Education Magazine

Edition 1, 2019

p8 The campus continuum:

Design of UK’s national satellite test facility makes space for collision and curiosity

p22

GDPR is critical to a school’s success

p11

Is Brexit bad news for Britain’s multilingualism?

p14

Headmaster of Bournemouth Collegiate School, Russell Slatford, on GCSE v IGCSE

p24

What to keep in mind when teaching pupils with autism

p26 Teacher externalships

p21

A guide to conducting effective interviews

www.education-magazine.co.uk - for ar ticles news and pr oducts

Education Magazine Edition 79

Publisher Steve Mitchell

Annual Subscription £10

Production Editor Richard Shrubb

Free to Heads and School Financial Directors

Circulation research Mary Reale

Advertising Sales Team:

Design/Production Amanda Wesley

Tracy Johnson, Martin Petty,

Published by Review Magazines Ltd, 53 Asgard Drive,Bedford MK41 0UR Tel: 01234 348878 Fax: 01223 790191 E-mail: info@education-magazine.co.uk Website: www.education-magazine.co.uk Copyright Education Magazine 2019

Contents 4

News

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Headmaster of Bournemouth Collegiate The campus School, Russell continuum: Slatford, on GCSE v IGCSE Design a drone to protect endangered Why the UK needs animals and you could win tighter asbestos controls £5,000

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Is Brexit bad news for Britain’s multilingualism?

20 Teach your pupils lifesaving skills

21 A guide

By Maddie Grounds

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An MP gets his PE kit on!

If you are building, developing new ideas or have some excellent examples of ‘good practice’, spread the word about them and contact PIR Education Magazine on

01234 348878 or

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GDPR is critical to a schools success

By Christine Jackson

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What to keep in mind when teaching pupils with autism

By Tania Marshall, M.Sc

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Teacher externalships

By Helen Beardmore

to conducting effective interviews

By Lee Biggins

The magazine for Heads and Financial Directors of Academies, Independent and Free Schools

email info@education-magazine.co.uk We are always looking for good news on Education issues.

We approve all articles prior to press.

Look forward to hearing from you!

The Publisher holds all copyright and any items within may not be reproduced in any way, for any purpose, without the written permission of the Publisher. While every care has been taken to ensure accuracy, the information contained within this publication is based on submissions to the Publishers who cannot be held responsible for errors and omissions. The publisher does not necessarily agree with the views expressed by contributors and cannot except responsibility for claims made by manufacturers and authors, nor do they accept any responsibility for any errors in the subject matter of this publication.

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Damian Hinds: Learning lifesaving skills in school is crucial Education Secretary stresses importance of basic lifesaving skills and first aid – under plans for health education to become compulsory in all schools.

The Education Secretary on 3rd January 2019 underlined the importance of every child having the chance to learn lifesaving skills such as CPR and how to get help in a medical emergency, under plans for health education to be taught in every school.

With emergency services reporting a spike in cardiac arrests during the winter months, and survival rates lower than usual – according to NHS England figures – Damian Hinds stressed the importance of the government’s plans for all children to be taught basic first aid in schools under proposals due to be rolled out from 2020.

The British Heart Foundation hailed the plans as a “decisive moment” in improving on the fact that fewer than 1 in 10 people who have a cardiac arrest outside hospital in the UK survive. In countries that already teach CPR in schools, cardiac arrest survival rates are more than double those of the UK. Education Secretary Damian Hinds said: “On arriving at university I was struck that the American students I met knew how to do CPR – and I didn’t have a clue. As a father I want my children to have the knowledge and skills they need to keep themselves safe and help others, and as Education Secretary I want that for every child.

“Learning the basic skills of first aid and techniques like CPR will give young people the confidence to know that they can step in to help someone else in need and in the most extreme cases – it could potentially save a life.

“That’s why we took the decision to include health education alongside relationship education for primary school children and relationship and sex education for secondary children. These subjects are a crucial part of our work to ensure children learn the wider skills they need to flourish in the modern world.”

For every minute without lifesaving treatment the chance of surviving a cardiac arrest drops by about 10% – meaning that the time before an ambulance arrives is crucial – but the British Red Cross has found that 95% of adults wouldn’t be able, confident or willing to help in 3 examples of life-

threatening first aid emergencies.

