In January, 2019, Los Angeles teachers started a strike. They demanded increased
pay, smaller class sizes and the hiring of more support staff, such as nurses, counselors
and librarians. However, in academics, there is a debate on whether the smaller class size
can improve student achievement:
Yes: Jeremy D. Finn, Susan B. Gerber, and Jayne Boyd-Zaharias, from “Small
Classes in the Early Grades, Academic Achievement, and Graduating from High
School,” Journal of Educational Psychology (2005)
No: Eric A Hanushek, from “The Tennessee Class Size Experiment (Project
STAR),” Economic Policy Institute (2002)
2. Issue: Does Grading Help Students Learn?
Grades are the primary means of measuring a child’s progress through school.
Some parents reward children for good grades. For most families, the grade is the goal.
However, some scholars argue that grades do not actually help student learning:
Yes: Kyle Spencer, from “Standards-Based Grading,” Harvard Education Letter
(2012)
No: Alfie Kohn, from “The Case Against Grades,” Educational Leadership (2011)
3. Issue: Should students be Reward for Learning?
For years, educators and psychologists have debated whether students should be
rewarded for school work and academic accomplishments. Some scholars believe that
students have best learning outcome in a responsive environment, which makes learning
process more fun. However, some other scholars argue that using a reward is a way for
teacher to manipulate and control students, hurting their intrinsic motivation.
Yes: Hennessey, B.A., from “Reward, Task Motivation, Creativity and Teaching:
Towards a Cross-Cultural Examination.” Teachers College Record, 2015.
No: Kohn, Alfie from “Rewards versus Learning: A Response to Paul Chance.”
Phi Delta Kappan, 1993.
4. Issue: Are Inquiry and Problem-based Learning effective Teaching Approach
Inquiry, discovery learning, and problem-based learning are very popular these
days, but are they effective? Despite the benefits of increasing students’ engagement and
motivation, some scholars argue that inquiry learning is ineffective and cannot benefit
student learning if without teachers’ assistances.
Yes: Wirkala, C., & Kuhn, D. (2011). Problem-based learning in K–12 education:
Is it effective and how does it achieve its effects?. American Educational
Research Journal, 48(5), 1157-1186.
No: Kirschner, P. A., Sweller, J., & Clark, R. E. (2006). Why minimal guidance
during instruction does not work: An analysis of the failure of constructivist,
discovery, problem-based, experiential, and inquiry-based teaching. Educational
psychologist, 41(2), 75-86.
5. Issue: Should Girls and Boys be Taught Differently?
There has been a long-lasting debate on whether girls and boys should be taught
differently. Some scholars say that students are better off learning some things with their
same gender counterparts. However, some others believe that gender-segregated
classroom change little for learners, and may reinforce stereotypes and even lead to
greater gender disparities.
Yes: Frances R. Spielhagen, from “How Tweens View Single-Sex
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