https://phys.org/science-news/education/ en-us Phys.org provides latest news on STEM (science, technology, engineering, and mathematics) education A new study found that children who start school at older ages complete more total years of schooling, had greater wealth in adulthood, and had fewer teen pregnancies. Men were less likely to become HIV-infected and women were less likely to experience the death of a child. Starting school at an older age may result in greater health, educational, and economic well-being among children in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs), according to a new study by a Boston University School of Public Health (BUSPH) researcher. https://phys.org/news/2026-04-primary-school-outcomes-income-countries.html Education Wed, 15 Apr 2026 15:00:01 EDT news695473802 In 2023, about 85% of the roughly five million articles indexed in major global databases covering the natural, medical and social sciences were written in English. In 1990, the proportion was considerably higher: 94%. https://phys.org/news/2026-04-english-dominates-science-fell.html Other Wed, 15 Apr 2026 11:20:03 EDT news695468474 Learning a second language is becoming increasingly popular worldwide, with millions of people turning to digital tools and mobile applications to pick up a new language at their own pace. But what makes some more popular or effective than others? https://phys.org/news/2026-04-memory-language.html Education Wed, 15 Apr 2026 09:20:01 EDT news695463422 As school holidays continue around Australia, many parents are looking for educational ways to keep their children entertained. https://phys.org/news/2026-04-google-teacher-apps-kids-parents.html Education Tue, 14 Apr 2026 22:40:04 EDT news695384448 In a new paper published in the British Journal of Sociology of Education, University of Sheffield researchers argue that the modern university experience is increasingly defined by stifling targets and material pressures. https://phys.org/news/2026-04-pedagogy-joy-higher.html Social Sciences Tue, 14 Apr 2026 12:40:02 EDT news695387041 A pervasive narrative has taken hold in education: generative AI (genAI) is an unstoppable force, and educators must adapt or be left behind. https://phys.org/news/2026-04-ai-pragmatists-language-teachers-nuance.html Education Sat, 11 Apr 2026 18:00:01 EDT news694777855 Millions of students nationwide use text-supplemented audiobooks, learning tools that are thought to help those who struggle with reading keep up in the classroom. A new study by scientists at MIT's McGovern Institute for Brain Research finds that many students do benefit from audiobooks, gaining new vocabulary through the stories they hear. But study participants learned significantly more when audiobooks were paired with explicit one-on-one instruction—and this was especially true for students who were poor readers. https://phys.org/news/2026-04-audiobooks-students-words-paired.html Education Fri, 10 Apr 2026 13:20:04 EDT news695045461 Less than half of parents are confident that their children's school is well prepared if their students become victims of "nudification AI" apps, a survey has found. The survey found that just 47% were confident or very confident that their child's school was ready to respond to AI-generated abuse, which may be perpetrated by other students. https://phys.org/news/2026-04-parents-schools-ready-nudification-ai.html Social Sciences Thu, 09 Apr 2026 19:20:04 EDT news694946530 Around 1% of the global population has a Ph.D. It's the highest academic qualification, the result of years spent on original research. But—and this is a question that many Ph.D. students will have faced, at some time or another—what's the point? https://phys.org/news/2026-04-academia-people-phd-problem.html Education Thu, 09 Apr 2026 16:20:02 EDT news694957322 A message appears online during heavy flooding: "This rain no be small o, everywhere don red." Someone unfamiliar with the phrasing might hesitate. But for people in Nigeria, this message is immediate and clear: the flooding is severe and worsening. https://phys.org/news/2026-04-ai-language-barrier-limits-climate.html Education Thu, 09 Apr 2026 15:20:04 EDT news694955882 Dropping out of high school has been linked to higher rates of delinquency and lower socioeconomic status, but thinking of high school dropouts collectively, as one group, is a flawed belief that could be affecting interventions. The paper is published in the journal Emerging Adulthood. https://phys.org/news/2026-04-rethinks-dropout-crime.html Education Thu, 09 Apr 2026 14:40:05 EDT news694954622 Earlier this year, I published a paper on the ethics of researching military populations. The core argument was straightforward: the standard rules researchers follow to protect participants—for example, informed consent and voluntary participation—don't work the same in an institution built on hierarchy and obedience. https://phys.org/news/2026-04-plagiarized-automated.html Social Sciences Wed, 08 Apr 2026 18:20:01 EDT news694847162 Whether it's documents in textbooks or fiction studied in literature classes, reading print remains a pillar in learning. But the audiobook craze opens up new possibilities. https://phys.org/news/2026-04-audiobooks.html Education Wed, 08 Apr 2026 15:20:02 EDT news694872122 Two children sit in different schools. Both struggle to read. Both have similar low scores on national tests. But while one gets a diagnosis of specific learning difficulties and a package of support, the other is left to fall behind. https://phys.org/news/2026-04-children-difficulties-dont.html Education Wed, 08 Apr 2026 11:50:03 EDT news694867262 In an editorial, National Academy of Engineering President Tsu-Jae Liu presents a forward-looking perspective on the role of artificial intelligence in engineering. She describes AI not as a replacement for engineers, but as a tool that can expand their capacity to solve complex problems and develop innovative solutions that benefit society. By reducing routine tasks and supporting the design process, AI can improve efficiency and allow engineers to focus on higher-level, creative work. Liu also highlights its potential to make the profession more accessible to a broader range of students and early-career practitioners. https://phys.org/news/2026-04-expert-ai-redefine-scope.html Education Tue, 07 Apr 2026 19:00:05 EDT news694774201 A new study finds teachers tend to provide assistance to similar subsets of students when using AI-powered educational tools, rather than touching base regularly with everyone in their classes. The findings could be used to develop tools that help teachers track their classroom interactions to ensure they are giving each student the attention they need. The