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Jim Rose published his interim report on Early Reading in December |
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Education
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By Fusive on
Sunday, January 01, 2006
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Substantially the report says that phonic work is essential for the teaching of reading and writing to young children, though not the whole picture. . Core phonic work, that is to say, teaching children the alphabetic principles to read and spell words in and out of text, should be taught regularly, discretely, at a brisk pace, and set within a broad and rich language curriculum that takes full account of developing all four inter-dependent strands of language: speaking, listening, reading and writing.
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Key stage 1 results in 2005 |
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Education
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By Fusive on
Friday, December 30, 2005
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At age 7, Key stage 1
85% of pupils achieved the expected level in reading, 82% in writing and 91% in Maths. This is the first year that all schools have reported the new teacher assessments. Strict comparisons with data published in 2004 are not possible as only schools in 34 Local Authorities were involved in the Key Stage 1 Teacher Assessment trial.
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Improvements at Key stage 2 in 2005 |
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Education
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By Fusive on
Thursday, December 29, 2005
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Key Stage 2 results show that primary schools are making year on year improvements. Children’s Key Stage 2 scores continue to rise. The DFES reported record numbers of 11 year olds achieve the expected level in English and Maths, following publication of this year’s Key Stage 2 test results. Boy’s reading scores have particularly improved, beginning to close the gap between boys and girls literacy performance.
Boys’ overall reading score has improved by three percentage points to 82% at age 11 as they continue to narrow the achievement gap with girls. The DFES put this down to the targeted work from the Primary National Strategy to spread best practice in schools on boys’ reading, the successful Further Literacy Support programme and other projects like Reading Champions and Playing for Success which are about helping boys to take a more active interest in reading through sport and positive role models.
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New Website Launch by Mathematics Teaching Centre – can be used by parents |
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Education
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By Fusive on
Friday, December 23, 2005
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The National Centre for Excellence in the Teaching of Mathematics (NCETM) have launched a website to aid the Department for Education and Skills (DfES) initiative. It is hoped that the site will stimulate debate and involvement by helping to motivate learners. The centre will help them to achieve greater progress in mathematics by improving skills and knowledge. The scheme is in response to recommendations made in Professor Adrian Smith’s report ‘ Making Mathematics Count’.
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Who chooses books for children ? Adults vote their own Top 10 |
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Education
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By Fusive on
Wednesday, December 21, 2005
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The books children like most may not be the ones favoured by educationalists – but surely the best way to encourage a child to read is to make books that give them interest and pleasure. A recent YouGov poll of adults voted two Enid Blyton Books in their top 10 books for children..
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Problems with the History curriculum at secondary school |
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Education
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By Fusive on
Sunday, December 18, 2005
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The Observer today reported that a Labour MP Gordon Marsden, criticises the focus on the second world war – the “Hitlerisation” of the history curriculum 11-16, and says that the over-emphasis on the Third Reich means that some pupils will have covered this period three times if they go on the study History at A level.
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Employers should pay for training missed by schools ? |
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Education
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By Fusive on
Thursday, December 15, 2005
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The findings of a National Audit Office Report on skills in employment published on the 14th December, has been picked up by the TUC who says this means that employers have to pay for training in Basic Skills (Literacy and Numeracy) to fill the gaps left by the school system. Shouldn’t the government be paying for this anyway ?
And what if workers feel their Literacy and Numeracy is OK – would they be forced to be trained ?
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Parents given powers to get rid of weak teachers ? |
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Education
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By Fusive on
Tuesday, December 13, 2005
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The government has proposed that increasing powers are given to parents to complain if teachers can be proved to be underperforming. Schools will be required to give detailed information for each pupil’s performance by subject so that if weaknesses are spotted then action will have to be taken.
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How are primary schools supposed to manage homework ? |
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Education
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By Fusive on
Monday, December 12, 2005
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Schools are allowed to choose their policies for using homework within the curriculum, though the government does not have guidelines for good policy as such, information is given on case studies of good practice in a number of schools. It is possible to see what underlies good practice, though it is not clear to what extent schools are required to organise homework for their pupils.
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Key Stage 2 Tests: Which has most impact, school or parents ? |
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Education
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By Fusive on
Sunday, December 11, 2005
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Key Stage 2 is the area of the National Curriculum for children from 7-11. At the age of 11 children take a series of tests and most children would be expected to reach level 4 in the assessments. The Key Stage 2 Performance Tables that give the performance of children in their final primary year of school are the league tables that some parents use as an indicator of school success. This stage is vital for young children, and the learning at this stage underpins their development at secondary level. However, indicators show that school’s performance tends to mirror the socioeconomic status of the parents and community. Do parents, then have most impact ? I think so.
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When is the right time for Sex Education ? And who should be responsible? |
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Education
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By Fusive on
Tuesday, December 06, 2005
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The debate about Sex Education in Schools is in the news again, as if by a miracle we can believe that more than half a dozen people can agree about the content and form of Sex Education in Schools at any one time. Some parents think it is their responsibility and not the schools and some don’t. Many believe it’s the job of schools and teachers, but no one is clear when is the right time. Is there any way to resolve this ?
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Whose fault is it that School Meals are rubbish ? |
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Education
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By Fusive on
Sunday, December 04, 2005
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With all the publicity generated by the work of TV Chef Jamie Oliver, most of us have finally got around to being concerned about School Meals and the rubbish being served to young children at school – not in the name of proper nutrition – but in the name of cheap and cheerful and what children will actually eat. Parents must take their share of blame in setting up their children’s palates to be only satisfied by chips, pies and burgers – shouldn’t they ?
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Don’t say “Good” if it isn’t. |
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Education
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By Fusive on
Saturday, December 03, 2005
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If teachers or parents say “Good” to a child for doing something that clearly wasn’t good, or was sloppy, or even pretty awful because they want to encourage them, it not only blocks their child’s ability to learn to do better, but creates in them an attitude that says that a minimum performance is OK. Where would sports stars have got with that attitude ?
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Can teachers be part-time? |
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Education
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By Fusive on
Thursday, October 20, 2005
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This issue has never really affected me until recently. My little boy is in an infant class and has two part-time teachers. I’d never come across part-time teaching before and at first I thought this was a very PC policy as I know one of the teachers has a young child of her own.
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