To ensure the next generation knows what to do in an emergency, the government is planning to make health education compulsory in all state-funded schools.

Under the proposed new guidance, by the end of secondary school pupils will be taught how to administer CPR, the purpose of defibrillators, and basic treatments for common injuries.

The proposals are part of the Department for Education’s plans to strengthen teaching of health, sex and relationships education – building on free resources already available for schools to teach first aid including those provided by the Every Child a Lifesaver Coalition, made up of the British Heart Foundation, St John Ambulance and the British Red Cross.

Simon Gillespie, Chief Executive of the British Heart Foundation, said: “The Department for Education’s plans to introduce CPR on to the curriculum is a decisive moment in the battle to improve cardiac arrest survival rates, following years of campaigning by the BHF and others.

There are 30,000 out of hospital cardiac arrests every year, and each day people needlessly die because bystanders don’t have the confidence or knowledge to perform CPR and defibrillation. This is why all schoolchildren should be given the opportunity to learn these skills.

Introducing CPR lessons into health education in all state-funded secondary schools is a significant step that promises to improve the odds of survival for countless people who have a cardiac arrest in the future.”

Schools will be encouraged and supported to teach high-quality relationships education, RSE and health education – tailored to meet their pupils’ needs – from September 2019, ahead of it becoming compulsory in September 2020.

Schools challenged to go single-use plastic free by 2022 Schools are being urged to stop using single-use plastic items and consider environmentally-friendly alternatives.

The Education Secretary on 27 December 2018 urged all schools to eliminate their use of single use plastics by 2022.

Damian Hinds has called on senior leaders in schools to stop using items such as plastic bags, straws, bottles and food packaging in favour of sustainable alternatives, and invited them to start a conversation with pupils about the effects discarded plastics have on the environment and wildlife.

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The UK is committed to being a global leader in tackling the issue of plastic pollution and Mr Hinds is urging schools across the country to follow the lead of Georgeham Primary School in Devon who are the first school in the UK to achieve single use plastic free status.

Education Secretary Damian Hinds said: “On my first school visit as Education Secretary almost a year ago, the very first question I was asked by a pupil was what we can do to limit the damage of plastic on the environment. Reducing our use of plastic clearly is an important and timely issue which as captured the interest and the imagination of everyone in society.

“Plastic can harm our precious environment and be lethal to wildlife. The leadership shown by schools like Georgeham Primary in going single use plastic free is an impressive example for us all – and I want work to support every school in the country following their lead by 2022.

“It’s not always easy but we all have a role to play in driving out avoidable plastic waste, and with more schools joining others and leading by example, we can help to leave our planet in a better state than we found it.”

Georgeham Primary was awarded the accolade by Surfers against Sewage, a marine conservation charity, who recognised that the school had met 5 crucial targets including an initial plastic audit of the school and removing at least 3 items of single-use plastic items throughout the school. The key changes that enabled the school to go plastic free was by getting rid of plastic from the school’s supply chain and replacing single use plastic with plastic that can be easily recycled.

One of the most common uses of single use plastic are the straws and packaging from the cartons of milk provided to reception pupils in schools. After agreeing a deal with their suppliers, Georgeham School now have their milk delivered in recyclable containers and the children drink out of washable beakers.

Whilst the government has a 25 year Environment Plan looking at the reduction of plastic use in general, the Education Secretary has asked the Department for Education to increase communication with the school supply chain regarding the plastic packaging of milk cartons and other day to day supplies for schools. Mr Hinds has the long-term ambition that all schools will work with suppliers to make these small changes with a view to make a big difference in single use plastic consumption.

A YouGov survey commissioned by BRITA UK and Keep Britain Tidy in April found that young people are more committed than other generations to mitigating the effects

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News of single-use plastic, with 68% of 18 to 24 year olds currently owning a reusable water bottle, above the national average of 55%.

Read the single-use plastics brief on the www.gov.uk/government/news/schoolschallenged-to-go-single-use-plastic-freeby-2022 for more information.

Activity ‘passport’ to inspire schoolchildren and boost resilience ‘Passport’ of activities launched to enrich children’s experiences and skills, backed by the Scouts, Girl guiding and National Trust.

Primary school children will be challenged to go on a nature trail, visit a local landmark or make a treasure map through a new ‘passport’ of activities launched by the Education Secretary to encourage more family time and help build children’s character and resilience.