paper is published on the arXiv preprint server. https://phys.org/news/2026-04-teachers-tend-kids-ai-powered.html Education Tue, 07 Apr 2026 14:10:01 EDT news694788175 Do chatbots have a role in higher education? It's a question Joshua Lambert, an associate professor and biostatistician in the University of Cincinnati College of Nursing, is pondering. He's turned to a group of his students to find out their thoughts about the helpfulness and satisfaction of a custom AI education chatbot. https://phys.org/news/2026-04-students-ai-chatbots.html Education Tue, 07 Apr 2026 13:00:03 EDT news694784029 People using other people's ideas, words and creations without acknowledgment is a widespread problem. Plagiarism occurs everywhere from restaurant menus to political speeches and music. https://phys.org/news/2026-04-ai-university-students-plagiarizing.html Education Sun, 05 Apr 2026 14:00:03 EDT news694347699 More inclusive secondary schools see fewer students dropping out of education and becoming "not in education, employment or training" (NEET), according to new research from Leeds academics. Schools that are considered more inclusive because they use fewer suspensions, support lower-achieving pupils to make good progress, and have their own post-16 provision see fewer young people dropping out of education or training after Year 11, the data shows. The study is published in the journal Royal Society Open Science. https://phys.org/news/2026-04-inclusive-schools-young-people-neet.html Education Wed, 01 Apr 2026 15:50:03 EDT news694277041 Findings from the Systematizing Confidence in Open Research and Evidence (SCORE) program—a collaborative effort involving 865 researchers—have been published in Nature as a collection of three papers alongside a release of five additional preprints. The SCORE program offers new empirical evidence on the reproducibility, robustness, and replicability of research across the social and behavioral sciences, and the predictability of replicability. https://phys.org/news/2026-03-replicate.html Social Sciences Wed, 01 Apr 2026 11:00:16 EDT news694187761 Students across education levels have a blind spot for identifying situations that might bring their academic integrity into questionable territory, a study finds. When navigating questions on citation, collaboration, and data collection, students in higher education struggle to identify the gray zones in academic practice. https://phys.org/news/2026-03-college-students-struggle-problematic-gray.html Education Tue, 31 Mar 2026 15:40:04 EDT news694179662 The rise of generative AI in higher education is reshaping how feedback is delivered, but meaningful learning could be undermined if its use is not carefully guided by principles of care, trust and connection, according to new research led by the University of Surrey. Published in Assessment & Evaluation in Higher Education, the paper explores how generative AI technologies, including chatbots such as ChatGPT, are transforming feedback for students—highlighting both the opportunities and risks of AI in education. https://phys.org/news/2026-03-ai-undermine-meaningful-feedback-stays.html Education Tue, 31 Mar 2026 13:30:01 EDT news694174897 Is wittiness a kind of fitness? Ljiljana Progovac explores the idea that quick-wittedness—using and combining words in a clever and funny way—has been actively selected for in humans from the dawn of language. The findings are published in the journal PNAS Nexus. https://phys.org/news/2026-03-survival-wittiest-expert-linguistic-cleverness.html Social Sciences Tue, 31 Mar 2026 10:10:06 EDT news694168511 It is widely accepted that learning English is essential for many adult migrants who move to the UK. Yet in the last census, over 1 million residents in England and Wales reported not speaking English well or at all. https://phys.org/news/2026-03-english-migrants.html Education Mon, 30 Mar 2026 20:20:03 EDT news694110602 Fielding frantic faculty emails and panicked texts was not how I had hoped my 2025 would begin. Little did I imagine that my role as a research dean at a medical school would be taken over by navigating chaotic grant terminations and delays of federal research funding, all justified in the name of scientific progress. https://phys.org/news/2026-03-panicking-scientists-canceled-federal-funding.html Education Mon, 30 Mar 2026 20:00:03 EDT news694110481 The practice of states revising standards for how their schools teach history is developing a storied and often contentious history of its own. A University of Kansas scholar has published new research arguing that history standards are prone to overt politicization, and that the best examples of how to handle history education are in states that practice "standards minimalism." The paper is published in the Journal of American History. https://phys.org/news/2026-03-history-standards-prone-politicization-minimalism.html Education Mon, 30 Mar 2026 18:20:08 EDT news694109581 To date, the main role of AI in scientific research has been to assist with narrow tasks such as discovering chemical structures, analyzing data or predicting protein shapes. But now, the technology has broken new ground with a fully AI-generated paper passing peer review at a major machine-learning conference workshop. https://phys.org/news/2026-03-ai-paper-peer.html Other Mon, 30 Mar 2026 13:40:06 EDT news694094745 Suspicion and affection. Apprehension and excitement. Most people have mixed feelings about AI English, whether or not they always recognize it. When reading text generated by AI, people feel it sounds off, or fake. When reading English by a human, people are more likely to feel it has a characteristic voice or a personal touch. https://phys.org/news/2026-03-ai-english-human-differ-artificial.html Education Sat, 28 Mar 2026 12:30:05 EDT news693484515 Debates about generative AI in higher education have been informed by studies of completed student papers, or self-reported survey data. Research shows that artificial intelligence tools can support learning, but has also raised concerns, including students' overreliance, cheating, and the potential degradation of critical thinking and engagement. https://phys.org/news/2026-03-college-students-ai-theyre-simply.html Education Sat, 28 Mar 2026 09:30:01 EDT news693753179 As the demand for cybersecurity professionals continues to rise, new research from the University of South Florida identified a growing interest among higher education institutions to incorporate work-based learning in cybersecurity programs to help close the gap between academic preparation and the skills employers are seeking. https://phys.org/news/2026-03-based-key-cybersecurity-skills-gap.html Education Sat, 28 Mar 2026 08:30:01 EDT news693658098