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Just 15 centimetres of water can float a car – but we are failing to educate drivers about the dangers of floodwaters

<div class="theconversation-article-body"><a href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/amy-peden-1136424">Amy Peden</a>, <a href="https://theconversation.com/institutions/unsw-sydney-1414">UNSW Sydney</a> and <a href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/kyra-hamilton-331594">Kyra Hamilton</a>, <a href="https://theconversation.com/institutions/griffith-university-828">Griffith University</a> Every year in Australia, people driving into floodwaters drown and many more are <a href="https://www.ses.nsw.gov.au/disaster-tabs-header/flood/">rescued</a>. Do you know what to do when there’s water on the road? We searched all state and territory learner and driver handbooks for information about floodwaters, including signage. Our findings, published in the <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0022437524000860?via%3Dihub">Journal of Safety Research</a>, are disturbing. Across half of Australia’s states and territories, the driver handbook ignores flooding. That’s a missed opportunity, considering the handbook contains road rules and provides advice on how to navigate safely. While some states fail to provide any flood-related information, others give detailed practical guidance. Only the New South Wales handbook includes explanation of the meaning and purpose of flood signage. This is despite almost all states and territories experiencing vehicle-related flood <a href="https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/epdf/10.1111/jfr3.12616">deaths</a>, including <a href="https://currents.plos.org/disasters/article/causal-pathways-of-flood-related-river-drowning-deaths-in-australia/">drowning</a>, between 2001 and 2017. It’s a major problem that is only going to get worse as the climate changes. So our research shows driver education needs to come up to speed, fast. <h2>Why do people drive into floodwaters?</h2> Our previous <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S2212420918301869">research</a> revealed motorists can feel compelled to drive into floodwaters for a range of reasons. These include time pressures such as being late for work or school, or needing to get home to family or pets. Sometimes they feel pressured by their passengers, or motorists behind them on the road, urging them to cross. People also report having been encouraged or instructed as learners to drive into floodwaters. Past experience as a passenger also influences a <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1369847823000475">learner driver’s</a> future willingness to drive into floodwaters. So the views of significant others, such as their supervising driver, strongly influence decisions around driving into floodwaters. <figure><iframe src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/ZtlXpDBjU1Q?wmode=transparent&start=0" width="440" height="260" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe><figcaption>Avoid driving into floodwaters, for life’s sake.</figcaption></figure> <h2>What we did and what we found</h2> We assessed all publicly available, government-issued learner and driver handbooks (12 documents) across all six Australian states and two territories. We also looked for flood-related signage. We used a method for reviewing online material through a systematic search including in-document key words and imagery. Four jurisdictions provided no information on flooding in the handbook. In the ACT, South Australia, Tasmania and Victoria, drivers need to look elsewhere for information on floodwaters and driving safety. Only one jurisdiction provided information on flood signage such as depth markers and “road subject to flooding”. Hats off to the <a href="https://www.nsw.gov.au/sites/default/files/2022-11/Road-User-Handbook-English.pdf">NSW Road User Handbook</a>, which warns: <blockquote> Floodwater is extremely dangerous. Find another way or wait until the road is clear. It’s safer to turn around than to drive in floodwater. </blockquote> For the states and territories that did provide information on floodwaters in the handbook, the content varied. NSW, Queensland and the Northern Territory warned against entering floodwaters in a vehicle. They highlighted the dangers and financial penalties associated with driving on closed roads. In the NT and Western Australia, handbooks provided practical information on when and how to cross floodwaters safely, such as how to gauge safe water depth based on vehicle size, and to avoid fast-flowing water. Although well-intentioned, judgements around what constitutes fast-flowing water are subjective and hard for any driver to assess, let alone learner drivers. Even drivers of larger vehicles such as four-wheel drives are regularly involved in flood-related <a href="https://currents.plos.org/disasters/article/causal-pathways-of-flood-related-river-drowning-deaths-in-australia/">vehicle drowning fatalities</a>. Just <a href="https://www.ses.vic.gov.au/news-and-media/campaigns/15-to-float">45cm</a> of water can float a large 4WD, and considerably less for smaller vehicles. <figure><iframe src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/t4ilUbMXZAQ?wmode=transparent&start=0" width="440" height="260" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe><figcaption>A small car can float in just 15cm of water.</figcaption></figure> Handbooks represent valuable sources of safety information, particularly for new drivers who must learn important road rules to progress from one licence to another. Such graduated driver licensing schemes reduce road traffic injury, particularly among <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0022437523000385">young people</a>. However, many of these handbooks fail to provide consistent, practical evidence-based information about flooding. There is an opportunity here to support safer driving behaviours. <h2>Safety tips for all drivers</h2> We encourage drivers to follow these safety tips: <ul> <li>avoid driving into floodwaters</li> <li>identify alternative routes, so you have a <a href="https://theconversation.com/when-roads-become-rivers-forming-a-plan-b-can-stop-people-driving-into-floodwaters-183036">plan B</a></li> <li>familiarise yourself, and any learner drivers in the household or under your care, with the meaning and purpose of flood signage</li> <li>understand the legal consequences of crossing a road closed sign</li> <li>discuss the dangers of driving into floodwaters with learner drivers and help them formulate their own plan B</li> <li>model safe driving for all passengers, including children.</li> </ul> <h2>Time to lift our game</h2> Driving into floodwaters remains the main cause of <a href="https://currents.plos.org/disasters/article/causal-pathways-of-flood-related-river-drowning-deaths-in-australia/">flood-related drowning</a> in Australia. For our emergency service personnel, driver behaviour, including people ignoring road closed signs, <a href="https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1002/hpja.181">significantly complicates</a> the already dangerous act of performing a flood rescue. Extreme weather and flooding are likely to become more frequent and intense in the future. That means the chance of being faced with a flooded road is growing. So information about driving during floods is vital for all, from the newly licensed to the experienced driver. We hope our research will encourage all states and territories to include provide practical, evidence-based advice on floods in driver handbooks as soon as possible.<img style="border: none !important; box-shadow: none !important; margin: 0 !important; max-height: 1px !important; max-width: 1px !important; min-height: 1px !important; min-width: 1px !important; opacity: 0 !important; outline: none !important; padding: 0 !important;" src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/233116/count.gif?distributor=republish-lightbox-basic" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" /> <a href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/amy-peden-1136424">Amy Peden</a>, NHMRC Research Fellow, School of Population Health & co-founder UNSW Beach Safety Research Group, <a href="https://theconversation.com/institutions/unsw-sydney-1414">UNSW Sydney</a> and <a href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/kyra-hamilton-331594">Kyra Hamilton</a>, Associate Professor in Applied Psychology, <a href="https://theconversation.com/institutions/griffith-university-828">Griffith University</a> Image credits: Shutterstock This article is republished from <a href="https://theconversation.com">The Conversation</a> under a Creative Commons license. Read the <a href="https://theconversation.com/just-15-centimetres-of-water-can-float-a-car-but-we-are-failing-to-educate-drivers-about-the-dangers-of-floodwaters-233116">original article</a>. </div>

