Remember the really annoying kids that used to chatter away at the back of the class disturbing everyone else, and yet still do better than you in exams? Well, according to some of the latest research to emerge from the prolific two-year "primary review", it looks like they were on to something.

Professors from Cambridge and Oxford universities suggested recently that children should talk and play together more in lessons, not less, and they should be rewarded for their efforts.

"Social interaction and collaborative activity" in the classroom can provide "valuable opportunities" for learning, they say.

As such, teachers should give their classes tasks to encourage them to work together rather than in competition with each other - as that does nothing to motivate them to learn.

So it should all be about "explanatory talk" involving the children "sharing, challenging and evaluating their views" - something they seldom get to do at the moment, the researchers say.

Likewise, play and make believe are important for early cognitive development and teachers should praise "effort rather than performance", as children who believe their intelligence is fixed are less likely to make an effort to learn than those who believe their intelligence can grow.

Research produced so far by the first major review of primary education in 40 years has been sound. And this appears to be more sensible stuff. But it does gall that the chatty kids will still have to be separated - not to stop them talking but to get others joining in.

Oh, and where exactly will your average teacher find time in the school day to fit in expansive discussion in the classroom?

The Guardian