Tag: sitting

Instead Of Sitting Still At Their Desks – Students Learn Better When They Move Their Bodies
EDUCATION, Journalism

Instead Of Sitting Still At Their Desks – Students Learn Better When They Move Their Bodies

Education Katie Headrick Taylor, University of Washington My son’s kindergarten teachers, holding class on Zoom last year, instructed: “Eyes watching, ears listening, voices quiet, bodies still.” However, I noticed my 6-year-old’s hands would stay busy with items found around our house, building with Legos, shaping clay or doodling with a crayon. While some might describe this child as being “off task,” research suggests his manipulation of materials actually aroused his mind, allowing it to focus on the required task. As a parent of two school-aged children and a professor and researcher of learning with technology, I believe current models of remote education are inefficient for learning, teaching and productivity. That’s because sitting in front of a computer screen subdues, or com...
Some Types Are Better Than Others – But Too Much Sitting Is Bad For You
HEALTH & WELLNESS

Some Types Are Better Than Others – But Too Much Sitting Is Bad For You

The COVID-19 pandemic has introduced a number of new behaviours into daily routines, like physical distancing, mask-wearing and hand sanitizing. Meanwhile, many old behaviours such as attending events, eating out and seeing friends have been put on hold. However, one old behaviour that has persisted, and has arguably been amplified due to COVID-19, is sitting — and it is not surprising to see why. Whether sitting during transportation, work, screen time or even meals, everyday environments and activities are tailored nearly exclusively to prolonged sitting. As such, sedentary behaviours, like sitting, make up the vast majority of our waking day. Pre-COVID-19 estimates place the average Canadian adult’s sedentary behaviour at around 9.5 hours per day. Current daily sedentary time is likel...
Needed Now More Than Ever – John Keats’ Concept Of ‘Negative Capability’ – Or Sitting In Uncertainty
CULTURE

Needed Now More Than Ever – John Keats’ Concept Of ‘Negative Capability’ – Or Sitting In Uncertainty

When John Keats died 200 years ago, on Feb. 23, 1821, he was just 25 years old. Despite his short life, he’s still considered one of the finest poets in the English language. Yet in addition to masterpieces such as “Ode to a Nightingale” and “To Autumn,” Keats’ legacy includes a remarkable concept: what he called “negative capability.” The idea – which centers on suspending judgment about something in order to learn more about it – remains as vital today as when he first wrote about it. Keats lost most of his family members to an infectious disease, tuberculosis, that would take his own life. In the same way the COVID-19 pandemic turned the worlds of many people upside down, the poet had developed a deep sense of life’s uncertainties. Keats was born in London in 1795. His father died i...