EDUCATION

Learning Life is not your typical educational nonprofit.  That is, we are not focused on schools, nor on teaching A,B,Cs or 1,2,3s.  Rather, given sharp inequalities in education and power, we focus on developing wider learning communities that empower more people to become active, informed citizens in democracy and diplomacy.  Visit our democracy, and diplomacy pages to learn more about our work in these areas.  This page offers our educational credo, articles that lay out some of the thinking behind our work, and past educational initiatives we have led, including quizzes on a host of topics, and expert answers to big questions.      

Learning Life’s Educational Credo

It’s time to rethink education. It’s time to rethink when, where, how and what we learn.

When: Learning doesn’t just happen in youth.  It happens throughout life.

Where: Learning doesn’t just happen in classrooms.  Learning happens everywhere.  It happens when we talk with family, friends and strangers.  It happens when we look at cell phones, TVs, posters and cereal boxes.

How: Learning happens not just deliberately, but incidentally, through conversations and social media, not just books, teachers and schools.

What: There is now information abundance.  But not all information is equal in value.  There is who said what on TV sitcoms and social media, and who celebrities are dating, then there is what ordinary people are thinking and doing, and who is helping or hurting whom in the world.  There is trivia (trivial information), and there is signia (significant information).

If signia is to spread, let’s make it part of everyday life.

If life is learning, let learning live.

 

Learning Life Articles on Education

Click on any of the articles below to read them.  

America Needs Democracy Learning Communities (August 24, 2021)

Open Letter to Learning Life Families  (October 26, 2019)

Globalization, Inequality & Opportunity  (November 26, 2018)

Character, Connected Learning and the Future of Power (December 12, 2016)

Toward a Local Learning Infrastructure, Part 2  (November 21, 2015)

Toward a Local Learning Infrastructure, Part 1  (October 14, 2015)

If You Hear Old, You’ll Walk Old: Building on the Psychology of Priming (July 27, 2015)

New Report: Most U.S. Students Fail Civics, History & Geography (April 29, 2015)

Information, Knowledge & Inequality in Modern Societies  (March 28, 2015)

Trivia vs. Signia: A New Word for the English Language  (October 29, 2014)

Education: The Good, the Bad, & What We Can Do  (May 31, 2014)

Knowledge, or Information?  (March 30, 2014)

Humans are Inertial, Social Creatures: Social Science for Incidental Learning (July 31, 2013)

Op-Ed: Let Learning Live  (May 2, 2013)

Asking Bigger, Deeper Questions  (April 29, 2013)

The Strength of Big Bits  (March 31, 2013)

Tackling Public Ignorance with Incidental Learning  (January 25, 2013)

On the Importance of Knowledge  (December 13, 2012)

Let Learning Live  (December 13, 2012)

 

Learning Life Past Educational Projects

In 2013 to 2015, Learning Life worked on several projects to spread learning on everyday surfaces. Learn more about these projects in this early period in Learning Life’s history here.  In this same period, Learning Life researched, wrote, published and disseminated online a variety of quizzes, fact sheets and expert interviews you can read below.  

 

Quizzes
Energy & Environment

Animal Facts
Astronomy 101: The Stars
Astronomy 102: The Sun
Climate Change
Earthquakes & Earthquake Safety
Energy Facts

Environmental Facts
Renewable Energy
Water Facts

Health

Blood, Disease & Blood Donation
Cancer 101
Diabetes 101
Food Psychology
Food & Genetic Engineering
Heart Disease 101
Leading Causes of Death in the U.S. 
Nutrition 1
Nutrition 2
Obamacare (ACA)
Overweight & Obesity in America
Stroke 101
Suicide 101
World Population 2

History

African American History
Alexandria (Virginia) History 1
Alexandria (Virginia) History 2
Asian American History
History of Slavery
U.S. President John F. Kennedy
U.S. & Nazi History
U.S. History 101
U.S. Women’s History 1
U.S. Women’s History 2
World War I History

USA

African American History
Asian American History
Alexandria (Virginia) History 1

Alexandria (Virginia) History 2
American Government 101

Americans’ Spending & Savings
Crime & Crime Reporting in the USA
Defining U.S. Unemployment
Education, Employment & Income
Leading Causes of Death in the U.S. 
Living Conditions of U.S. Kids
Measurement System (USA)
Major U.S. Organizations

Obamacare (ACA)
Overweight & Obesity in America
Terrorism Facts
U.S. Civil Rights in Police Encounters
U.S. Constitution
U.S. Elections 101
U.S. Geography 101
U.S. Government Acronyms
U.S. Gov’t Income & Spending
U.S. History 101
U.S. Income Inequality
U.S. Population Race & Ethnicity
U.S. Prisons & Prisoners
U.S. Supreme Court
U.S. Women’s History 1
U.S. Women’s History 2

World

Acronyms: International Organizations
Country Quiz: Argentina
Country Quiz: China
Country Quiz: Egypt
Country Quiz: El Salvador
Country Quiz: India
Country Quiz: Jordan
Country Quiz: Mexico
Country Quiz: Morocco
Country Quiz: Philippines
Country Quiz: Senegal
Country Quiz: Syria 
History of Slavery
Introduction to Islam
Slavery Today
Terrorism Facts
The United Nations
World Geography 1
World Population 1
World Population 2

Miscellaneous

Animal Facts
Philosophy: Are Ethicists More Ethical?
Science of Shopping

Fact Sheets

Racial Inequality in Black & White Americans’ Health
Oil and the World
World Trade
How World Affairs Affect Us All
Cell Phones’ Influence on Social Life
International Migration
Money in American Politics
Mass Shootings in the USA
How Women Fare in the U.S. vs. Other Nations
Net Neutrality & Open Internet
U.S. Presidents’ Executive Orders
Africa’s Population Explosion
Boko Haram
The Problem of “Outer Space Junk”
Global Food Insecurity
The Islamic State of Iraq & the Levant (ISIL)
The Ebola Virus
Unemployment in the USA
Genetic Engineering & Food
Climate Change
U.S. Immigration
Russia & Ukraine
The Demographics of American Women
African American Demographics
Significant Facts on Everything from Climate Change…to Shopping Behavior

Expert Views on Big Questions   

What are the ingredients for happiness?
What are the ingredients of career success?
Is there intelligent life beyond Earth?
What are the underlying causes of terrorism?
How big a threat is terrorism?
How does news media reporting shape terrorism and public perception of terrorism?