Wednesday, April 22, 2009
News in brief. April 2009.
A summary of education news from the last month.
The Commons Children, Schools and families Select Committee published a report this month arguing that a National Curriculum should take up no more than half of the timetable of any school in England. The Committee reviewed evidence from 50 organisations and individuals and concluded that capping the time spent on the prescribed national curriculum at 50% would allow for an emphasis on teachers' professional innovation in designing and planning a curriculum for the other half of the school timetable.
The report recommends the English curriculum authorities follow the examples set by Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland who have all slimmed down the prescribed elements of their curriculum (Primary and Secondary ) and placed greater emphasis on broader curriculum aims and development of learning and life skills. In Northern Ireland, the requirements for the whole secondary curriculum now fit onto a single page. Since 1997 Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland have also made a significant move away from national testing and commitment to teacher assessment.
Scotland's Curriculum for Excellence
National Curriculum Inquiry report
The Select Committee report on the curriculum suggests a key aspect of the role of teachers is designing, planning and delivering their own activities and this role is most effective when teachers can access and understand research about teaching to understand the "theory" of curriculum. This fits in neatly with the new reflective research approach to the professional development of teachers delivered through the Teacher Learning Academy.
There is also no better time to take advantage of a free guide to innovation and curriculum design, just published by Futurelab. The guide is designed for school leaders and teachers and offers a good stimulus and guidance on how to develop your curriculum and innovate within current guidelines and requirements.
144 Colleges of Further Education have had their building and renovation projects put on hold after the Learning and Skills Council confirmed that funds for the multi- billion pound national scheme had run out early. In January, Sir Andrew Foster was commissioned to conduct an inquiry into the delivery of the capital funding of the scheme by the LSC and his report was also published this month. His report is clear in its conclusion that the problems were "predictable and avoidable" but were overlooked because of "failures in general management and financial management of the LSC." Whilst the inquiry report concludes the LSC held responsibility for the problems with the scheme, it also says monitoring by the Department for Innovation, Universities and Skills "should have been more rigorous".
Ofqual has announced that for the first time this summer it will be publishing examples of GCSE and A-Level exam answers, taken from real scripts. Head of Ofqual, Kathleen Tattersall said the examples will be shown to celebrate the achievements of young people and to address the annual speculation that exams are "getting easier". The real scripts will be placed online and will include artwork, technical designs and project work submitted for practical examinations.
The UK government is supporting community and schemes which encourage young and old people to spend time together on learning and leisure activities. Minister for Children, Beverley Hughes announced £5.5m to support schemes designed to break down barriers and strengthen communities. Local groups and charities can bid for some of the funding through their local council.
An innovative scheme to use the skills of University students to support language learning in schools has been launched by Brighton and Hove UK education authority. Students from Sussex University have been recruited to work as language assistants in local secondary schools on a regular basis and rather than being volunteers they are paid £10 an hour. Schools pay £12k per year to the local authority and in return the scheme finds native speakers to work with their learners from the pool of University students who have signed up to the scheme. Each school has 12-15 university students working with their learners for less than the cost of the salary of one Language Assistant employed in the traditional way. Children get access to native speakers on a consistent and regular basis in small groups or one-to-one.
An evaluation of the pilot scheme has concluded that learners have reported an increased enthusiasm for language learning as well as an increase in exam success. At Falmer High School, Brighton, the number of pupils studying a modern foreign language for GCSE has doubled since the scheme started two years ago, and 54 per cent of those taking the subject gain a top grade A* to C-grade At Hove Park High School, which is now a specialist language college where all youngsters are expected to take at least one language at GCSE, the percentage getting top grade passes at GCSE has risen from 38 per cent to 56 per cent in two years.
Each year the research agency Childwise publishes a summary report on the trends, views and lifestyles of 5-16 year olds in the UK following interviews with 1800 children from 92 schools in the UK. The Childwise Monitor Survey is now in its fifteenth year and the 2008/9 survey has been published. Some interesting figures have emerged. A child aged 5-16 living in the UK today spends on average 5 hours, 10 minutes a day in front of a screen outside of school. 4/5 children have access to the internet in their bedroom when they leave Primary School and 62% of Secondary School children have a social networking site profile and spend an average of 2hours, 20 minutes a day on the site/s. There are more fascinating statistics in the full report, but it does cost £1250 to read for yourself ! If we discover any more analysis of the report, we will pass iton in future newsletters.