Endorsed by organisations including the Scouts, Girlguiding and the National Trust – as well as children’s charity Action for Children - the list of activities is intended to support parents and schools in introducing children to a wide variety of experiences and fulfilling activities like flying a kite, learning

Education Magazine

something new about the local area or putting on a performance.

The list of activities was inspired by the Education Secretary’s visit to St Werburgh’s Primary School in Bristol, where every child is encouraged to take part in a list of tasks and experiences, with key achievements for each school year to tick off. The list will be sent to schools in January for teachers to adapt to meet the needs of their pupils and local communities, helping young people to build their personal skills and qualities during the school day and at home.

Education Secretary Damian Hinds said: “When I first became Education Secretary, almost a year ago, I went around asking everyone I met what they wanted for their children. The instinctive answer that came back was never about the curriculum or qualifications, vital as these are – what they wanted first and foremost was for their child to be happy and healthy. As a father that’s what I want for my children and as Education Secretary that’s what I want for all children in this country.

“I regularly hear from teachers that it’s

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important that children have the chance to try things out, to get a taste of the world around them, to see and do things that they wouldn’t normally do, or go to places they wouldn’t normally go. Experience is a great teacher and can equip children with valuable skills that prepare for any challenges life may throw at them. What’s on the inside – someone’s character, drive, resilience, and the ability to stick to a goal - is just as important as their academic achievements.

“As the New Year approaches, we inevitably think about our resolutions for the year ahead – getting fit, spending more time with our families, or taking up a new hobby.

Within this list of activities children may find something they want to come back to again and again, but I hope that, whatever they do, they will enjoy and learn from them.”

The ‘My Activity Passport’ list is part of the Education Secretary’s vision for every child to have the opportunity to enjoy new and varied experiences, no matter their background - comprising of key areas: drive and tenacity; sticking at the task at hand; understanding how to work towards long term goals when reward might be a long way off in the future; and being able to pick yourself up and bounce back from life’s challenges. continues overleaf u

NEWS News News News NEWS News NEWS News Matt Hyde, Chief Executive of the Scouts, said: “We know how much young people get out of enrichment activities like these: broadening their experiences, having fun and developing skills for life. Not everything can be taught in a classroom, so it’s great to see DfE recognising the value of extra-curricular activities and encouraging young people to build confidence, resilience and get involved in their communities as well.”

These activities will inspire children’s ability to problem-solve, provide opportunities to see or visit new places and develop wide interests in new subjects.

The activities are designed to be accessible so that every child and family can get involved and include milestones for each primary school year group. Tasks that schools and families can set children include:

• • • • • • • •

Painting a self portrait Posting a letter Looking at the stars on a clear night Playing a board game Writing and performing a poem Going hiking Planning and cooking a meal Interviewing someone

Among the list of activities will be opportunities for children to engage in social action that helps them make positive changes for themselves and others. Schools will also be able to adapt the list to meet the needs of its pupils and local communities.

Emma Dixon, member of the Girlguiding Advocate panel, made up of members aged 14 to 25, said: “We believe all young people should have opportunities to build their confidence, raise their aspirations and have adventures, both inside and outside the classroom. The activities in our new programme, launched in July, already benefit hundreds of thousands of girls each week, and we hope even more young people will be able to enjoy and learn from the activities included in the new passport.”

Julie Bentley, Chief Executive of Action for Children, said: “Every day at Action for Children, we see families struggling with the ups-anddowns of everyday life. Parents want to do everything they can to help their child feel ready to cope with life’s challenges when they arise.”

Through programmes such as the Department for Education’s ‘passport’ of activities and our Build Sound Minds campaign where we

provide advice and activities, parents can find ways to improve their child’s resilience and emotional well-being.

Anna Feuchtwang, Chief Executive of the National Children’s Bureau, said: “Our research has shown that significant numbers of children grow up suffering poor mental health. Part of the remedy lies in developing a firm foundation of wellbeing and resilience in children and young people, both at home and at school. We welcome this effort to immerse children and young people in activities that can build their confidence, develop their curiosity and support their growth beyond academic attainment, so they can enjoy emotional wellbeing throughout their lives.”

