Data shows kids shouldn't multitask

A University of Virginia psychology professor disputes the claim that young people "learn differently" than the rest of us.

Data shows kids shouldn't multitask -- Willingham (Washington Post)

He's also made a delightful video (in the style of the Common Craft videos) to explain what his research shows about multitasking & the brain.

5 cool resources I learned about via Twitter

Kitchen God and His Wives (Upper Section),
with Prosperity God (Lower Section), Qing dynasty
Unidentified printshop in Shandong Province
Woodblock print on paper
35 x 28 cm
© A. E. Maia do Amara 

I know that twitter is sometimes associated with marketing campaigns and Ashton Kutcher, but I've found it to be an incredibly helpful resource for finding out about terrific resources for students and teachers, as well as a powerful professional development tool.  So, for my first post of 2010, I'd like to share 5 really great learning resources I've used in 2009 and have shared with others that I only found out about because I'm on Twitter.

The BBC Archive
"Take a trip through our collective past with the BBC archives and discover themed collections of radio and TV programmes, documents and photographs.
Explore who we are and see how attitudes have changed over the years through selections from an archive which began over 70 years ago."

Open Thinking Wiki: Digital Storytelling (compiled by Alec Couros)
A thorough overview of the uses digital storytelling and a fantastic list of digital storytelling resources.

Asia for Educators: Columbia University
"An initiative of the Weatherhead East Asian Institute at Columbia University, Asia for Educators (AFE) is designed to serve faculty and students in world history, culture, geography, art, and literature at the undergraduate and pre-college levels." This site really rocks!


Top Ten Psychology Videos (compiled by Psych Central)
"Cognitive to clinical to social, the many applications of psychology reveal profound thoughts, human frailties and strengths. These are some of the best results, framed in video players."

Trailblazing: Three and a Half Centuries of  Royal Society Publishing
"Welcome to Trailblazing, an interactive timeline for everybody with an interest in science. Compiled by scientists, science communicators and historians – and co-ordinated by Professor Michael Thompson FRS – it celebrates three and a half centuries of scientific endeavour and has been launched to commemorate the Royal Society’s 350th anniversary in 2010.

Trailblazing is a user-friendly, ‘explore-at-your-own-pace’, virtual journey through science. It showcases sixty fascinating and inspiring articles selected from an archive of more than 60,000 published by the Royal Society between 1665 and 2010."