West Vancouver teachers learned Wednesday that there will be a new type of school uniform required for staff based on some timely educational research.
Chris Kennedy, superintendent of schools for the West Vancouver school district, announced on his blog April 1 that “going forward all teachers will be required to teach in pyjamas – even when we return to in-person learning.”
Kennedy said the move is being made in light of recent research coming out about remote learning in light of the global COVID-19 pandemic.
According to that Swedish-based research, “teachers are able to have students perform at least 5 per cent better when they teach in their pyjamas,” wrote Kennedy.
“Pyjama-Based Learning (more commonly referred to in the research as PBL) is being positively received around the world,” he wrote.
The work builds on previous studies, which showed students whose teachers took part in “Pyjama Days” got higher marks than those who didn’t.
That study “has been a real sleeper that has finally come out from under the covers,” wrote Kennedy.
While research is unclear about the reason for the success of Pyjama-Based Learning, Kennedy wrote it’s possible teachers can spend more time planning lessons when they don’t have to think about what they’re wearing. Less likely, but also possible, is that “pyjamas have some magical powers,” he wrote, adding, “more research is needed” on topics like why yoga pants may not achieve the same effect.
Kennedy said his own at-home office attire can be described as the “Zoom Meeting Casual” look – “business on the top, time for bed on the bottom.”
“As the kids say, I am livin’ la vida jam-jam,” he wrote, adding that in West Vancouver schools, “We are not afraid to engage in acts of PDP (Public Displays of Pyjamas.)”
The announcement about Pyjama Based Learning follows other cutting-edge educational moves Kennedy has discussed over the years, including the formation of the Rock, Paper, Scissors Academy and the start of a Drone Homework Delivery System.
And yes, those announcements were also made on April 1.