Pioneering new approach to assessing pupils with complex disabilities to be introduced in schools Pupils with multiple and complex needs will be assessed using a new ‘aspects of engagement’ approach.

A new approach that will enable primary schools to better assess pupils with the most complex needs will be rolled out across the country from 2020.

The statutory assessment will replace P scales 1 to 4 and will be based on the ‘7 aspects of engagement’, an assessment approach that focuses on pupils abilities in specific areas like awareness, curiosity and anticipation.

This assessment approach will – for the first time – enable every kind of progress made by these pupils to be identified. This addresses a key issue with P scales, which focused on linear progress, which is not always how children with the most complex needs progress. This will help teachers to best tailor their teaching and provision to meet the pupils’ specific needs and to allow them to achieve the best possible outcomes.

School Standards Minister Nick Gibb said: “This is a significant milestone in our drive to make sure every child – even those with the most complex needs – receives the highest standard of education and care.

“We have already introduced education health and care plans that are tailored to children. This new approach to assessment will make sure that individual focused approach is replicated in the classroom.

Around 7,000 pupils in primary schools have such complex needs that it would be inappropriate to measure their attainment

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in school according to the national curriculum tests.”

An in-depth review, led by Diane Rochford, concluded that P scales did not best serve these pupils and recommended an assessment approach that instead focuses on engagement. This was backed by the findings of a pilot that the DfE ran earlier this year.

An expert group, led by Diane Rochford, will now refine the approach based on the findings of the pilot, ready for it to be introduced in all state-funded schools which have pupils not in subject-specific study from 2020.

Diane Rochford said: “As the executive head of a special school in the Learning in Harmony Trust, I am passionate that we have high aspirations for all of our pupils, regardless of their background.”

The new aspects of engagement approach will enable a more flexible and personalised assessment to take place for pupils with the most complex needs, allowing all of their achievements and progress to be recognised. It will also help teachers to best tailor their teaching and provision to meet the pupils’ specific need, allowing them to achieve the best possible outcomes. We will now make sure that schools and other stakeholders have the support they need to familiarise themselves with the new assessment approach.

A detailed guidance and training package will be developed and provided for stakeholders, including schools, local authorities, Ofsted and parents. This will equip them with the skills and confidence to conduct and understand the assessment in a way that will minimise additional workload burdens, building upon the best practice of schools who are doing it well.

The 7 Aspects of Engagement approach was originally developed through a DfE funded project led by Professor Barry Carpenter in 2011.

Gap between disadvantaged pupils and their peers narrows New data shows the gap between disadvantaged pupils and their peers in primary school is continuing to narrow.

New statistics published on 13th December show that disadvantaged primary school pupils are closing in on their better off peers as the disadvantage gap index falls for the seventh year in a row.

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News School Standards Minister Nick Gibb welcomed the news and praised the impact of academies in supporting this improvement. The figures show the disadvantage gap index has shrunk by 13% since 2011 and 3% in the last year alone.

In addition the statistics show that in multiacademy trusts disadvantaged pupils did significantly better than the national average in writing and maths.

School Standards Minister Nick Gibb said: “Standards are rising in our schools, with 86% of schools now rated good or outstanding as of August 2018, compared to 68% in 2010 and these statistics show that the gap between disadvantaged pupils and their peers has closed by 13% since 2011.

Every child, regardless of their background, deserves a high quality education and opportunity to fulfil their potential.

Headteachers are using the freedoms afforded by academy and free school

Education Magazine

status to make this a reality, as illustrated by the progress disadvantaged pupils in multi-academy trusts are making in writing and maths.”

Statistics released show:

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The gap between disadvantaged and non-disadvantaged pupils is smaller in MATs than the national average in each progress measure (reading, writing and maths); 88% of pupils who met the phonics standard in year 1 reached the expected standard in reading at the end of key stage 2; and The attainment gap between girls and boys has remained stable with 61% of boys meeting the expected standard compared to 68% of girls

This release follows statistics published earlier this year that showed 64% of pupils met the expected standard in all of reading, writing and maths this year.

The data is part of a number of publications from the Department today that show how our primary schools are performing.

It includes the performance tables, which help parents make informed choices about schools in their areas, and how individual multi academy trusts are performing.

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The tables show that Dilkes Academy Trust (now known as Catalyst Academies Trust), Yorkshire Collaborative Academy Trust and Hull Collaborative Academy Trust all rank in the top ten trusts in the country for attainment in reading, writing and maths.