Travel Trouble

Sickness or health: Healthy life split along gender, education lines

Australians are living and working longer than ever, but the number of healthy years they’re enjoying with this added longevity isn’t shared equally between the sexes, or by those who finished school before Year 12. <div class="copy"> A paper recently <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/S2468-2667(23)00129-9" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener" data-type="URL" data-id="https://doi.org/10.1016/S2468-2667(23)00129-9">published</a> in The Lancet Public Health from the Ageing Futures Institute at the University of New South Wales shows an increase in longevity in Australia. Other data in the publication reveal detail about “healthy years”. Men, and those with higher levels of education, worked about 2 years longer in good health. For women and those with lower education, the years of healthy life expectancy have gone backwards. The report, led by statistician Dr Kim Kiely who is now based at The University of Wollongong, compared representative cohorts of people aged 50-100 who participated in the Household Income and Labour Dynamics in Australia survey (HILDA). Those cohorts were measured over decade long periods – the first from 2001-2010 and the second from 2011-2020. Men added an extra 11 months of healthy life between the cohorts, while women lost a month. Similarly those of any gender who had completed year 12 added about 10 months to their healthy life expectancy, while the same amount of time was lost by those who hadn’t. “Everyone’s increasing their working life expectancy, so the years they’re expected to be working,” Kiely says. “What is different is how long they’re expected to be living in good health: women and people with low education didn’t have an improvement in healthy life expectancy. “Everyone’s also living longer than ever before, but for women, those extra years seem to be years of poor health. People with lower education – they end up going backwards, they’re losing years of healthy life.” Australia’s working life trends are similar to those in Europe and the UK, though this research suggests the Australian labour force works longer in poor health than their antipodean counterparts. Kiely says the findings are important considerations for policymakers pondering questions of retirement and pension ages: the demands of some labour may not be evenly spread when it comes to considering health implications. “We have a pension age that has been rising steadily over the past couple of decades – it’s not rising anymore – but there is a strong expectation for people to be working longer,” Kiely says. “And if that is the case, then we need opportunities for work for mature age, older adults, and those work opportunities have to be suitable for their capacity to work. “We do need to address things like age and gender discrimination in the workforce. And we need to think about how we support people who are unable to work before they reach the pension age.” Kiely is extending his research into how the nature of work in Australia influences these high-level findings. He hopes this can explain why gender and education influence healthy working years. Further drilling down into other subgroups is important, say Dr Marty Lynch and Dr Ross Wilkie from Keele University, UK. They investigated healthy working life expectancy as part of Britain’s Independent State Pension Age Review last year. They too found Briton were working longer, but not at a rate that keeps pace with the national pension age. In a Lancet editorial accompanying the Australian research, they point out that the HILDA data evaluation only shows changes in average ages on gender and education lines. “The extent of HWLE [Healthy Working Life Expectancy] inequalities between subpopulations with multiple specific characteristics are likely to be even wider and will also indicate targets and interventions to increase the number of years that people can be healthy and in work,” they say. The impact of socioeconomic status on life expectancy and disease burden was recently highlighted in a large-scale review of Australia’s 30-year health data. <a href="https://cosmosmagazine.com/people/society/australias-life-expectancy-is-up-but-healthy-years-are-a-different-story/">It found</a> while Australians have added 6 years to their life expectancy since 1990, those with lower socioeconomic backgrounds had a higher risk of death-causing disease. Image credits: Getty Images <a href="https://cosmosmagazine.com/people/society/sickness-or-health-healthy-life-split-along-gender-education-lines/">This article</a> was originally published on <a href="https://cosmosmagazine.com">Cosmos Magazine</a> and was written by <a href="null">Cosmos</a>. </div>

Retirement Life

Princess Mary's eldest son make surprising announcement about his future

The eldest son of Princess Mary and Prince Frederik has made a surprising announcement ahead of his 18th birthday. Denmark's Prince Christian has broken years of royal tradition, saying he has decided to forego his royal allowance and instead prioritise his education. One he turns 18 in October, Christian will be able to receive his royal allowance and government funding. However, he has decided to put his education first and postpone becoming a full-time royal until he turns 21. A statement posted on the Royal House’s Instagram page explained that his primary focus in the coming year will be completing his upper secondary education. The statement reads, "Prince Christian's main priority in the coming year will be completing high school education. Following this, the Royal House will orient Prince Christian's further youth and education course, when the time comes." "It has thus been agreed with the Ministry of State that support in the Danish Parliament for a law on annual pension will only be sought when the Prince turns 21 or by a possible change of the throne, if it takes place before." The statement further shared that Prince Christian intends to stay away from the spotlight for now, but he will eventually resume public appearances in an official capacity once he has completed his education. Image credits: Getty Images

Family & Pets

Australia’s richest schools revealed

Funding in education is a divisive topic at the best of times, but with new data from the Australian Curriculum, Assessment and Reporting Authority’s MySchool, the divide between public and private school has never been more apparent. With five years’ worth of financial data at its disposal, news.com.au ranked Australia’s schools by wealth in each state, and by combining each institution’s gross income across its fees, its government funding, and the likes of donation income. According to the study, the top five wealthiest schools in New South Wales were - from first to fifth - Wahroonga’s Knox Grammar School, Darlinghurst’s Sydney Grammar School, Hornsby’s Barker College, Bellevue Hill’s The Scots College, and Pymble’s Pymble Ladies’ College. The results also revealed that New South Wales’ wealthiest school - Knox Grammar School - has gained more money through fees, funding, and donations over the course of five years than the total economic output of five of Australia’s Pacific island neighbours. Non-government schools account for 56 of the state’s richest, with Cherrybrook Technology High School - a secondary school in northwest Sydney - the highest-earning public school. Victoria’s top five were Keysborough’s Haileybury College, Melbourne’s Wesley College, St Kilda East’s Caulfield Grammar School, Kew’s Carey Baptist Grammar School, and Ivanhoe’s Ivanhoe Grammar School. And Victoria’s richest - Haileybury College - has more money than the bottom 300 schools combined, according to new data, with a staggering five-year income of $677m. However, it has also been reported that many Victorian state schools receive more per student from the government than the top private schools. Similar to Victoria, Queensland’s top five made more money over a five year period than the bottom 300, prompting renewed calls for the state and federal governments to negotiate on school funding. And those top five were Brisbane’s Brisbane Grammar School, East Brisbane’s Anglican Church Grammar School, Indooroopilly’s St Peters Lutheran College, Reedy Creek’s King’s Christian College, and Brisbane’s Brisbane Girls Grammar School. South Australia’s top five were St Peters’ St Peters’ College, Somerton Park’s Sacred Heart College, Marion’s Westminster School, Findon’s Nazareth Catholic College, and Kent Town’s Prince Alfred College. The findings revealed that some of the inner-city colleges were bringing in up to 100 times more than their country school counterparts, and that St Peter’s College could boast a five-year gross income of almost a quarter of a billion dollars. Meanwhile, at small town Port Neill Primary School on the Eyre Peninsula, the gross income for the same period came in at just over $2.5m. Tasmania’s top five were North Hobart’s The Friends’ School, Prospect Vale’s St Patrick’s College, Newstead’s Scotch Oakburn College, Sandy Bay’s The Hutchins School, and Launceston’s Launceston College. And Tasmania’s richest, The Friends’ School, was revealed to be raking in over $158.3m over five years, with an astounding average cost per student of $29,070. The Northern Territory’s top five wealthiest schools were The Garden’s Darwin High School, Humpty Doo’s Taminmin College, Howard Springs’ Good Shepherd Lutheran College, Wadeye’s Our Lady of the Sacred Heart Thamarrurr Catholic College, and Rapid Creek’s The Essington School. Darwin High School had a gross income of $118.1m, while the region’s second wealthiest - Taminmin College - had one just shy of the former’s at $118m. However, Tipperary Station School had the lowest gross income of any of the territory’s schools, bringing in just $2.1m. Western Australia’s top five were Claremont’s Christ Church Grammar School, Wembley Downs’ Hale School, Swanbourne’s Scotch College, Karrinyup’s St Mary’s Anglican Girls’ School, and Duncraig’s St Stephen’s School. And last but not least, the Australian Capital Territory’s five richest schools were Red Hill’s Canberra Grammar School, Bruce’s Radford College, Deakin’s Canberra Girls Grammar School, Isabella Plains’ St Mary MacKillop College, and Pearce’s Marist College Canberra. Images: Facebook

Money & Banking

How traditional Indigenous education helped four lost children survive 40 days in the Amazon jungle

