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Education Journal No.92 (2006-2) |
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Natural Selection? Access and Accessibility Our Children’s Services Editor, Chris Waterman, discusses Natural Selection?, the latest of a series of pamphlets published by IRIS, which looks at the admissions patterns for all schools in England that take 5-to-11-year olds. Putting the Spark Back into Science Sue Howarth, Head of Science Qualifications at Edexcel, asks what can be done to save Science from its present fall in popularity. Health Arabella Hargreaves provides an overview of current news and research in the field of children’s health. This issue covers such topics as eating disorders, disrupted sleep, drug addiction and ADHD. The Training and Development Agency for Schools Chris Waterman discusses how the TDA are giving more cash to local authorities, as well as reviewing the way in which the available funding can best be deployed in future years. People The People column records the death of Peter Smith, former General Secretary of ATL, and Peter Waters, former director of education at Richmond on Thames. Ray Dowd is appointed Agenda for Change champion at the LSC. Investors in Families Gets off the Ground We look at how, by the end of the summer term, a group of headteachers, advisers, education officers and governors hope to be able to launch the first pilot of their scheme to accredit schools that are doing excellent work with families. Short Reports Harder A-level questions and military training in schools. Letter From Scotia Our Scotland Editor, John Dobie OBE, once again returns to the subject of the passage of the Scottish Schools (Parental Involvement) Bill through the Holyrood Parliament. Wales Our Wales Editor, Professor Ken Reid, revisits the topic of falling school rolls and the ways in which LEAs are trying to make financial savings through school closures and amalgamations. The Furlong Report Ken Reid examines the findings of the Furlong Report on initial teacher education. The report concludes that there is a significant over-supply of teachers in Wales and a shortage of Welsh-medium teachers, and makes some radical proposals. Media Report Tony Blair’s interview in the Guardian shows a very different vision of education than that with John Prescott a couple of weeks later. General section A Tribute to Ted Wragg Education Journal Editor, Demitri Coryton, reports on the tribute to Ted Wragg organised at the University of London Institute of Education, on 15 February. Conferences Conferences covered include ConfEd’s Children’s Services conference, Aspect’s White Paper debate and the annual data conference. We also look at forthcoming conferences. Fun Quotes, jokes and smiles. Opinion John Izbicki discusses recent newspaper reports on graduates being ill-prepared for the workplace. Mary Tasker, chairman of Human Scale Education, criticises the Education White Paper for putting emphasis on parent power rather than on partnership, and on competition rather than collaboration. Short Reports Welsh pupils lack of etiquette and headteachers’ doubts over the right to restrain pupils. Reference section Document Reviews The documents reviewed this month are Improving School Attendance in England, Securing Strategic Leadership in the Learning and Skills Sector and Skills for Life: improving adult literacy and numeracy from the Public Accounts Committee and Improving poorly performing schools in England from the National Audit Office. Document Digest Documents covered this month include Welsh Omnibus Survey 2006 – Summary from the Basic Skills Agency; Bichard Vetting and Barring Scheme from the Department of Health; GCE VCE A/AS Examination Results for Young People in England 2004-05 (Revised), GCSE and Equivalent Results and Associated Value Added Measures in England 2004-05 (Revised), The 2005 Secondary School (Key Stage 4) Achievement and Attainment Tables, The 2005 School and College (Post 16) Achievement and Attainment Tables, Qualifications Obtained by, and Examination Results of, Higher Education Students at Higher Education Institutions in the United Kingdom for the Academic Year 2004-05 and A Guide to the Law for School Governors 2006 from the DfES; Annual Report of Her Majesty’s Chief Inspector of Education and Training in Wales 2004-5 from Estyn; Exclusions from Schools 2004/05 from HMIE; Annual Performance Assessment: councils’ views on the annual performance assessment of children’s services in 2005, Data on Schools Causing Concern: Autumn Term 2005, Inspecting Outcomes for Children, The Performance and Management of Inspectors Involved in Institutional and Survey Inspections, and Quarterly Childcare Statistics: Registered childcare providers and places in England - December 2005 from Ofsted. Reports Digest Reports from LEAs in this issue include those covering interim child protection procedures for schools and nurseries, an integrated services programme to support schools and families, the integrated plan for Children's Services in the Stirling Council area 2005-08, and a self-help guide to the school governors’ role in school self evaluation and improvement. Research section Research Digest Research Notes Our Research Editor, Michael Marshall, looks at some of the latest comment on the theme of the divide between research and practice. Disruptive Behaviour in Schools Maria del Mar Badia Martin discusses recent research on disruptive pupil behaviour and offers practical advice and guidance on the management of problem behaviour for teachers, parents and administrators. Competition, Choice and Pupil Achievement We look at research from the London School of Economics and the European University Institute attempting to distinguish between the effects of school choice and competition. Short Research Reports Social mobility, Internet dangers and literacy. Parliament section The Education Bill Our Parliamentary Editor, Nick Kent, reports on two debates, one from the Commons, the other from the Lords, on the predicted contents of the Bill. Wales Helen Grimmett, editor of EPM Wales, reports on a debate on bullying, and on art and crafts education. Scotland Arabella Hargreaves, editor of EPM Scotland, reports on debates on the inspection of children’s services and combating childhood obesity. Parliamentary Questions Subjects covered include those on broadband Internet access for schools; availability of educational psychologists; numbers of overseas trained teachers; schools of ambition; and Welsh-medium education. Phoenix The marriage of the National Association of School Governors (formerly NAGM) and the National Governors Council; the Ted Wragg tribute; and French jam. |