worth, they will start turning up in numbers like never seen before.

6. Biometric Attendance:

Another commonly used system in modern offices and institutions, biometric attendance is an excellent way to keep track of student attendance.

Unlike conventional attendance-taking measures, which can easily be faked, biometric attendance can prove to be a game changer.

It requires the physical presence of the student via his fingerprint,

thus ensuring he is actually present for classes. A list of defaulters can also be drawn up quickly, generated by the system, and be dealt with as per school policy.

This measure would prevent students from slipping out or faking their attendance.

7. Rewarding the Most Regular Student:

Rewards are often the best way to get anyone to do something. This measure must be utilized.

The students with highest attendance rates can be rewarded in public with trophies or certificates, commending them for their attendance.

Once students realize that their high attendance rates would gain them renown, a surge in the number of students turning up regularly should be observed.

8. Holding Awareness Programs:

Various Awareness Programs should be held in the context of low attendance.

These awareness programs will make irregular students aware of drawbacks of the low attendance and advantages of being regular in the institution.

And these hard-to-appear-in-class students will surely try to increase their regularity in the schools and colleges.

9. Modification in Teaching Techniques:

Traditional teaching techniques must be overhauled, and interactive methods should be employed, to make the subject more interesting for students.

We all know how a good teacher, with an impeccable teaching style, is worth much more than every other measure.

Teachers with a unique style must be encouraged and promoted.

They should be put in charge of other teachers to help train and improve their performance.

By enhancing interactivity and engagement via new teaching methods, students will begin signing up for more classes in no time.

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10. Addition of Artistic Subjects:

Every student has a creative side in them. Promoting their creativity by adding some subjects like Music, Dance, Theatre, Literature, etc.

This can help any institution reach the goal of 100% attendance. Extracurricular activities have been shown to be a significant draw for enhancing student attendance levels.

Programs and workshops related to music, dance, theatre, and literature can be made part of the school curriculum for the student’s all-round development.

It will make the students stand out of the queue and develop their personality. The interest will bring them to school regularly at any cost.

11. Cultural Programs & Functions:

Cultural Programs and Functions should be held regularly. It will increase the interest of students.

By making them participate in these functions to showcase their talents, attendance can be improved.

12. NCC & NSS:

NCC & NSS should be introduced in all the schools and colleges

. It will profoundly affect the discipline of the students and will result in improving their attendance.

As in NCC and NSS like organizations, they are keen about the student’s discipline.

These organizations introduce students to different games, patriotic functions, camps, etc., which attracts the students and they start to attend the schools and colleges regularly which in return improves their attendance.

13. Regular PTM:

The school and college management should plan regular Parent-Teacher meetings so that they can give proper reports of wards to their parents. These meetings will keep parents well informed about the achievement or failure of their wards.

Final Words

With many institutions struggling with concerns over student attendance levels, it is essential that you do not fall into the same trap.

Implementing the measures listed above should go a long way in retaining students and boosting their attendance rates.

Remember, a school is most-often only known for its alumni. If you want your school to do well and make a name for itself in the public sphere, the discipline must be improved.

And the first step towards doing that begins with improving their attendance rates.

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Posted on December 21, 2015 by Edsys

One of the seven areas of learning in EYFS relates to the physical development of the child. Teaching your children to follow healthy ways and healthy habits in life is really important.

Training your child- What are the areas to focus on?

Don’t restrict yourself on putting your effort only in making them learn how to brush their teeth or wash their hands before eating and doing the other daily routines. Also guide them in maintaining cleanliness during every day activities. That is what EYFS focuses on.

Explain to them why he/she is expected to follow this and that. Create awareness in the child. Let them understand that what they are doing doesn’t merely constrain itself to mimicking elders. This will make your efforts easier and your toddler will surprise you with better adherence to your instructions.

Read Also: Special Education Needs for Children [EYFS]

What to do and what not to do?

1. Teach Right. Teach Slow.

Give them clear and precise directions. Don’t give them confusing or hasty instructions and demand them to repeat when you’re done. Show them how to do it a multiple number of times.

2. Be Patient

Be patient and wait for improvements or results. Don’t get frustrated. This could take matters to the emotional side. Show the same amount of care and concern every time you deal with your child. Showing irritability can inhibit your child from seeking help from you anymore. Even if the child had repeated what you’ve taught once or twice previously, do not expect that he/she will do it right every time.

3. Give Treats

Motivate your child by offering a small and cheap treat, a chocolate or a coin to put in the piggy bank for a day of finishing their routines well.

4. Make Yourselves an Example to Follow

It is really annoying when the kids are required to follow a set of instructions and they watch you doing exactly the opposite. It will be really a struggle for them to understand the values you are trying to inculcate if you are not giving it any respect yourselves. Keep yourselves and your surroundings clean; as well as your floors, cupboards, toilet, kitchen etc.

You May also Like: Motivational Movies for Students

5. Encourage Participation

Encourage them to participate in doing chores, cleaning up, and tidying. Give them simple tasks like taking their dishes to the kitchen after eating or taking their used clothes to the laundry basket.

6. Monitor and Make Changes

Teaching is not merely giving confined sets of instructions to follow. You have to monitor your child’s progress continuously. You should be at their service when they need external help until they gain some sort of mastery over it. Notice what they do right and what they do not. Praise them for what they deserve. Do revisions of your mode of approach if required. If a specific way is too difficult for your child, devise a better way that your child finds easier to follow.