<a href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/eliran-arazi-1447346">Eliran Arazi</a>, <a href="https://theconversation.com/institutions/hebrew-university-of-jerusalem-855">Hebrew University of Jerusalem</a> The discovery and rescue of <a href="https://www.reuters.com/world/americas/four-missing-colombian-children-found-alive-jungle-sources-2023-06-10/">four young Indigenous children</a>, 40 days after the aircraft they were travelling in crashed in the remote Colombian rainforest, was hailed in the international press as a “<a href="https://www.lemonde.fr/en/international/article/2023/06/11/miracle-in-the-jungle-colombia-celebrates-rescue-of-children-lost-in-amazon-rainforest_6030840_4.html">miracle in the jungle</a>”. But as an anthropologist who has spent more than a year living among the Andoque people in the region, <a href="https://www.academia.edu/100474974/Amazonian_visions_of_Visi%C3%B3n_Amazon%C3%ADa_Indigenous_Peoples_perspectives_on_a_forest_conservation_and_climate_programme_in_the_Colombian_Amazon">conducting ethnographic fieldwork</a>, I cannot simply label this as a miraculous event. At least, not a miracle in the conventional sense of the word. Rather, the survival and discovery of these children can be attributed to the profound knowledge of the intricate forest and the adaptive skills passed down through generations by Indigenous people. During the search for the children, I was in contact with Raquel Andoque, an elder maloquera (owner of a ceremonial longhouse), the sister of the children’s great-grandmother. She repeatedly expressed her unwavering belief the children would be found alive, citing the autonomy, astuteness and physical resilience of children in the region. Even before starting elementary school, children in this area accompany their parents and elder relatives in various activities such as gardening, fishing, navigating rivers, hunting and gathering honey and wild fruits. In this way the children acquire practical skills and knowledge, such as those demonstrated by Lesly, Soleiny, Tien and Cristin during their 40-day ordeal. Indigenous children typically learn from an early age how to open paths through dense vegetation, how to tell edible from non-edible fruits. They know how to find potable water, build rain shelters and set animal traps. They can identify animal footprints and scents – and avoid predators such as jaguars and snakes lurking in the woods. Amazonian children typically lack access to the sort of commercialised toys and games that children in the cities grow up with. So they become adept tree climbers and engage in play that teaches them about adult tools made from natural materials, such as oars or axes. This nurtures their understanding of physical activities and helps them learn which plants serve specific purposes. <figure class="align-center "><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/532019/original/file-20230614-31-hrdd5z.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/532019/original/file-20230614-31-hrdd5z.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/532019/original/file-20230614-31-hrdd5z.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/532019/original/file-20230614-31-hrdd5z.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/532019/original/file-20230614-31-hrdd5z.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/532019/original/file-20230614-31-hrdd5z.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/532019/original/file-20230614-31-hrdd5z.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" alt="A youg girl holding up an insect as her family works alongside" /><figcaption>A local Indigenous girl on an excursion to gather edible larvae. Image courtesy of Eliran Arazi, Author provided</figcaption></figure> Activities that most western children would be shielded from – handling, skinning and butchering game animals, for example – provide invaluable zoology lessons and arguably foster emotional resilience. <h2>Survival skills</h2> When they accompany their parents and relatives on excursions in the jungle, Indigenous children learn how to navigate a forest’s dense vegetation by following the location of the sun in the sky. <figure class="align-left zoomable"><a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/532012/original/file-20230614-29-ii5s0u.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/532012/original/file-20230614-29-ii5s0u.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=237&fit=clip" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/532012/original/file-20230614-29-ii5s0u.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=551&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/532012/original/file-20230614-29-ii5s0u.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=551&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/532012/original/file-20230614-29-ii5s0u.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=551&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/532012/original/file-20230614-29-ii5s0u.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=692&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/532012/original/file-20230614-29-ii5s0u.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=692&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/532012/original/file-20230614-29-ii5s0u.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=692&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" alt="Map of the Middle Caqueta region of Colombia." /></a><figcaption>Map showing where in Colombia the four lost children are from. Gadiel Levi, Author provided</figcaption></figure> Since the large rivers in most parts of the Amazon flow in a direction opposite to that of the sun, people can orient themselves towards those main rivers. The trail of footprints and objects left by the four children revealed their general progression towards the Apaporis River, where they may have hoped to be spotted. The children would also have learned from their parents and elders about edible plans and flowers – where they can be found. And also the interrelationship between plants, so that where a certain tree is, you can find mushrooms, or small animals that can be trapped and eaten. <h2>Stories, songs and myths</h2> Knowledge embedded in mythic stories passed down by parents and grandparents is another invaluable resource for navigating the forest. These stories depict animals as fully sentient beings, engaging in seduction, mischief, providing sustenance, or even saving each other’s lives. While these episodes may seem incomprehensible to non-Indigenous audiences, they actually encapsulate the intricate interrelations among the forest’s countless non-human inhabitants. Indigenous knowledge focuses on the interrelationships between humans, plants and animals and how they can come together to preserve the environment and prevent irreversible ecological harm. This sophisticated knowledge has been developed over millennia during which Indigenous people not only adapted to their forest territories but actively shaped them. It is deeply ingrained knowledge that local indigenous people are taught from early childhood so that it becomes second nature to them. It has become part of the culture of cultivating and harvesting crops, something infants and children are introduced to, as well as knowledge of all sort of different food sources and types of bush meat. <h2>Looking after each other</h2> One of the aspects of this “miraculous” story that people in the west have marvelled over is how, after the death of the children’s mother, the 13-year-old Lesly managed to take care of her younger siblings, including Cristin, who was only 11 months old at the time the aircraft went down. <figure class="align-center "><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/532007/original/file-20230614-19-7q92j0.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/532007/original/file-20230614-19-7q92j0.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/532007/original/file-20230614-19-7q92j0.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/532007/original/file-20230614-19-7q92j0.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/532007/original/file-20230614-19-7q92j0.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/532007/original/file-20230614-19-7q92j0.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/532007/original/file-20230614-19-7q92j0.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" alt="Three Indigenous people in western clothes stood under trees in front of a wide building." /><figcaption>Iris Andoque Macuna with her brother Nestor Andoque and brother-in-law Faustino Fiagama after the two men returned from the search team. Iris Andoque Macuna., Author provided</figcaption></figure> But in Indigenous families, elder sisters are expected to act as surrogate mothers to their younger relatives from an early age. Iris Andoke Macuna, a distant relative of the family, told me: <blockquote> To some whites [non-Indigenous people], it seems like a bad thing that we take our children to work in the garden, and that we let girls carry their brothers and take care of them. But for us, it’s a good thing, our children are independent, this is why Lesly could take care of her brothers during all this time. It toughened her, and she learned what her brothers need. </blockquote> <h2>The spiritual side</h2> For 40 days and nights, while the four children were lost, elders and shamans performed rituals based on traditional beliefs that involve human relationships with entities known as dueños (owners) in Spanish and by various names in native languages (such as i'bo ño̰e, meaning “persons of there” in Andoque). These owners are believed to be the protective spirits of the plants and animals that live in the forests. Children are introduced to these powerful owners in name-giving ceremonies, which ensure that these spirits recognise and acknowledge relationship to the territory and their entitlement to prosper on it. <figure class="align-center "><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/531997/original/file-20230614-15389-7c6oly.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/531997/original/file-20230614-15389-7c6oly.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/531997/original/file-20230614-15389-7c6oly.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/531997/original/file-20230614-15389-7c6oly.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/531997/original/file-20230614-15389-7c6oly.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/531997/original/file-20230614-15389-7c6oly.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/531997/original/file-20230614-15389-7c6oly.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" alt="Woman in pink t-shirt sat on chair inside." /><figcaption>Raquel Andoke, a relative of the missing children and friend of the author. Image courtesy of Eliran Arazi, Author provided</figcaption></figure> During the search for the missing children, elders conducted dialogues and negotiations with these entities in their ceremonial houses (malocas) throughout the <a href="https://www.researchgate.net/figure/Middle-and-Lower-Caqueta-River-region-State-of-Amazonas-Colombia-Map-from_fig1_255580310">Middle Caquetá</a> and in other Indigenous communities that consider the crash site part of their ancestral territory. Raquel explained to me: <blockquote> The shamans communicate with the sacred sites. They offer coca and tobacco to the spirits and say: “Take this and give me my grandchildren back. They are mine, not yours.” </blockquote> These beliefs and practices hold significant meaning for my friends in the Middle Caquetá, who firmly attribute the children’s survival to these spiritual processes rather than the technological means employed by the Colombian army rescue teams. It may be challenging for non-Indigenous people to embrace these traditional ideas. But these beliefs would have instilled in the children the faith and emotional fortitude crucial for persevering in the struggle for survival. And it would have encouraged the Indigenous people searching for them not to give up hope. The children knew that their fate did not lie in dying in the forest, and that their grandparents and shamans would move heaven and earth to bring them back home alive. Regrettably, this traditional knowledge that has enabled Indigenous people to not only survive but thrive in the Amazon for millennia is under threat. Increasing land encroachment for agribusiness, mining, and illicit activities as well as state neglect and interventions without Indigenous consent have left these peoples vulnerable. It is jeopardising the very foundations of life where this knowledge is embedded, the territories that serve as its bedrock, and the people themselves who preserve, develop, and transmit this knowledge. Preserving this invaluable knowledge and the skills that bring miracles to life is imperative. We must not allow them to wither away.<img style="border: none !important; box-shadow: none !important; margin: 0 !important; max-height: 1px !important; max-width: 1px !important; min-height: 1px !important; min-width: 1px !important; opacity: 0 !important; outline: none !important; padding: 0 !important;" src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/207762/count.gif?distributor=republish-lightbox-basic" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" /> <a href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/eliran-arazi-1447346">Eliran Arazi</a>, PhD researcher in Anthropology, Hebrew University of Jerusalem and the School for Advanced Studies in the Social Sciences (Paris)., <a href="https://theconversation.com/institutions/hebrew-university-of-jerusalem-855">Hebrew University of Jerusalem</a> This article is republished from <a href="https://theconversation.com">The Conversation</a> under a Creative Commons license. Read the <a href="https://theconversation.com/how-traditional-indigenous-education-helped-four-lost-children-survive-40-days-in-the-amazon-jungle-207762">original article</a>. Images: Getty