The department collects and publish more information about MATs than we do about local authority schools – including new information about how we are tackling high pay and late filing of accounts. Publications like today’s Key Stage 2 performance measures, which now include around 240 trusts, show the important role MATs play in our improving system.

New research also published today highlights the approaches trusts take to supporting their schools to succeed.

We continue to strengthen the accountability regime across the academies sector. In recent months, we have strengthened financial accountability, including new rules on related party transactions, which local authority schools do not have to publish at all. Ofsted is today publishing its improved approach to Summary Evaluations which bring together the inspections of individual schools in a MAT to give a picture of its contribution to education quality.

The campus continuum: Design of UK’s national satellite test facility makes space for collision and curiosity Learning environments have a direct impact on student outcomes. Higher education facilities are becoming increasingly flexible to serve a multitude of purposes and adapt to rapidly advancing technologies. To stay ahead of the curve, traditional higher education facilities and lab environments across the UK are opening their doors to tech incubators, commercial research, primary students and the community-at-large.

Architects at IBI Group, a global technology-driven design firm, keep this top-of-mind in the education facilities they design all over the world. As Lead Architect of the National Satellite Test Facility (NSTF) at Harwell Science and Innovation Campus, IBI has designed the largest satellite testing facility and a first-of-its-kind in the UK for the Science and Technology Facilities Council and Rutherford Appleton Laboratory (RAL) Space.

Due for completion in 2021, the NSTF is a 5,250 sq. m./56,500 sq. ft. facility that will bring research groups, students and the local and international space community together to help propel the UK into the commercial space age. To support and facilitate the 3,500

experts in higher education, to create a culture where public engagement is regarded as an important and essential activity by the research community.

“The government is aware there is an incredible return on investment by supporting research and education,” said Andrew Fursdon, Project Director and IBI’s London Higher Education & Science Lead.

“Even if it takes years to fully realise, a similar initiative brought a return of £23 to the UK economy for every £1 of public sector capital funding.” It pays to inspire young minds at an early age, and increasingly student interests and future career aspirations are trending towards the STEM industries.

Andrew Fursdon, Project Director

to 10,000 satellites due to be launched by 2025, the UK government was motivated to create a centralised facility to test satellites, replicating the conditions they must be able to endure through launch and space travel, so that research groups did not have to search elsewhere for similar resources.

The facility is being made possible with the support of over 10 British universities (including Oxford) and the UK Government, underpinning industries worth more than £250B. Though it will serve civic, scientific and commercial interests, RAL Space is working with other stakeholders, including

To exemplify this, RAL Space recently held an art competition to solicit “imaginative, out-of-this-world” artwork from students aged 5-11 years old. As part of the experience, winning artists will have their artwork displayed on the NSTF project site during construction, and the chance to visit the facility and meet the engineers who test satellites for future space missions. The Science and Technology Facilities Council (STFC) also has an active outreach programme with local schools around Oxfordshire and across the country. “Earlier in our work with the STFC, we designed a visitor’s centre where student groups and the local community can engage with the campus 8

and its research,” said Fursdon. “They even have an inflatable planetarium they use to explain the heavens.”

In decades past, scientists used to lock themselves away in private labs for years to study phenomena and discover scientific breakthroughs in secret, with little to no contact with the outside world. That is simply not the case anymore. “Increasingly in recent years, we’ve discovered that the best outcomes result in spaces where research is taken out of the lab and diagnosed with multidisciplinary teams in common areas, and as a result those spaces are designed into research buildings.” Providing space to meet, innovate and create is key. These collisions are important in any learning environment.

There is a clear and distinct trend connecting science and technology-focused incubators with higher education. “We’re finding more and more,” continued Fursdon “there is an intention to provide the opportunity for a collaborative exchange between academia and industry—whether in the commercialisation of science or in influencing the vocational training of future apprentices.”

Private organizations help fund these vocational and research hubs, like UTC@ MediaCityUK in Manchester, in part because they gain access to bright, young minds with similar interests or areas of research. The

Education Magazine

National Satellite Test Facility will include a high precision workshop on the ground floor, laser labs, and robotic engineering; facilities that encourage interaction and collaboration between different disciplines and stakeholders, allowing groups to stretch their boundaries.

