Category Archives: Education

Why Tech Investors Enjoy Kitesurfing More Than Golf

Posted on July 25, 2011 by Mark

If you are an entrepreneur seeking investors, you may have been given dated advice in business school to learn to golf, but CNet has another idea. Want a VC deal? Go fly a kiteboard: Valley VCs and entrepreneurs have long … Continue reading →

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Posted in Books, Business, Education, Society and Culture, United States | Comments Off

Why Students and Teachers are Striking in Chile

Posted on July 11, 2011 by Tomas Bradanovic

I wrote a few months ago about the success of voucher education in Chile, and thousands of students responded by staging a strike at the Presidential palace of La Moneda. I asked Chilean blogger Tomas Bradanovic to explain the strike. … Continue reading →

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Posted in Chile, Education, Guest Posts | 11 Comments

Bottom Up Strategies in Business, Part 1

Posted on May 28, 2011 by Mark

Do exceptional leaders that plan new products grow faster than those using bottom up strategies, experimenting and failing often? Authors Peter Sims (Little Bets), Tim Harford (Adapt: Why Success Always Starts With Failure), and Michael Shermer (The Mind of the … Continue reading →

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Voucher Education in Chile

Posted on May 11, 2011 by Mark

Childhood education in Chile is a good example of how a military dictatorship can be better than a democracy. The Pinochet government radically revamped education in Chile in 1981 and has become a successful laboratory studied by researchers around the world. Prior to that time, the national government was a democracy that operated most schools for children, enrolling 80% of students, using a national curriculum. Continue reading →

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Posted in Chile, Education | 3 Comments

Software Publisher Proves College is Unnecessary

Posted on May 6, 2011 by Mark

Sridhar Vembu, CEO of Zoho, developer of applications such as word processors and spreadsheets that competes against Microsoft Office and Google Docs, recruits employees using a unique process that gives them an advantage over his wealthier competitors. Instead of hiring … Continue reading →

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Posted in Business, Education, India, United States | Comments Off

PayPal Founder Challenges Higher Education Bubble

Posted on April 19, 2011 by Mark

PayPal founder and early Facebook investor Peter Thiel challenges the higher education bubble in a recent interview. His 20 Under 20 Fellowship encourages young people to create technology rather than go to college, and is likely to prove that smart … Continue reading →

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Posted in Business, Education, United States | 2 Comments

Poor Turbulent Families: Misfortune or Opportunity?

Posted on March 8, 2011 by Mark

Is it possible for a child to overcome life with parents who act like children, too? Two memoirs of poor girls describe the pains and joys of surviving, and eventually prospering, by seizing opportunities despite difficult parents and poor surroundings. … Continue reading →

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Is Engineering a Better Career Than Law?

Posted on February 15, 2011 by Mark

I watched a video a few years ago by Stanford Technology Ventures Program director Tina Seelig, “What I Wish I Knew When I Was 20″ and pondered what advice I’d have for an inquisitive young person. The video was so … Continue reading →

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Posted in Books, Business, Economics, Education, Government and Law, United States | 2 Comments

The Hong Kong Economy of South America

Posted on February 13, 2011 by Mark

Mario Waissbluth, a blogger for La Tercera newspaper, recently wrote about the gap in incomes between rich and poor Chileans, and advocates an increase in corporation and other taxes to narrow the gap. There is great inequality in Chile, but … Continue reading →

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Posted in Chile, Economics, Education, Government and Law | 5 Comments

Interview: Language Systems Founder David Lancashire

Posted on February 4, 2011 by Mark

Language Systems, website producers of Popup Chinese and Popup Cantonese, provides lessons for serious students learning Chinese and learning Cantonese. The company is owned by Dave Lancashire, a Canadian who started the company in Beijing and moved it to Chile … Continue reading →

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Posted in Business, Chile, Education, Profiles and Interviews, Start-Up Chile | Comments Off