Caring

9 ways to exercise your brain

While many people can say they are dedicated to keeping their bodies in shape, exercising applies to more than just the muscles, bones and fat in our bodies. We should all be working out the neural pathways and connections in our brains too. So whether you’re trying to get your brain back into shape or you just want to keep it as strong as it is now, below are some top tips on how to help exercise your mind to good health. 1. Read as much as you can Whether it’s a newspaper, magazine or book, reading is a fantastic basic brain exercise. Remember, the more challenging the reading material is the more of a workout you are giving your brain. Like with any new exercise regime, start small and work your way up to a level that you find challenging. 2. Learn new words Increasing your vocabulary is a great way to exercise the language portion of your brain. A word-of-the day calendar is a great way to ensure you keep on top of this throughout the year. 3. Put pen to paper (not fingers to a keyboard) From fictional stories to keeping a journal, writing is a good workout for the brain, as it requires lots of thinking. A study published in the Human Brain Mapping journal found that both planning and writing a story by hand combines handwriting and cognitive writing processes, which are predominantly associated with memory and integrating information from diverse sources. 4. Do puzzles Easy to fit into your daily schedule, simple puzzles like crosswords and Sudoku help to get your brain doing some basic work, while more complex puzzles will give your brain a stronger workout. So although more complicated puzzles may take days to solve and complete, they’re worth the effort as these types of games can help keep you sharp, as well as slow memory loss and mental decline. 5. Switch to your non-dominant hand While this might sound like an odd one, switching to your non-dominant hand from time to time has been shown to stimulate the parts of the brain that control your muscles. Experts also say that using your other hand helps your brain to better integrate its two hemispheres. 6. Get talking For a basic brain workout, get chatting! Next time you catch up with family or friends try talking about more challenging topics (such as politics, religion etc.) where you engage in deep discussion – without arguing. It’s a great way to keep your mind active while having fun, get to know others better and to share your thoughts. 7. Back to school Education has obvious benefits and going back to school is a great way to get your brain working again, to challenge yourself and to do something satisfying. You don’t have to sign up for a whole degree, there are many free short courses as well as certificate courses that you can do online. 8. Eat well Just like with the body, when you exercise you need to give your brain the right fuel so it operates at optimal health. The Open Training Institute says, “Skipping breakfast can reduce thinking skills by 40 per cent, as your brain is starved of that much needed sugar hit”. Furthermore, certain foods are good for improving brain function like dark chocolate, which increases blood flow to the brain increasing alertness and clarity. “Blueberries for example pack a powerful punch of antioxidants and can improve memory, while green leafy veggies and fresh herbs are full of vitamin K, which improves cognitive function.” 9. Exercise Being active doesn’t only keep your body healthy it can also make you more alert. The Open Training Institute says, “Low-intensity exercise like yoga or walking can dramatically reduce sleepiness, amp up energy levels and attention span.” And the benefits of keeping active don’t stop there. “More intensity can even improve cognitive function by five to 10 per cent.” Image credit: Shutterstock For information about the Open Training Institute and the courses on offer, or to simply ask a question, call 1300 915 692.

Mind

Become a master record keeper

Whether you want to brush up your admin skills for your current job, seek new employment, or you’re simply keen to further your knowledge and become the master of your own personal admin, understanding the process of record keeping can be very rewarding. Take Over60 community member, Di Rieger, for example. “During my time [working and volunteering] I assisted with customer service, collection and data entry of statistics, brochure management, information research, ticket and retail sales, preparation of the volunteer roster, writing applications for grant funding and writing award submissions,” Di explains. From working in libraries to volunteering, her experience in research and administration tasks instilled her with the knowledge and know-how to start researching the genealogy of her family. An experience, which she says, changed her life. “Would you believe that while doing an Internet search for my husband’s great grandfather I found information that I did not already have – his parent’s birth and death dates and places, his siblings and all of their birth dates and places and quite a lot more information. One of my cousins had never seen a photograph of [our relative] Thomas Oscar Miller that I found. She is thrilled that I am able to send her a digital copy of the photo.” Whether you want to get a little more organised at home or take on a research project, learning the art of record keeping is a skill that is transferable to many fields. Here are some basic tips and tricks that will help get your personal affairs in order. 4 tips to become the master of your personal records 1. Divide and conquer Nearly all of your admin and financial papers can be divided into three categories: records that you need to keep only for the calendar year or less, papers that you need to save for seven years (according to the ATO), and papers that you should hang onto indefinitely. For example, you don’t really need to hang onto all of your ATM-withdrawal receipts, deposit slips or credit-card receipts do you? Once you’ve crosschecked receipts with your bank statement, you can throw them away. While it’s a good idea to keep receipts for major purchases, it isn’t necessary to hold onto sales receipts for minor purchases after you've satisfactorily used the item a few times or the warranty has expired. Shortly after the end of the calendar year, you should be able to throw out a slew of additional paper, including your monthly credit card and or other bank statements, utility bills (if they are not needed for business deductions), and monthly or quarterly reports for the previous year. 2. Paper place Designate a place – a desk, corner or room – as the place where you deal with paperwork. If you don’t have the space for this, a drawer, cabinet, or closet where you can store bills and current records, situated near a table on which you can write, will do. Stationery items such as manila folders will come in handy for filing the papers, as will a file cabinet or cardboard box to hold the records. Keep your will, birth and marriage certificates, insurance policies, property deeds, and other permanent records in a safe but accessible place near your other financial documents, so you and your heirs will always be able to get to them quickly, if they need to. 3. Organised systems Having a plan for how you process all records is key. A rudimentary filing system will do. The simplest method is to sort everything into categories – for example, tax related, financial or house. Each area should have it’s own folder or drawer. Then, when you sit down to either pay your bills or gather information, you'll have all the paperwork you need in one spot. 4. Stay in front Once you have a system in place, you’ll want to make sure you stay on top of things and don’t have a backlog of unsorted paperwork. Set aside a half an hour a day to sift through old papers, perhaps while watching the news or listening to music. You'll be amazed at the difference a little organisation makes. Interested in record keeping or looking into your family history, but not quite sure where to start? The Open Training Institute offers a <a href="https://www.opentraining.edu.au/courses/administration/cert-3-recordkeeping" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Certificate III in Recordkeeping</a>. As well as teaching you the necessary proficiencies you could use to research your own family tree, the course can lead to employment as an assistant records clerk or an assistant registry officer. Visit their website to find out more. For information about the Open Training Institute and the courses on offer, or to simply ask a question, call 1300 915 692. Image credit: Shutterstock

