While we might be confined to our homes during this period of quarantine, our lack of liberty could be providing the perfect conditions for escaping another kind of confinement – that of conforming to social norms and peer pressure. Sometimes, particularly during adolescence, the desire to fit in makes it hard to separate what we…
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Both children and adults equate play with freedom, a time when you can become immersed in something of your choosing, with fewer boundaries and instructions. But what happens when our freedom has been curtailed and we find ourselves in lockdown? Can play still be as carefree as it was before the coronavirus took over our…
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Do people really have less concentration these days than a goldfish? According to a 2015 Microsoft Corp. study of 2,112 participants in Canada, our powers of concentration have slid from an average of 12 seconds to eight seconds since the year 2000, which is one second less than this small fish whose concentration span seems…
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The coronavirus has thrown up multiple challenges, but perhaps none so pressing for those of us in quarantine at home as how to keep our immune systems performing at optimum levels. Fortunately, where there are challenges, there are also bursts of creativity with innovative minds seeking ways to adapt to the new circumstances. This…
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With half the world in lockdown due to the Covid-19 crisis, virtual learning has found itself centre stage across Europe and beyond, forcing education to take a quantum leap into the future. But virtual learning doesn’t mean a world dominated by screens and Artificial Intelligence. Far from it. At King’s College schools, it is being…
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The news can be as terrifying as any horror movie. It can also be thought provoking and even vital, but when should our children begin to learn about conflict beyond the confines of their playgroup? How early is too early? How long should we bubble wrap the reality of a world that many of us…
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International Women’s Day on March 8 is a celebration of women’s achievements as well as recognition that we still have some way to go until equality is the norm, not the exception. The date is important both locally and globally because women everywhere still need their spirits bolstered by an empowering show of solidarity. No…
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Running is a basic activity. It doesn’t need expensive gear or a specific venue. Like water, it is an economical fix, a cure-all that seems almost too easy to be true. As humans, we are hard-wired to run. For thousands of years, running was a matter of eating or being eaten. Nowadays, of course, the…
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There is a popular misconception regarding the International Baccalaureate, namely that it has been devised for the academically brilliant; that no average students need apply. This image may well come from the fact that certain schools carrying the IB in Spain and beyond have expected students to do it alongside the standard curriculum as opposed…
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In the age of social media, mastering the art of measured debate has never been so pressing. Knee-jerk reactions are common in cyberspace and often there is little in the way of listening and prioritising involved. With arguments flaring at lightening speed, exchanges can quickly spiral out of control. But in the real world,…
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