Peter O'DonnellinAge of AwarenessWe teach algorithms in lieu of mathematicsAnother day, another class. It was only mid-morning, but my pupil was struggling to arouse her synapses. The topic was familiar enough —…Dec 28, 2023Dec 28, 2023
Peter O'DonnellinAge of AwarenessWhy do we teach by rote? And how can we do better?The morning was unremarkable. Having taken the first ten minutes to settle my eighth-grade physics class and direct their attention to the…Oct 15, 2023Oct 15, 2023
Peter O'DonnellinAge of AwarenessWhat outliers tell us about our school systemsIt was eighth-grade mathematics. Our teacher sat at the front corner of the room, an orderly stack of test papers resting on her desk. One…Oct 15, 2023Oct 15, 2023
Peter O'DonnellinAge of AwarenessBeyond PEMDAS: making sense of the arithmetic order of operationsMany of us will have encountered the mnemonic PEMDAS, sometimes Please Excuse My Dear Aunt Sally, or one of its synonyms¹ at some time…Oct 1, 2023Oct 1, 2023
Peter O'DonnellinAge of AwarenessSeparating education from validation“It is a miracle that curiosity survives formal education,” “The only thing that interferes with my learning is my education,” or…Nov 23, 2022Nov 23, 2022
Peter O'DonnellinAge of AwarenessRethinking the Body PositiveSelf-acceptance is not synonymous with empowermentJun 18, 20221Jun 18, 20221
Peter O'DonnellUnderstanding the two most important principles of physical trainingFor most of us, the basic mechanisms behind training and conditioning would seem straightforward: if we train hard and consistently, we…Nov 27, 2019Nov 27, 2019
Peter O'DonnellIdentifying our own motivations to exerciseAntonia was a new client: exceptionally tall, timid and self-conscious. Over the course of several weeks, I had watched her grow gradually…Nov 14, 20192Nov 14, 20192
Peter O'DonnellinIn Fitness And In HealthThe evolution of the gymnasium — from service to productIt was 1994. A skinny, hesitant nineteen-year-old man stepped into the nightclub-like darkness of a popular inner-city Melbourne gymnasium…Sep 7, 2019Sep 7, 2019