Mind

Why study is the key to keeping your brain healthy as you age

Two Over60 community members talk about studying later in life, how it keeps their mind healthy and why they keep going back for more. The word study for many people conjures up memories of restless school days, strict teachers and homework you had to force yourself to complete. However, education isn’t just limited to schools – if you think about our everyday lives, we are constantly learning new things. Whether it’s trying out a new recipe, learning about historic events through a film or attempting to remember algebra so we can help our grandkids, it’s clear learning is a lifelong process. Research consistently shows that keeping your mind active has many health benefits. For over-60s, it helps to keep your mind stimulated and mental faculties in top condition as well as improving your overall wellbeing. It is why there are increasingly more seniors who are seeking to study later in life – and they’re finding they not only love it, but that it’s rewarding in so many ways. For Bernard Macdougall, 73, from Maryborough, Queensland, taking courses and learning new things has been crucial in keeping his mind astute. It was after searching online that Bernard stumbled across the free Open2Study courses. “A couple of year ago I was starting to get a bit anxious about whether I had any brain damage. I had a bit of numbness on the right side of my body and I felt I had a slight impediment in my speech,” he reveals, continuing, “but when I found I could get high marks in these courses I thought well I don’t have to worry, my brain is working, there hasn’t been any deterioration.” Bernard found there was a great variety in courses offered and the option of short one-month timeframes could be easily managed. He ended up taking three courses through Open2Study and another online course through Charles Darwin University. It was a similar case for Peter Keyes, 78, from Albion Park Rail, New South Wales, who has completed four courses through Open2Study. Peter has worked in education all his life so when retirement came around he wasn’t about to stop learning. “You can’t sit around in retirement and twiddle your thumbs,” he laughs, adding, “I live in a retirement village and I encourage all of [the residents] to do some study rather than sit around and watch TV all day! It keeps the brain kicking.” As well as keeping him busy, Peter also found the courses were helpful and informative. “During my career in education I ended up being an administrator looking after buildings so I was interested in one of the courses ‘Project Management’. It gave me a further insight into the processes that I used in setting up the buildings of school buildings,” he explains, continuing, “In [my] retirement village, management occasionally ask me to go into planning meetings and talk about what things [to consider] in terms of buildings and older people.” Studying is not only about learning new things but as Bernard found, it can be personally fulfilling too. “Back in the 70s, I did an arts degree with major studies in anthropology. I saw that Open2Study had a course called ‘<a href="https://www.open2study.com/courses/becoming-human-anthropology-090913%20" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Becoming Human</a>’. I thought, ‘Right I will have a go at that’,” explains Bernard. He soon found he was not only learning about new theories but about what it means to become human. “I was very emotionally involved as it was about human evolution,” he says. Both Bernard and Peter found the online courses easy to manage – all that was needed was a computer and an internet connection to access the course that you could do in the convenience and comfort of your own home. Lectures were presented through short videos, which Peter found convenient: “You can stop it at any time, make a note and then catch up,” he explains. And for those who are worried that studying means taking exams or doing assessments again, Peter advises you not to worry. “When people hear that they’ve got exams or test or assessment to do, they get a bit frightened. But you teach them there’s nothing to it, you can always stop and go back and have another read,” says Peter. While there are assessments – mainly multiple choice – throughout most courses, it’s not about being competitive but having a barometer for your individual progress. It is simply there so you know how much knowledge you have learnt during the course. Bernard found that although he felt apprehensive sometimes, there was a greatly fulfilling feeling of not only accomplishing the assessment but gaining some high marks. “I put a lot of work into study and when you have to press the final submit button, sometimes I was extremely apprehensive because I was anxious to get good marks,” Bernard explains, adding, “I think one has to devote time to it but it’s time I’m happy to spend.” Both Peter and Bernard are quick to reveal that they are not going to stop studying anytime soon. Peter has just signed up to Open2Study’s ‘Innovation for Powerful Outcomes’ course while Bernard is still half way through the ‘User Experience for the Web’ course. “The course is self-paced so I can start again and there’s no deadline for me, thank goodness,” Bernard smiles. After each completing a number of courses, they can’t speak highly enough about how beneficial studying has been for them. “It keeps the little grey cells going,” states Peter, because as he know only too well, “the pool of knowledge, skill, understanding and wisdom is enormous” in the over-60 community. “For me it is very, very important to keep learning as you age. Partly so that I know my brain is still good and not fading away,” Bernard chuckles, continuing, “it is also just a matter of curiosity. I’m just interested in learning new topics.” Images: Getty

Mind

School principal forced out after parents complain statue of David is too rude

Hope Carrasquilla, a US charter school principal, has been forced to resign from her position after a parent decreed an art lesson to be “pornographic”. Carrasquilla was given an ultimatum - either she stepped down, or she would face termination from the Tallahassee Classical School - according to the Tallahassee Democrat. “It saddens me that my time here had to end this way,” she told the publication. Carrasquilla also explained that she had been informed of her options by the school’s board chair, Barney Bishop. While Bishop has confirmed that he did hand down the ultimatum, he did not expand on why. However, Carrasquilla believes a Renaissance art lesson to be the main contributing factor. The lesson in question saw students study Michelgangelo’s classic David, as well as his Creation of Adam fresco painting, and Boticelli’s Birth of Venus. Apparently, the school is required to educate students about Renaissance art in their 6th grade. But for three parents this wasn’t reason enough, with each of them voicing their concerns about the lesson plan, while claiming that it had caused their children upset. Two of the parents simply wanted to have been notified about the content before it reached their children, but one had stronger feelings, branding the situation “pornographic”. Carrasquilla said that one of them was “point-blank upset”, and “felt her child should not be viewing those pieces.” But as she informed HuffPost, things were “a little more complicated than that”, before sharing that the school’s usual protocol would be to inform parents before their children are presented with classical art, such as David. According to the now-former principal, a “breakdown in communication” between herself, the direction of operations, and the art teacher has brought upon a kind of administrative oversight, and the parents had never received a letter about the lesson. This came after a new rule was passed in February, with the school board mandating that parents must be notified a fortnight before any “potentially controversial” was taught to students. Parents would also be presented with the option to review their child’s curriculum, as well as any related media, with a reminder to be sent a week ahead. “Parental rights are supreme,” Bishop explained, “and that means protecting the interests of all parents, whether it’s one, 10, 20, or 50.” As her story began to circulate around the globe, Carrasquilla went on to explain in a statement that for a year, Bishop had “expressed his displeasure with my leadership when parents became upset about policies or procedures not being followed to the T. “He was more concerned about litigation and appeasing a small minority of parents, rather than trusting my expertise as an educator for more than 25 years.” Images: Getty

Art

A rare glimpse into the Depression-era

Yale University recently released 170,000 historic photos of the Great Depression to the public. These photos were commissioned by the US government in the 1930s to capture America “at her most vulnerable”. Shot over a 10 year period from 1935 to 1945, these pictures offer a rare and fascinating glimpse into the daily life of ordinary people simply trying to get by. A selection of some of the most captivating images are in the gallery above, but if you’re interested in browsing all the photos, <a href="http://photogrammar.yale.edu/" target="_blank">head over to their interactive website here. </a> Related links: <a href="http://www.oversixty.co.nz/lifestyle/family-pets/2016/01/15-things-kids-of-today-are-missing-out-on/">15 things kids of today are missing out on</a> <a href="http://www.oversixty.co.nz/lifestyle/family-pets/2016/01/inside-a-1950s-tea-factory/">Inside a tea factory from the 50s</a> <a href="http://www.oversixty.co.nz/lifestyle/family-pets/2016/01/5-types-of-grandparents/">There are 5 different types of grandparents – which one are you?</a>

Family & Pets

Top politicians not so calculated after all

New South Wales Education Minister Sarah Mitchell and her counterpart in the opposition, Prue Car, were put to the test while appearing live on 2GB. The two were chatting to radio host Ben Fordham after a pre-election debate when he presented them with a challenge: a problem from the Year 7 NAPLAN test’s Numeracy section. NAPLAN tests typically consist of multiple choice questions and ones where students must write their answers in the spaces provided. While calculators are permitted outside of the short non-calculator sections, they were far from the hands of Sarah and Prue as Ben sprung his test upon them. Ben opened by explaining to the two that they had to solve the question without the use of the handy devices, and that they had room to show their working, just as any Year 7 would when faced with the same test. “Pears cost $4 per kilogram,” Ben explained, reading from the question posed to the ministers, “Ben buys 4.15 kilograms of pears. How much does Ben pay for the pears?” The two wasted no time in putting pen to paper and getting started, with Ben chuckling that they were “busily working away.” Prue finished working first, cradling her chin in her hand as Ben asked if she wanted to hand in her sheet, before he explained to Sarah when to fill in her answer. “Just like the students do,” he said, “this is a test environment. Your Year 7 students in New South Wales have got to face these questions.” “You’ve outdone yourself with this today, Ben,” Prue remarked, while Sarah continued her calculations. After roughly one minute, both sheets were in Ben’s hands, and he was ready to announce the results. Prue, despite finishing first, got her answer wrong. Upon hearing the news, the minister burst into laughter, with an amused Sarah piping up that she “might be too, Prue.” Ben went on to repeat the question, and shared Prue’s answer of $4.15. “The minister Sarah Mitchell,” he continued, “has got this one right!” The correct answer to the problem? $16.60. “Can I just say, English was my strong suit,” Prue declared in light of her defeat. And to the great amusement of both Prue and Ben, Sarah announced, “so was mine, Prue!” Images: 2GB

