Recent news in the world of balance, education, the social, and problem-solving

There’s a great piece on Edutopia by Elena Aguilar about “mental models” in education. Nice connections to the implications for underlying assumptions of abilities of students of color—the same applies to students with disabilities.

Mental models are our values, beliefs, and a series of assumptions about how the world works. Unconsciously, we create a story about other people, institutions, and the world which drives our behavior. While everyone has them (in fact, we need them to make sense of the complex world in which we live), all mental models are flawed to some extent and usually invisible to us.

via Shifting Mental Models in Educators | Edutopia.

And a good write-up of a study documenting sensory struggles of students on the autism spectrum. Researchers interviewed the real experts: students on the autism spectrum. Speaks to the need to balance typical research with the perspectives of the people the research is studying.

Let the kids describe what they’re going through! — shouldn’t be a radical one, but it is.

via Kids With Autism Describe Their Sensory Lives — Science of Us.

And here’s one from The Telegraph about the benefit of allowing kids with ADHD to fidget. Teachers need to balance our expectations for student behavior with students’ physical needs.

A study into how children with ADHD process information revealed that their toe-tapping, leg-swinging and restless movements are vital to how they remember things and work out complex tasks.

Scientists suggested that those with ADHD could perform better in tests and homework while doing things like sitting on exercise bikes or activity balls.

via Children with ADHD ‘should be allowed to fidget’ – Telegraph.