So the announcement this week of major revisions to the GCSE programme as well as the extended Diplomas.
And another mailing from KSSP reminding me that Key Skills continues until 2010 only - It is starting to feel like a new curriculum all round.
In fact I've registered www.thenewcurriculum.co.uk - suggestions as to what I should put on this site?
Sunday, 16 March 2008
Sunday, 9 March 2008
4 and a half A levels
As a bit of an addundum to the last posting.
Apparently, there will be a super Diploma worth 4.5 A levels!
I have a feeling that it's all a bit too complex and perhaps, going back to basics would be a better way forward all round?
Apparently, there will be a super Diploma worth 4.5 A levels!
I have a feeling that it's all a bit too complex and perhaps, going back to basics would be a better way forward all round?
Friday, 7 March 2008
Is this really the right thing to do
I haven't checked this out yet in any form but on the news this morning an announcement that the Government is to make the new Diploma level 3 quals more acadmeic and worth 4.5 A levels.
Surely this can't be right. I know it was a long time ago but I only did 3 A levels, and I was there full time at school, every day and had masses of extra work to do. Further, we are faliing a significant proportion of youngsetrs already in not having the right studty programme for them. Students who are academically minded already have good routes, those who haven't the ability to get acadmeic quals are again being marginalised.
I also simply don't believe that it is possible to do the equivalent of 4.5 A levels and then have employers beleive it was wotrh 4.5 A levels. Saying it is is just wrong, as no-one will believe it and therefore the qual will be devalued.
More on this when I have investigated.
I'm a big supporter of the new quals (as you'd expect) but this looks like a step too far
Surely this can't be right. I know it was a long time ago but I only did 3 A levels, and I was there full time at school, every day and had masses of extra work to do. Further, we are faliing a significant proportion of youngsetrs already in not having the right studty programme for them. Students who are academically minded already have good routes, those who haven't the ability to get acadmeic quals are again being marginalised.
I also simply don't believe that it is possible to do the equivalent of 4.5 A levels and then have employers beleive it was wotrh 4.5 A levels. Saying it is is just wrong, as no-one will believe it and therefore the qual will be devalued.
More on this when I have investigated.
I'm a big supporter of the new quals (as you'd expect) but this looks like a step too far
Tuesday, 26 February 2008
LSN
Just recieved an email from the KSSP part of LSN this morning saying that most support ends in March. But not a lot on what takes over other than a link to the excellence gateway - strange!
Tuesday, 12 February 2008
Astonishing press coverage of 16 year old school leavers
In todays Daily Mail.
p12 - pupils in big schools are doomed to failure - a focus on those 78000 pupils who leave without even the basic qualifications.
p19 - tories pledge to get Jeremy Kyle generation into jobs - main focus of the story is dissaffected young men and the growth of NEETS
p24 - head of eton calls for overhaul of GCSE - do 6 instead of 16 plus a range of other interetsing stuff. You don't have to test and examine everything.
p29 - the Hair and Beauty diploma that doesn't actually involve cutting hair - comment of the new diplomas.
Four stories, all focussed on 16 year olds and with a clear tendency towards fising the problems of low achievement.
p12 - pupils in big schools are doomed to failure - a focus on those 78000 pupils who leave without even the basic qualifications.
p19 - tories pledge to get Jeremy Kyle generation into jobs - main focus of the story is dissaffected young men and the growth of NEETS
p24 - head of eton calls for overhaul of GCSE - do 6 instead of 16 plus a range of other interetsing stuff. You don't have to test and examine everything.
p29 - the Hair and Beauty diploma that doesn't actually involve cutting hair - comment of the new diplomas.
Four stories, all focussed on 16 year olds and with a clear tendency towards fising the problems of low achievement.
Friday, 8 February 2008
Using games for learning
An interesting poll by YouGov on behalf of RM shows how something can be spun in each direction.
RM says "There is a strongly expressed interest in using these for learning, with 30% saying they would like to use video games to help them learn, 20% an MP3 player and 18% social networking sites".
Now I'm quite diappointed at some of these figures. Given that virtaully every teenager has a games player of some description, only 1 in 3 want to use it for learning and an even lower number for sites such as MSN.
There's been loads of talk about how msn and bebo and myspace can be used for learning, perhaps all of us "advisers/adults/teachers/commentators" shouldn't bother as I think the spin on this story is that teenagers don't want to use their technologies for learning. Games are games they appear to say, now leave me alone whilst I play!
RM says "There is a strongly expressed interest in using these for learning, with 30% saying they would like to use video games to help them learn, 20% an MP3 player and 18% social networking sites".
Now I'm quite diappointed at some of these figures. Given that virtaully every teenager has a games player of some description, only 1 in 3 want to use it for learning and an even lower number for sites such as MSN.
There's been loads of talk about how msn and bebo and myspace can be used for learning, perhaps all of us "advisers/adults/teachers/commentators" shouldn't bother as I think the spin on this story is that teenagers don't want to use their technologies for learning. Games are games they appear to say, now leave me alone whilst I play!
Friday, 1 February 2008
Independent reports backs creative use of ICT
Extracted from the excellent http://www.merlinjohnonline.net/ site.
Yet again, another indepdnant reports that states that using "cutting edge creative technology to work with some of the most challenging students" really does work.
Some comments and they aren't out of context at all.
“We did a big push on digital creativity, cutting edge stuff,” he says. “Kids were getting into podcasting really early, and we were using podcasting in teaching.”
“And I think these tools can do it. They ensure that kids will get it right.”
“Now when children become successful they feel better about themselves, and they stop ‘effing and blinding’ and doing all the things that, in the context of our work, get them excluded from mainstream schools. In the long term we don’t want them marginalised, so if we can help them believe they can learn, and be successful, they can then learn new behaviour and then learn to be sociable and the whole thing follows itself. What’s wonderful is, in the video clips you can see children talking about how it has impacted on them.”
It makes me even more convinced that what we are doling is right - we just need to get it to students!
Read the full report by clicking the merlinjohn link above.
Yet again, another indepdnant reports that states that using "cutting edge creative technology to work with some of the most challenging students" really does work.
Some comments and they aren't out of context at all.
“We did a big push on digital creativity, cutting edge stuff,” he says. “Kids were getting into podcasting really early, and we were using podcasting in teaching.”
“And I think these tools can do it. They ensure that kids will get it right.”
“Now when children become successful they feel better about themselves, and they stop ‘effing and blinding’ and doing all the things that, in the context of our work, get them excluded from mainstream schools. In the long term we don’t want them marginalised, so if we can help them believe they can learn, and be successful, they can then learn new behaviour and then learn to be sociable and the whole thing follows itself. What’s wonderful is, in the video clips you can see children talking about how it has impacted on them.”
It makes me even more convinced that what we are doling is right - we just need to get it to students!
Read the full report by clicking the merlinjohn link above.
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