News

The secret to taking the most amazing photos you’ve ever shot

If you are an aspiring photographer you may have heard of RAW. It is a common term bandied in digital photography, but what is often not explained is why it is important and what it means for your images. We sort out fact from fiction so you can see what RAW can do for your photographs. What is RAW? RAW is a file format comparable to a negative in the digital world. As we know from the time before we all went digital, negatives possess all the necessary information to create a photo. When you use RAW, you capture your images like a negative – meaning the image you capture in not yet processed. This is different to shooting in the common JPEG format where the camera processes and compresses the image for you. Information is lost in the JPEG process, which results in a lower-quality image that is harder to edit. For professionals, using RAW is preferable as you can decide how you want to edit a photo and thus produce what you had in mind, rather than letting the camera decide for you. Why is it good? As the RAW format provides you with the most information possible when capturing an image, the quality of the photograph is going to be higher and better than any other format. The greatest benefit, however, lies in the editing process. As no information has been processed or compressed, you will be able to correct problems you see in your photos – this would not be possible if shot in JPEG format. With RAW capture you also have control over the white balance, contrast, highlights, shadows, colours and saturation. You can easily correct both over- or under-exposed images without a reduction in quality, which is particularly useful if you shoot under difficult lighting circumstances like at night-time. You can also adjust the white balance of photos which helps you achieve the proper colour balance, crucial in creating great photos. What are the downsides? <div> RAW is the best option for photographers who want to take control over their images but as so much information is captured in the image; the file size is much larger than its JPEG relative which could mean complications with storing your images. If you are shooting a lot of images with little need to edit then RAW format is not necessarily for you. However, if you are looking to take your photography to the next level then you should learn to start shooting like the professional do: with RAW capture. As any professional will tell you, RAW is one of the best tools for a photographer. The editing capabilities in RAW far outweigh any other form and creating great photos is just as much about editing as it is about shooting the perfect picture. And if you are aspiring to take your photography further, looking into a photography course to develop your skills and techniques could be beneficial. </div> Image: Getty Images

Mind

Tips for studying later in life

Studying when you’re 60 and beyond is beneficial for many reasons, not only for improving the skills needed in today’s workplace. Learning in your older years keeps your brain active and is an effective way to tackle isolation, loneliness and depression, which can accompany old age. By making the decision to study during this stage in life is a positive thing in itself and is something that you should be proud of. Rather than putting too much pressure on yourself to be the top of your class, just have fun! Here are some tips and things to consider if you’ve decided to keep your mind active with study. Make a commitment As it is with any major life decision or change, deciding to study requires an investment of your time, energy and resources. Sit down and have a think about your priorities, weekly schedule and how studying will fit into your life. Work out what you can and cannot manage and set yourself a new schedule including your study commitments. This way you will know from the outset what is achievable within your current lifestyle so you’ll be better able to make a commitment to study. Time management Just as you would with food shopping, exercise and any childcare responsibilities you have looking after your grandchildren, you'll need to schedule class time and study time. Be firm with yourself and others in your life about making sure you don’t get distracted. Get social Studying later in life might be a daunting experience for some, especially if this is your first time doing any form of tertiary education. Seeking support is always a good idea. Many institutions have both online and virtual spaces where you can interact with other students. Otherwise there is always Facebook, online forums or meet up groups in your local area. Seek out like-minded people in similar situations and see if they want to be study partners or even just catch up for coffee once in a while to swap study stories. Tech savvy There’s no doubt technology has come a long in recent times with a number of new tools and clever devices now available. Find out what’s required in terms of technology skills and tools for any study you wish to undertake. If you are a little technology shy, consider brushing up on your skills. Some local councils or state governments offer free technology courses for seniors. For example, the New South Wales government runs the very popular Tech Savvy Seniors program. Stay positive Don’t get discouraged if you feel a little shy or out of your depth when returning to study. This is a sentiment mirrored by many students of all ages. Just focus on the fact that keeping your mind active is so good for you and anything after that is a bonus. Have fun Don’t pressure yourself to achieve a long list of goals. Take each day as it comes, enjoy the experience and just have fun with it. Image: Getty

Caring

8 surprising facts you probably didn’t know about your brain

The brain is one of, if not, the most vital part of our bodies yet it’s also one of the most mysterious. Here are 8 amazing facts about that grey matter in between our ears that will make you appreciate it a whole lot more. 1. The brain is a hog The brain accounts for only two per cent of your weight but it uses 20 per cent of the oxygen you breathe and 25 per cent of the glucose circulating in your bloodstream. A continuous supply of oxygen is essential for the brain’s survival with just 10 minutes of lost oxygen causing significant neutral damage. 2. Brain tissue feels like tofu According to neurosurgeon Katrina Firlik, the texture and consistency of the brain is similar to “tofu – the soft variety,” she writes in her memoir Another Day in the Frontal Lobe: A Brain Surgeon Exposes Life on the Inside. 3. Night vision is different to day vision When it is dark outside your peripheral vision actually works better than your front-on vision. This is because our rod cells – the photoreceptors that respond best to dim light – are located in the periphery. Take a page from pilots who look for traffic out the side of their eyes next time you’re driving at night. 4. Your brain doesn’t feel pain If you like watching your medical dramas on TV you might have wondered why patients undergo open brain surgery without being sedated. Surprisingly, it’s not because the medical dramas are wrong, it’s because the brain itself doesn’t feel pain. This allows doctors to probe areas of the brain while the patient is conscious. 5. You use more than 10 per cent of your brain Thanks to Hollywood, there is a common myth that humans only use 10 percent of their brains. However, there is absolutely no scientific evidence to support this. It is true that scientist still do not completely understand how the brain functions but brain mapping suggests all areas of the brain have a function and are used. 6. The brain is big The average adult brain weighs around 1.3 to 1.4 kilograms and has 100,000 miles worth of blood vessels (enough to circle the Earth four times) and 100 billion neurons. 7. Size doesn’t matter Having a bigger brain doesn’t necessarily mean you are smarter. In fact, Albert Einstein had a relatively small brain. His weighed 1,230 grams whereas the average male brain weighs 1,360 grams. 8. There is no left brain/right brain divide Another common myth that says logical, methodical and analytical people are left-brain dominant while the creative and artistic types are right-brain dominant. Scientists at the University of Utah have disproved this with their analysis of 1,000 brains. They found no evidence that people use their left or right brain more but that participants used their entire brain. Image credits: Getty Images

Mind

“Several of these floods happened on your watch”: Nat Barr slams Liberal Party deputy leader

Sunrise host Natalie Barr has called out Liberal MP Sussan Ley for claiming the Labor government was too slow in their handling of the NSW floods. The Liberal Party deputy leader appeared alongside Labor's Minister for Education Jason Clare on Sunrise on Friday July 8 who were discussing raising the walls of Warragamba Dam to stop future flooding. Ms Barr got the ball rolling, asking Ms Ley why nothing was done when her government was in power. “Sussan what do you think? Because several of these floods happened on your watch and nothing seemed to go ahead did it?” she asked. “It’s heartbreaking to hear from those people who are so affected when they feel yet another flood event,” Ms Ley began before she was cut off by Ms Barr. “Hang on Sussan, the first flood, the big one, was in March last year, then we had March this year, April this year, with all due respect, what did your government do?” Ms Barr questioned. “We worked closely and started a planning process at federal environment level that I was actually involved with. At the moment, the issue is with the NSW Government but a lot of work has been done by the Commonwealth,” Ms Ley said. “Now, this incoming government seems to not know how to pick up that work and continue with it. And that’s my point, at least start with the right minister. It’s waiting there and it needs [NSW]..., but at least start in the right area of the government to get this ball running.” “Nat, I think Sussan’s got a short memory here. Go back to the start of the year, we had a tinny army that rescued people,” Mr Clare said of Morrison’s Government response to the March floods. “People had to hire their own helicopters because rescue services weren't on the way. “We were proactive. We got helicopters ready and soldiers ready before we were even asked.” Ms Ley however then questioned why the government took too long to announce relief payments for the affected areas. “On Monday I raised the issue that payments that could have been made in hours were taking days,” she said. “The floods were on the weekend. It wasn't until Thursday that a signature on a paper was made, coincidentally when the Prime Minister came back from overseas.” Ms Barr snapped at Ms Ley saying: “Well, it may have been a couple of days but it's burnt into our memory that people had to go rescue themselves and their communities.” The residents in the 23 LGAs affected by the severe storms and flooding since June 27, are eligible for disaster relief payments funded by the NSW government and the Commonwealth. The LGAs include Blacktown, Blue Mountains, Camden, Canterbury Bankstown, Campbelltown, Central Coast, Cessnock, Fairfield, Georges River, Hawkesbury, Hornsby, Kiama, Lithgow, Liverpool, Northern Beaches, Penrith, Shellharbour, Shoalhaven, Sutherland, The Hills, Wingecarribee, Wollondilly and Wollongong. Images: Sunrise

