Tuesday, January 26, 2010
Have your say, January 2010
Opportunities, consultations and free resources for learners, teachers and schools available now.
Storybird is a free website designed to allow two or more people to create a short visual story with words and pictures. The site works by one person starting a short story and a friend or someone in their family then adds to it. The final story can be left for other visitors to the site to view and comment on, or just shared between the creators. The site is free and designed for 3-13 year olds to use with their families.
The Research Engaged School Award. NFER, together with the NUT, IfL, NCSL and Education Journal, offers schools and colleges an award to acknowledge the efforts they have made in using research to improve teaching and learning. There are 22 criteria, central to the theme of research being part of the culture of the school and supported through its systems and practice. All schools and colleges are eligible for the award which is judged on a termly basis. Schools are required to submit an application form and a short document describing how they meet the criteria. To find out more or download an application form visit the website.If successful in achieving the Research Engaged Schools Award, schools are provided with a logo for their school which can be used on headed notepaper and websites as well as a certificate which is valid for three years. Latest research from the National college for school leadership Research Associate Programme is available free to download or read. The research is conducted by senior leaders in schools alongside their role. Latest titles feature the emotional aspects of school leadership and improvement and success. To read research or details on how to enrol in the programme visit the website.
The Royal Society for the Protection of Birds has lots of free resources, ideas and competitions for children, young people and schools on its website. There is a dedicated website for children as well as the general RSPB site. Webcams placed at RSPB reserves can also be watched from the site. There are several awards for schools to apply for and resources to support schools taking part in The Big Schools Birdwatch and the Small Schools Birdwatch events taking place in late January and early February. Details for both of these events can be found on the following site.
The Brit Writers Awards are open to all unpublished writers with categories for all ages. The prizes are substantial with a glittering awards ceremony in June 2010. The awards organisers are encouraging schools to run writing competitions and offer free support with these. The closing date for entering pieces of writing for the awards is 26th February. Visit the website for more details.
The Six Word Story - Arvon Foundation: Ernest Hemingway said that his best piece of writing was a six word story - ‘For sale: baby shoes. Never worn.’ Arvon’s theme for 2010 is the six word story. Throughout the year they will be collecting six word stories on their website. They will showcase as many stories as they can on their website and the winning stories will be chosen by poet Karen McCarthy. For more details click here. Send your six word stories to by 1 September 2010. Closing date 10th Sep 2010
MP for a week : A New feature on the UK Parliament website has been launched which allows users to explore the roles and responsibilities of an MP in a typical week in the UK parliament. Essentially it is a simulation game where users take the role of a back-bench MP and take part in debates, press conferences and parliamentary meetings with success updates (position in polls, texts received) according to the decisions the user makes. Very useful to develop interest and understanding in the political process and although designed for key stage three, the three levels of difficulty make it suitable for older students and maybe younger students as a class activity. Visit the site to use this free resource.
Considering pupils' views A new DCSF consultation seeks opinions on new regulations that will set out the minimum set of matters on which governing bodies of maintained schools must invite and consider their pupils views. Launch Date: Monday 11 January 2010 , closing Date: Monday 29 March 2010.
- Read the consultation document on-line
- Respond on-line
- Considering pupils' views - Consultation Document
- Considering pupils' views - Response Form
- The School Governance (Invitation and Consideration of Pupils’ Views) (Prescribed Matters) (England) Regulations 2010
- Considering pupils' views - Impact Assessment
DCSF launch Joint consultation with the National College for Leadership of Schools and Children's Services the DCSF are undertaking a joint consultation with the National College for Leadership of Schools and Children's Services on the new role for School Improvement Partners (SIPs) following the publication of the white paper, Your child, your school, our future: building a 21st century schools system. As part of this consultation, we invite you to complete an online questionnaire. (click here) The questionnaire will be open from 11 January 2010 until 9 April 2010.