Andrew has also seen campus facilities “double-up” and use their research spaces for afterschool programs to encourage curious, young minds to maximise their use.

At Imperial College London, a renowned research and engineering-focused institution, its Stadium House building hosts local community, primary and high school students and allows them to ‘make things’ as part of an induction course. “Science is opening its doors to spark curiosity in young minds and encourage them to get creative.”

Stadium House was a tired 1980’s office building which now has a new lease on life. It is promoted by the school as a “Hackspace”; a place for a unique community of inventors and entrepreneurs across the university. The facility is a creative container and a vibrant environment offering its ‘makers’ access to cutting-edge prototyping equipment and professional experts. Some of the creations

by Hackspace Fellows (as they are known) include an improved incubator for premature babies, low cost weather stations to help coffee farmers in the tropics, and a pulsing, LED-lit dress for Lady Gaga.

This brings up another trend that is impacting education environments earlier and earlier: making things is no longer an unpopular part of learning. “Making things with your hands isn’t a dirty concept in Education Magazine

academia anymore,” continued Fursdon.

“We’re seeing a push towards vocational training earlier and earlier in the educational continuum. At the Rosalind Franklin Institute, Harwell, there is space for a workshop facility to serve the laboratories, and more collaboration space outside of the controlled environment to encourage interaction between researchers and students.”

In education architecture, it is difficult to future-proof a building. In a highlyspecialized research facility, with lab equipment and technology that is rapidly changing, doubly so. The impact of new technologies cannot be understated in lab and learning environments. Technology is changing how learners engage with the built environment, and what they expect from their education.

“We take care to design out risk and make sure that adaptability objectives are accommodated in order to achieve maximum benefit over the full life span of the facility.” An approach that makes this possible is the inclusion of modular, adaptable space planning. “Often K-12 school boards and universities need a secure investment in terms of future-proofing their facilities for new instruction techniques, new technologies and program changes, by adding generic space that can be versatile or updated in the future.”

Higher education institutions need to remain competitive, as their student customers can be harsh critics. As education models change, competition for funding and financial support is increasingly felt and internalized by students. Students also need 9

to know that if they work hard, there will be opportunities for them on the other end.

IBI Group (TSX:IBG) is a globally integrated architecture, planning, engineering, and technology firm with over 2,700 professionals around the world. For more than 40 years, its dedicated professionals have helped clients create livable, sustainable, and advanced urban environments. IBI Group believes that cities must be designed with intelligent systems, sustainable buildings, efficient infrastructure, and a human touch.

IBI Group’s Learning+ practice has a rich history designing education institutions across the globe, from early learning through to higher education. Our professionals connect pedagogy to design, creating dynamic environments that cultivate transformational teaching and learning.

Notable educational research facilities include CUBRIC, a state of the art brain imaging facility for Cardiff University on its Innovation Campus; several research facilities for leading Institutes at Oxford University; Sensor City and Liverpool Life Science Accelerator, which form part of Liverpool’s Knowledge Quarter; and UTC@ MediaCityUK, a landmark learning centre catering to 14-19 year olds from Greater Manchester interested in emerging creative, media and digital industries.

IBI Group’s UK studios include: London, Manchester, Glasgow, Cardiff, Brighton, Newark, Birmingham, and Rochdale.

Follow us on Twitter @ibigroup and @ IBILearning, and on Instagram @ibi_group.

Design a drone to protect endangered animals and you could win £5,000 BIEA’s annual International STEM Youth Innovation Competition is now open!

The British International Education Association (BIEA) is calling for schools across the UK to take part in its free annual International STEM Youth Innovation Competition. The competition, preregistration for which officially opened for entries today, challenges students under the age of 18 from all over the world, to design and develop a drone to help protect wild and endangered animals.

Supported by the British Science Association and the Royal Institution, the aim of the competition is to raise the level of technological enthusiasm among students as well as to stimulate their passion for STEM (science, technology, engineering and mathematics) subjects.

Students can enter their designs until 31st March 2019. In April, 36 international finalists will be announced, and each team will receive £100 funding from BIEA to buy a mini drone and make their modifications to it. The winning team will then be announced at the RAF Museum in London on 4th July, where they will receive the £5,000 grand prize.