“Gamechanger” free schooling announced for kids in NSW and Victoria

Children in Victoria and New South Wales will be given an extra year of free schooling under joint, multibillion-dollar plans from both state governments. Victorian Premier Daniel Andrews and NSW Premier Dominic Perrottet announced that the extra year of schooling will be available to four and five-year-olds, the biggest education reform in generations as reported by <a href="https://www.9news.com.au/national/extra-free-year-of-schooling-for-nsw-and-victoria/8c81c122-ee7d-48f5-bd1a-81db3de1ca0f" target="_blank" rel="noopener">9News</a>. In Victoria, every four-year-old will qualify for 30 hours of free schooling, up from 15 hours currently, and the government has pledged subsidies of up to $2500 for children in three or four-year-old kinder from next year. 50 government and low-fee childcare centres will also be built in areas with few facilities and high demand such as Melton, Casey and Dandenong. The government plans to spend $9 billion a year from 2025 to achieve these changes and hopes they will help women return to the workforce. <blockquote class="twitter-tweet"> Some things are bigger than state boundaries. Giving kids the very best start in life is one of them. We're joining with NSW to start the biggest ever reform to early education. It'll be better for kids, cheaper for families, and give women more choice about returning to work. <a href="https://t.co/ZVBR3BQNuE">pic.twitter.com/ZVBR3BQNuE</a> — Dan Andrews (@DanielAndrewsMP) <a href="https://twitter.com/DanielAndrewsMP/status/1537178352884551680?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">June 15, 2022</a></blockquote> Meanwhile, the NSW government will be bringing in changes under a $5.8 billion plan, including making a new ‘pre kinder’ year available for four and five-year-olds from 2030 that is free but not compulsory. The policy was also designed to help parents, particularly women, return to the workforce, while also alleviating the pressure on early childhood centres across the state. Speaking to Today, NSW Education Minister Sarah Mitchell said the changes would be a “game changer” for families, adding that trials would be starting next year. “We will see this rolled out in communities before 2030 … we will start to see benefits for families over the next couple of years which is great,” she told the show. In a joint statement, Mr Andrews and Mr Perrottet announced the reforms that are set to be introduced over the next decade. “In the next 10 years, every child in Victoria and NSW will experience the benefits of a full year of play-based learning before their first year of school,” the statement read. “A year dedicated to growing and learning, new friends and new experiences. A year devoted to helping our kids be the very best they can be. Giving them the skills they need for school, but just as importantly, the skills they need for life.” Image: Getty Images

Family & Pets

How to build your grandkid's confidence at school and help them succeed

We know that grandparents understand that drive to be involved in their grandchildren's lives all too well: You watch them grow up, attend their sports days and music concerts, and when you find out they’re struggling at school, it's easy to feel helpless and concerned but there is something you can do to help. There is a way you can help them get the support they need. Cluey Learning is Australia’s leading online tutoring service that specialises in helping students in years 2 to 12 catch up, keep up or excel at school. We start by matching your grandchild with one of our expert, hand-selected tutors, and once the connection is made, your grandchild can get the help they need, safely online, from the comfort of home. Why matching matters Cluey’s approach to learning focuses on the needs of each individual learner, which is in contrast to the traditional classroom model we all know. With 20+ students in each class, teachers cannot possibly give each child the individual attention they need to thrive and sometimes the pace of learning in the classroom can mean children fall behind or become disengaged because they aren’t being challenged. Cluey Learning matches each student to a tutor that is right for them, to help them learn and grow at their own pace. <img src="https://oversixtydev.blob.core.windows.net/media/2022/06/O60ClueyLearning02.jpg" alt="Cluey Learning" width="1280" height="720" /> How tutoring can help When you choose the right program, tutoring can serve to build confidence, increase test scores and instil a love of learning in your grandchild that will stay with them for life. More benefits to tutoring include: <ol> <li>Offers personalised attention </li> <li>Helps students become independent learners (learning to learn) </li> <li>Helps gifted children excel </li> <li>Fills learning gaps </li> <li>Gives children the freedom to ask ‘silly’ questions away from their peers </li> <li>Prepares students for exams (NAPLAN, HSC, entrance exams) </li> <li>Can be tailored to a range of needs</li> <li>Increases engagement in school</li> <li>Improves study habits</li> <li>Gives students access to a learning partner who isn’t their parent and isn’t their teacher. </li> </ol> Why Cluey Learning? <ul> <li>Tutors are knowledgeable, experienced teachers or top ATAR achievers who are put through a rigorous application process so only the top tutors make the cut. </li> <li>They are all vetted, have WWC (working with children) checks, and backed by highly qualified Faculty Leaders. </li> <li>Each session is mapped to the Australian National Curriculum, and designed to mirror what they learn in class so you know your grandkids are learning what they need to know. </li> <li>It’s online and it’s safe, with no reason to fear for your grandchild’s safety. </li> </ul> WE’VE HELPED THOUSANDS OF AUSTRALIAN FAMILIES <blockquote> “I enrolled my granddaughter last year for Cluey tutoring, still receiving it. Happy to report she earned 100% in one of her tutored subjects” – Lee M. </blockquote> 20% off Offer to share with your grandchild or their parent! If you’d like to support your grandchild with their education, we’re offering 20% off their first session – share <a href="https://clueylearning.com.au/en/grandkids/?utm_source=grandparents&utm_campaign=over60&last_source=grandparents&last_campaign=over60&last_offer=20-percent-off" target="_blank" rel="noopener">this link</a> with your grandchild (or their parents) to claim the discount. To learn more visit <a href="https://clueylearning.com.au/en/grandkids/?utm_source=grandparents&utm_campaign=over60&last_source=grandparents&last_campaign=over60&last_offer=20-percent-off" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Cluey Learning</a>. This is a sponsored article produced in partnership with <a href="https://clueylearning.com.au/en/grandkids/?utm_source=grandparents&utm_campaign=over60&last_source=grandparents&last_campaign=over60&last_offer=20-percent-off" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Cluey Learning</a>.

Family & Pets

Children and teachers potentially exposed to asbestos for years

Parents have been left fuming after finding out their children and teachers were exposed to the lethal material asbestos. Asbestos was detected in several classrooms at Castle Hill High School back in 2016 but the NSW Department of Education said the report came back negative. Students and teachers had already complained about weird dust particles falling from the roof to the point where they collected samples to get them tested. ClearSafe Environmental Solutions, an independent testing facility, tested the particle and found the dust contained chrysotile asbestos and amosite asbestos. Then in 2020, the school was shut down from May 16 to June 15 where remediation work was carried out. A NSW Department of Education spokesperson confirmed asbestos is no longer a threat to the school following the remediation. “All air monitoring undertaken at the time returned results below or equal to the minimum detection limit,” they said. “Testing was completed to ensure the areas were fully remediated and clearance certificates issued before the area was open to students and staff, in strict accordance with SafeWork NSW protocols.” Despite this, NSW Education Minister Sarah Mitchell confirmed that an investigation will look into the Department of Education's Professional and Ethical Standards unit and SafeWork NSW. Image: Facebook

Caring

Unusual car seat mistake that leaves your child in danger

With winter just around the corner, parents have been warned to not strap their child into a baby seat if they’re wearing a puffy jacket. Tiny Hearts Education founder, former paramedic and mum Nikki Jurcutz explained that the puffy jacket leaves space between the child and the seat belt which makes it dangerous. “As the temperature outside drops, we start to rug up. One of the best things I've found to keep my little ones warm is puff jackets, and I see so many kids wearing the same thing,” she wrote in an informative post on Facebook. “But if you're going to use a thick jacket like that, there's something that it doesn't go well with: A car seat.” She went on to explain how despite thinking you have strapped your child in safely, the space is dangerous when in an accident. “When your bub is wearing a thick jacket and put in the car seat, you'll tighten the strap to remove the slack,” she continued. “Thick jackets often trap air amongst the layers and feathers inside the jacket, so in an accident, the jacket compresses, creating excessive space between bub and their car seat straps. “This excessive space means they may not be held securely in the car seat, which increases their risk of injury in a crash.” Nikki went on to offer suggestions on how to ensure children are safely seated and strapped in the seat while wearing a jacket. “To test if a jacket is too thick to wear in a car seat, put bub in while wearing the jacket and tighten the slack like you normally would [remember: to check your harness is tight enough, you shouldn't be able to pinch any of the strap between your thumb and pointer finger]. “Then take bub out of their car seat without loosening the harness, then put bub back in the car seat. If you need to tighten it, the jacket shouldn't be worn in the car seat.” Otherwise, some alternatives to a puffy jacket can be: pre-warming the car before putting bub in, dressing bub in long-sleeve, using socks and singlets for extra layers, add blankets on the outside of the car seat. For older kids, try putting them in the car seat first, then put the jacket on backwards over their arms on the outside of the car seat straps. Image: Shutterstock

