Daily summary of the latest news and opinions from the world of independent education bought to you by Education Advisers...  

'Inspirational' robots to begin replacing teachers within 10 years

Robots will begin replacing teachers in the classroom within the next ten years as part of a revolution in one-to-one learning, a leading educationalist has predicted.

Sir Anthony Seldon, Vice-Chancellor of the University of Buckingham, said intelligent machines that adapt to suit the learning styles of individual children will soon render traditional academic teaching all but redundant.

The former Master of Wellington College said programmes currently being developed in Silicon Valley will learn to read the brains and facial expressions of pupils, adapting the method of communication to what works best for them.

The new era of automated teaching promises an end to grouping children by year, as the personalised nature of the robots will enable pupils to learn new material at their own pace, rather than as part of a class.

"It will open up the possibility of an Eton or Wellington-style education for all,” Sir Anthony said.

"Everyone can have the very best teacher and it's completely personalised; the software you're working with will be with you throughout your education journey.”

He warned, however, that the new technology would have to be carefully introduced to avoid “infantilising” pupils and teachers.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/science/2017/09/11/inspirational-robots-begin-replacing-teachers-within-10-years/

84% of adults think primary pupils should learn about money

Debt consolidation service Money Advisor has found that 84% of people in the UK think children should start learning about money in primary school.

This new research comes in the same month that the credit rating agency Moody’s warns household debt could leave Britain's lower-income families dangerously exposed as they said, “Inflation, triggered by the low pound, is now rising faster than wage growth and has put growing pressure on households, squeezing budgets and causing credit card spending to increase and savings to fall. The Bank of England has expressed concerns over surging levels of unsecured consumer borrowing on credit cards, which is going up by more than 10 per cent a year and outstripping income.”

Financial education isn’t compulsory in primary schools, but a parliamentary report in 2016 recommended children should learn about money matters from primary level as financial education “should not be a 'postcode lottery', with some students left out simply due to the school they attend."

This is a stance that Andrew Petros, Senior Financial Solutions Advisor of debt consolidation service Money Advisor, agrees with.

“Educating children around finance can help to avoid much bigger debt problems later in life,” said Andrew. “We understand that many parents don’t want to burden their children with money worries, but encouraging a positive, healthy discussion around saving and spending from a young age can really help to create those long-term habits – as well as teach children other useful values such as patience, responsibility and independence.”

http://ie-today.co.uk/Article/84-of-adults-think-primary-pupils-should-learn-about-money