Search

Presents news briefs on education in Great Britain as of March 2004. Information on the guidance for schools offered by the British Office for Standards in Education; Benefit of the "Special Report: School Admissions and Appeals," published by the Local Government Ombudsmen; Potential success of the Cambridge, England-MIT Institute according to a report by John Bourn, head of the National Audit Office.

Presents information on seminars concerning education in Great Britain in March 2004. Meeting organized by the Comprehensive Future pressure group and the Socialist Education Association; Presentation by the Local Education Authorities Research Group on the development of Children's Trusts across the country.

Features several journals about education reviewed in "Education " for the week ending December 19, 2003. "Education Review"; "International Studies in Educational Administration"; "Educational Action Research"; "Journal of Research in International Education."

Presents several information resources about education. "The Future of Initial Teacher Education for the Learning and Skills Sector: An Agenda for Reform," which talked about the teacher education system for the learning and skills sector; "Post Qualifications Applications: Issues Paper by DfES," which discussed post qualifications admissions system for university admission; "The Initial Training of Further Education Teachers: A Survey," which tackled teacher training.

Provides information on published reports about the status of the education system in Great Britain. Identification of the scale of the problems in education by Seonag Mackinnon, education editor of the "Scotsman"; Concern on local school reorganization proposals reported by the "Edinburgh Evening News"; Fee-fixing in independent schools tackled by "The Independent."

Comments on two reports on education issued in Great Britain in October 2003. "The Reality of School Staffing," released by the National Union of Teachers; "Secondary Education: Pupil Achievement," released by the House of Commons.

Presents education-related issues featured in several British newspapers in December 2002. Implication of high tuition fees for the decision of working class students to attend college, by Tony Halpin of "Times"; on the rate of university dropout students in the country; Report on the curriculum vitae of Tory leader Iain Duncan Smith in "Newsnight."

Presents a study on the continuing gap between boys and girls' achievement in literacy, both in Great Britain and abroad. Determination of the literacy as the cornerstone for educational success; Development of the National Reading Campaign's Reading Connects, which aims to help build a culture based on reading; Importance of educational strategy for better quality learning.

Reports on the problem with adult literacy suffered by Great Britain and the United States. Impact of the low literacy in the year 1993 to U.S. government in connection to literacy education budget; Government strategy of Great Britain after the result of a million adults in England with similar literacy problem; Examination of different approaches to literacy problem conducted by Tom Sticht.

Acknowledges the importance of turning a child on to reading early in life. Aim of the Reading Connects, a National Literacy Trust initiative, to develop schools as reading-rich environments; Role of parents and carers to play; Importance of community-based initiatives to raise standards of literacy.

Highlights the speech given by Education Secretary Charles Clarke regarding the budget for education in Great Britain in 2004. Percentage of increase in education spending year; Number of centres for children by 2008; Remarks from Doug McAvoy, National Union of Teachers general secretary, regarding under-funded schools.

Reports on the comments of several newspapers regarding the budget for education in Great Britain in 2004. "The Times"; "Daily Telegraph"; "Guardian."

Comments on the contribution of chancellor Gordon Brown to the political budgets for education in Great Britain. Views of some teacher union leaders regarding the budget for schools.

Presents information on the content of a 2004 issue of the journal "Active Learning in Higher Education."

Presents information on the criticism by England Education Secretary Charles Clarke on the nation's quality of teaching during a conference of the General Teaching Council for England in March 2004. Improvement in the quality of teaching as cited in an Ofsted report; Unreliability of the education system for pupils or parents; Confusion brought about by the government's message to teachers.

Reports on the opportunity given by the National College for School Leadership for England's school leaders to question British Office for Standards in Education chief David Bell on the proposed changes to the inspection system. Reason behind the need to change the model of inspection according to Bell; Advantage of reducing the notice of inspection.

Features two reports about education published by the British House of Commons Select Committee on Education and Skills in 2004. "Public Expenditure: Schools' Funding"; "First Special Report, Government's Response to the Seventh Report From the Education and Skills Committee."

Reports the plans of Scottish Education Minister Peter Peacock for disaffected pupils. Information on the pupil infusion network plan; Impact of pupil disaffection; Remarks from Peacock.

Reports the comments solicited by the British Learning and Skills Council (LSC) for its equality and diversity plans. Launch date of the strategy; Role of the LSC; Goal of the strategy.

Reports the introduction of a Sex and Relationships Education guide for school governors by the Sex Education Forum in December 2003. Responsibility of school governors for sex and relationships education.

Reports the need for openness and transparency in schools, according to Scottish Education Minister Peter Peacock. Information on his report, National Priorities Performance; Remarks from Peacock.

Reports the management weaknesses of the National Council for Education and Training for Wales, according to the Audit Committee. Failure of an innovative project of the council; Implication for other Assembly sponsored bodies and to the Welsh Assembly Government; Remarks from Janet Davies, chairman of the Audit Committee.

Reports the improvement in the service performance among Local Education Authorities (LEA) in England, according to scorecards published by the British Office of Standards in Education in December 2003. Number of LEA that were awarded with three and two stars; Information on how the authorities are evaluated using the scorecard; Remarks from British Schools Minister David Milliband.