Caring

A failure at 6? Data-driven assessment isn’t helping young children’s learning

Children’s <a href="https://www.education.vic.gov.au/Documents/childhood/providers/edcare/veyldframework.pdf">early years</a> from birth to the age of eight are crucial for their social, emotional and intellectual development. However, early years education in Australia is fragmented. It operates across two spaces, the pre-compulsory period, often called early childhood education, and the first three years of compulsory schooling. In recent times the focus in these three years has been on assessment that produces numerical data. Teachers need to demonstrate children are meeting standards. In contrast, in the pre-compulsory years the focus is on observing and interacting with the child. Practices are based on the belief that all children have agency and are capable learners. A chasm has opened up between these <a href="https://www.routledge.com/Early-Childhood-and-Compulsory-Education-Reconceptualising-the-relationship/Moss/p/book/9780415687744">separate education systems</a>. Children go from playing to being tested in the blink of an eye. This abrupt change in young children’s education is problematic. <h2>What does research tell us about the early years?</h2> A <a href="https://research-repository.griffith.edu.au/bitstream/handle/10072/391647/Dunn356707Accepted.pdf?sequence=2&isAllowed=y">2015 review</a> of research on best practices in the early years identified key factors in successful teaching and learning. The review noted the importance of: <ul> <li> a smooth transition between pre-school education and compulsory school education </li> <li> play-based learning </li> <li> seeing children as capable and having agency in their learning </li> <li> <a href="https://www.education.vic.gov.au/school/teachers/teachingresources/discipline/english/literacy/speakinglistening/Pages/teachingpracdialogic.aspx">dialogic interactions</a> involving <a href="https://earlychildhood.qld.gov.au/earlyYears/Documents/language-dialogic-in-action.pdf">rich discussions</a> between children and between children and teachers. </li> </ul> Australia has introduced a mandated curriculum and a national assessment program in primary schools. The review noted this meant many early years teachers have adopted a more formalised and narrow approach to learning in schools. It isn’t appropriate for young children. We can see the resulting <a href="https://researchnow.flinders.edu.au/en/publications/where-are-the-early-years-of-school-in-contemporary-early-childho">divide between non-compulsory and compulsory</a> early years education in Victoria. On the one hand, teachers need to acknowledge the needs of children from birth to eight years. On the other hand, for those between the ages of five and 12, the <a href="https://victoriancurriculum.vcaa.vic.edu.au/">Victorian Curriculum</a> requires teachers to assess and report against curriculum standards. The focus on formal assessment and numerical data in the early years of schooling means children as young as six can be labelled as failing. In countries like Finland and Singapore, which have been <a href="https://www.oecd.org/pisa/pisaproducts/strongperformers/">identified</a> as <a href="http://timssandpirls.bc.edu/pirls2016/international-results/pirls/student-achievement/pirls-achievement-results/">high-performing</a>, children do not even <a href="https://expatchild.com/school-starting-ages-around-world/">begin formal schooling</a> before the age of six or seven. <iframe src="https://data.worldbank.org/share/widget?indicators=SE.PRM.AGES&type=shaded&view=map" width="100%" height="380" frameborder="0" scrolling="no"></iframe> <a href="https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/pdf/10.2304/ciec.2014.15.2.185">One study</a> has described the early years in countries like the United Kingdom, America and Australia as being at the mercy of top-down policy development, leading to “a highly prescriptive and assessment-driven early years climate”. <a href="https://www.routledge.com/The-Datafication-of-Primary-and-Early-Years-Education-Playing-with-Numbers/Bradbury-Roberts-Holmes/p/book/9781138242173">UK researchers</a> have identified the “datafication” of early years education and its impacts on children and teachers. And <a href="https://researchoutput.csu.edu.au/en/publications/a-sociological-analysis-of-australias-naplan-and-my-school-senate">Australian researchers</a> used the term “adultification” to describe the unrealistic expectations placed on young children. <h2>So what happens in our schools?</h2> My doctoral <a href="https://minerva-access.unimelb.edu.au/handle/11343/268186">research</a> found “datafication” and “adultification” defined the early years of schooling in Victoria. I engaged with more than 100 early-years teachers to explore their literacy teaching and assessment practices. The recurring theme was these teachers were expected to frequently assess young children in formal ways that provided numerical data. Teachers voiced frustration. One described the early years as “death by assessment”. Another lamented that community expectations were unreasonable, saying “people are hung up on data, numbers”. There was an overwhelming sense that the teachers knew their children best and should be given the agency to assess and plan for literacy teaching rather than being required to use a suite of commercially produced assessment tools. The Victorian Early Years Learning and Development Framework (<a href="https://www.education.vic.gov.au/Documents/childhood/providers/edcare/veyldframework.pdf">VEYLDF</a>) is designed to support early years teachers working with children and families. Its premise is that children have the greatest opportunities to develop neural pathways for learning and are also most vulnerable to negative experiences from birth to eight years. The framework is based on research into best practice for children in these years. Rather than formal assessment based on numbers, the VEYLDF advocates for assessment that is authentic and responsive to how all children can best demonstrate their learning and development. The Victorian Education Department <a href="https://www.education.vic.gov.au/childhood/professionals/learning/Pages/veyldf.aspx">encourages</a> teachers in schools to use the framework. However, little is known about how many actually use the framework to inform teaching and learning. Making it mandatory to report against curriculum standards from the time children begin compulsory schooling sets the boundaries for how many teachers operate. It is hard to have a foot in both camps when reporting against these standards is mandatory and you feel compelled to prepare children for what comes next – which includes <a href="https://www.nap.edu.au/">NAPLAN</a>, the national assessment program. <img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/432555/original/file-20211118-18-1xgrfo5.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" alt="Group of laughing and smiling children together among trees" /> ‘Death by assessment’ threatens the joy young children find in learning. Shutterstock <h2>Schools can still let children be children</h2> However, some schools are turning their backs on the relentless measuring of young children’s attainments. <a href="https://www.sjfootscray.catholic.edu.au/">St John’s</a>, a multicultural primary school in Melbourne’s inner west, is one example. You only need to look at the school <a href="https://www.sjfootscray.catholic.edu.au/learning/">website</a> to see its philosophy differs from many others. <blockquote> “St John’s Horizon [a school community-developed vision] clearly states ‘KIDS AT THE HEART’ which encapsulates our focus and belief in the image of the child – the child who is capable, curious, full of wonder, rich in knowledge, able to construct and co-construct his or her own learning. We believe in JOY – Joy in learning.” </blockquote> A conversation with the then principal, Gemma Goodyear, gave me an insight into these beliefs, which are inspired by teaching and learning in schools in <a href="https://www.reggiochildren.it/en/reggio-emilia-approach/">Reggio Emilia</a>, Italy. Goodyear said children do not come to school to be “fixed”, and the teachers engage them by providing meaningful, contextualised learning experiences. And, yes, through their focus on rich learning they still get great results without relentless testing. It is time to revisit the early years of schooling and ensure teachers have the skills and understandings they need to support learners in this phase. These years should be a time when children become engaged and excited about learning, a time of great joy, and a time when children are allowed to be children.<img style="border: none !important; box-shadow: none !important; margin: 0 !important; max-height: 1px !important; max-width: 1px !important; min-height: 1px !important; min-width: 1px !important; opacity: 0 !important; outline: none !important; padding: 0 !important; text-shadow: none !important;" src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/169463/count.gif?distributor=republish-lightbox-basic" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" /> <a href="https://theconversation.com/profiles/martina-tassone-1270226">Martina Tassone</a>, Early Childhood and Primary Course Coordinator and Language and Literacy Lecturer, <a href="https://theconversation.com/institutions/the-university-of-melbourne-722">The University of Melbourne</a> This article is republished from <a href="https://theconversation.com">The Conversation</a> under a Creative Commons license. Read the <a href="https://theconversation.com/a-failure-at-6-data-driven-assessment-isnt-helping-young-childrens-learning-169463">original article</a>. Image: Shutterstock

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A failure at 6? Data-driven assessment isn’t helping young children’s learning

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