This challenge builds on BIEA’s previous competition which saw more than 2,000 schools from across the UK entering. It was only open to British students and centred around the theme of creating a drone for a rescue situation.

Philip White, Head of Communications, BIEA, explained the importance of the competition, “BIEA’s focus is to improve global education standards and we believe that one of the best ways to do this is by supporting the development of STEM subjects in schools. Highlighting the importance of scientific and technological innovation to young people helps to develop a constant motivation to create the source of a better future.

“We decided on the challenge of designing a drone as it really requires students to push the boundaries of their technological and scientific knowledge: it involves several disciplines including mechanics, electronics, computer programming and flight dynamics, and the ‘Fighting Extinction’ theme draws on multiples fields of science.

“The competition is designed to give young people around the world a stage on which to learn, communicate and improve scientific innovation; it’s a chance for them to acquire knowledge and fulfil their dreams. We’d love as many schools as possible to join in! We’re very excited to see what they come up with!”

To find out more about the International STEM Youth Innovation Competition or to sign up please visit www.bieacompetition.org.uk or follow us on Twitter at @BIEAeducation About BIEA BIEA is a non-profit organisation committed to facilitating the reach and influence of outstanding British education practices throughout the world, in order to help advance international education standards.

To ensure the organisation maximise the effectiveness of its resources, the ever-expanding Chinese educational sector is currently the primary focus of its efforts.

BIEA is proud to support education providers at all levels, with the goal of always assisting in giving children the best chance in life that they can possibly have.

A young, dynamic and forward-thinking organisation, it is led by a board made up of passionate and committed headteachers and governors, who have long-standing connections to both state and private entities with the UK educational sector.

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Education Magazine

Is Brexit bad news for Britain’s multilingualism? By Maddie Grounds language graduates in the UK come up lowest in post-education employment statistics, below arts, humanities and law. One belief behind this is that employers more than often opt for native speakers whose language skills continue to prevail over British learners.

Furthermore, the number of multi-lingual students is significantly higher in the rest of the EU. A survey conducted last year by the British Council revealed that 37% of students asked where ‘unable to hold a basic conversation’ compared with 51% of students in the rest of the EU who ‘are studying two or more languages’.

Costly visa requirements are only set to become another barrier to businesses as many UK companies, especially SMEs, may not be able to substantiate the costs to apply for a Sponsor Licence. With the COO of language learning app Lingvist stating that ‘the UK is already losing £50bn a year due to poor language skills’, addressing this loss should be a priority within the business and education sectors in order to retain Britain’s global citizenship and trade relations.

Increasing language demands for British citizens could have a positive outcome for Britain’s multilingualism as many people will look to retrain and fill skill gaps left by the current EU workforce. For this reason, further education in Modern Foreign Languages could increase in popularity following Brexit day next March. In order to achieve this, a post-Brexit Britain will have to focus on the training of domestic workers in more vocational roles within the teaching of Modern Foreign Languages.

Since the 2017 EU referendum, discomforts surrounding Britain’s multiculturalism have continued to surface in Brexit’s ‘leave’ campaign.

Nigel Farage controversially exclaiming that he felt ‘awkward’ sitting on a train with non-English speaking passengers spoke volumes about the anti-immigration tone that underpins current political discussions. Yet, wishing away modernday multilingualism would be disastrous for the education sector post-Brexit with Modern Foreign Language Teaching set to face hard-hitting impacts in the UK.

Yet with many attitudes towards Brexit showing a lack of incentive to learn foreign languages, this is easier said than done. Last year, German and French A-level intake decreased by 4% and 1.2%, a decline which has led to some schools cutting these language programmes entirely. Similarly, universities have seen a near-25% drop in interest for modern foreign languages courses. With reports of pupils stating that they no longer need to attend foreign language lessons once Britain has left the EU, this sets a worrying precedent for the future of Modern Foreign Languages.

Irrespective of Britain’s need to increase language learning, translation services will be more critical than ever. With a predicted 15% of EU businesses with staff in the UK likely to move them outside of Britain, it will not take long for companies to feel the force of language barriers, with additional translation services being the only feasible option in tackling this. Hiring expert legal translation services to ensure the understanding of documents and contracts will be essential.