Presents updates on education as of December 2003. Recommendation of a French government commission to ban conspicuous religious signs at schools; Concern over Arab Muslims living in France; Statistics of female children who never go to primary school; Association of low enrollment for girls to high infant mortality.

Focuses on the Welsh Baccalaureate conference held in Wales in November 2003. Purpose of the conference; Educational issues discussed during the conference; Panelists who talked about the value of the Welsh Baccalaureate to higher education institutions and employers.

Presents information on the conference which the National Union of Teachers (NUT) will hold on the way forward 14-19 education at its headquarters in London, England. Representatives who will speak at the conference; Comment of John Bangs, Assistant Secretary Education and Equal Opportunities at the NUT, on the modular approach in education.

Provides information on the Aiming High national strategy proposed by British Schools Minister Stephen Twigg. Commitment to the improvement of the academic achievement of minority ethnic pupils in British schools; Schemes included in the program; Assessment of the underachievement levels of some ethnic children.

Deals with the inclusion of the Youth Forum into the 2003 Commonwealth Education Ministers conference held in Great Britain. Preparations undertaken by students before the conference; Purpose of the provision of Epson digital cameras to students; Importance of including students into the conference

Announces the results of the Peers Early Education Partnership research on children's development progress. Role of parents in educating their children; Impact of parental involvement in the language and numeracy skills of the children; Importance of engaging parents in school activities to improve the basic skills of children.

Presents information on the importance of parents' involvement in the development of their child. Role of parents in the literacy skills and development of their children; Information on the Peers Early Education Partnership program; Importance of parenting in improving the quality of life of the children.

Reports on the inaugural professorial lecture given by Professor Berry Mayall of the Social Science Research Unit of the British Institute of Education at the Institute on October 15, 2003. Significance of adult-centered schools; Her argument against the New Labour policies on children and childhood; Examples of socially useful and necessary activities of children.

Reports on the 80th anniversary of the British Association for Early Childhood Education in 2003. Historical background; Remarks from Chairman Pat Wills.

Focuses on the report "Secondary Education: Pupil Achievement," released by the British House of Commons Select Committee on Education and Skills on October 15, 2003. Criticism on the Government's strategy for raising standards in secondary schools; Information on the system of national targets for secondary pupils; Reason behind the recommendation to abolish the national targets.

Focuses on the criticisms made by the Headmasters' and Mistresses' Conference (HMC) group of private schools against the divorced parents of school children Great Britain. Characteristics of divorced patients according to HMC chairman Graham Able; Impact of divorce on the education of children; Plans of the group to discontinue its support for league tables.

Asserts the importance of play-based learning for a child's development. Concern over the curriculum at year 1 of schools in Great Britain; Views of Gail Bedford, a primary headteacher, on the value of play-based learning for children; Reason of Bedford for establishing the Children's Centre.

Discusses the results of a study carried out by Futurelab and commissioned by the National Endowment for Science, Technology and the Arts on science lessons in schools in Great Britain in 2003. Impact of improper teaching of science in primary schools on children; Recommendation of the study for teachers; Reason for the minimal science training of teachers in Great Britain; Implications of the study for science education.

Reports on the views of the Liberal Democrats on the educational system in England. Issues on the educational system that the government failed to address; Plans of the Liberal Democrats for the education system; Truth behind the claim of the government on the number of teachers it had recruited as of 2003.

Discusses the significance of vocational learning. Misconception about vocational qualifications; Importance of recognizing the value of vocational learning; Description of vocational learning by Ron McLone, chief executive of OCR.

Reports on the minimal improvement in the rate of unauthorized absences of British students for the 2002-2003 period, based on a truancy report. Percentage of improvement in school attendance; Implications of the findings stipulated in the report; Comment from Education Minister Ivan Lewis on the report.

Provides an overview of published reports on education in Great Britain in 2003. "Excellence in Cities and Education Action Zones: Management and Impact" in "The Times"; "Performance Data Framework for LEAs."

Announces the National College for School Leadership online debate to be held on June 3, 2003 in Great Britain.

Presents an update on issues related to executives in the educational sector in Great Britain as of May 2003. Appointment of Gwen Carr at the National Deaf Children's Society; Death of former junior Education Minister Robert Dunn.

Provides information on the educational program launched by the Museums Association (MA) in Great Britain in May 2003. Statement from Jane Glaister, president of MA; Aim of the program.

Presents an update on issues related to the education sector in Great Britain as of May 2003. Overview of the statistical figures concerning the educational sector released by the British government; Reaction of the National Union of Teachers regarding the statistical figures; Statement issued by British Prime Minister Tony Blair regarding the funding problems faced by British schools.

Reports that British School Standards Minister David Miliband has outlined reforms to teachers' contracts. Purpose of increasing the role of teaching assistants in the classroom; Outline of a set of standards for higher-level teaching assistants, changes to teachers' contracts, and regulations on the role of support staff.

Reports on a web based game invented by non-profit company School Works which aims to link architecture to educational standards for 11-16 year olds in Great Britain as of February 21, 2003. Title of the game; Its aim; Website where it is available.

Provides an update on the activities the Association of Teachers and Lecturers in Great Britain as of February 21, 2003. Campaign launched by the association which aims to put learning back at the center of the education policy agenda; Schedule of the association's election of a new general secretary to replace Peter Smith.