With May’s post-Brexit immigration plans setting out the end of freedom of movement, EU nationals will no longer have the automatic right to work and live in the UK. Removing the ease in which European teachers can travel across UK-EU borders will cause significant gaps in the Modern Foreign Language teaching workforce, 30% of whom are EU nationals. Additionally, a huge 80% of Modern Foreign Language teaching assistants are from the EU.

The Department of Education states that ‘learning a foreign language is a liberation from insularity and provides an opening to other cultures’. Preserving Britain’s multilingualism through Modern Foreign Language teaching is therefore crucial in the UK’s relationship with the EU across many industries and businesses. With the importance of Modern Foreign Languages massively increasing post-Brexit, the UK government needs to focus on filling classrooms with those that can actually teach it.

Despite the government assuring EU nationals in the UK that they have a right to remain, these citizens may not have the qualifications needed to teach languages at a professional level. As an endangered subject prior to the EU referendum, ensuring the sustainability of Modern Foreign Languages is reliant on EU nationals providing the teaching skills needed to assist our own domestic talent pool.

Currently, the Tier 2 Visa system has a minimum income requirement of £30,000. With May’s Chequer Plan revealing plans to prioritise skilled workers, predominantly those earning £50,000 and above, reaching this threshold for further education teachers could be ultimately unachievable.

Maddie Grounds is a political commentator at the Immigration Advice Service (IAS), an organisation which provides specialist immigration, settlement and asylum advice for a range of individuals and businesses.

IAS’ services include assistance for education providers and professionals as well as international students.

Maddie’s role focuses on assessing the impact of Brexit and other political factors on immigration in the UK: both from a socio-economic viewpoint and for individuals who are affected.

Language skills can be a fundamental part of a company’s business plan looking to break into the international market with multi-lingual employers being highly sought after in Europe. One study has shown that knowing German can improve a UK graduates’ average salary to £34,534, a £4,500 increase from the national average. Despite this, Education Magazine

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An MP gets his PE kit on!

Bim Afolami, Conservative Party politician.

MP for Hitchin and Harpenden constituency since the 2017 general election joined in a Junior PE lesson at Pirton school to experience for himself a new concept to keep children staying active.

As a small village school of six mixed age classes, Pirton Primary near Hitchin doesn’t receive the same amount of funding as larger schools. But recently, they were awarded government funding for new sports equipment.

Sonia Fenner, the Headteacher said, “As a small school, we have to compete with larger schools and the sports premium is all based on pupil numbers. So of course we don’t have as much as the larger schools.

But we want to make sure we can offer our children the same opportunities as larger schools. We feel like we are managing to do that right now.”

Thanks to the government funding, the school has been able to buy a det of ‘Action Mats’ - a simple piece of technology which can be used to promote fitness as well as cross educate into all subjects, not just PE. Joining in with the lesson was MP Bim Afolami, who is actively supporting the campaign to keep kids fit and healthy. Bin said:

“This is just one way in which the government is listening to the fact that yes, maths, English, phonics and timetables, they are all really important, but fitness, your wellbeing and health, are the most important things of all.”

The kids thoroughly enjoyed the experience, they were somewhat oblivious of what an MP is, other then they are ‘important’ but their enthusiasm for the games that the mats enable was obvious. By the end of the hour they had all let expended loads of energy following the instructions on the mats. The teacher in charge seemed to be able to let the pupils get on with it and concentrate on making sure everyone was included and engaged.

“We all know how important keeping fit is.

Action Mats gives the chance to do a fun, quick, workout but at the same time isn’t something that is too expensive.

All in all great fun was had by all- including by the parents who were watching through the windows at their offspring and their local MP having great fun!

“The government has listened and the sports premium that has come in, this financial year has doubled the amount of money available to all schools for sport.”

There are concerns, many expressed by the medical profession that children in the UK are less fit than in past years. So Pirton Primary school in Hertfordshire is trying a new innovation in an effort to change this worrying situation.

Schools have been given Sports Premium funding in order to help them keep kids fit and healthy, but there are concerns it’s not enough simply to allocate funds, the children actually have to get the exercise needed. The premium must be spent by schools on making additional and sustainable improvements to the provision of PE and to encourage the development of healthy, active lifestyles for all pupils.

The kids using the Action mats- Jonathan Bhowmick, the designer of the system is between the posters 12

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Headmaster of Bournemouth Collegiate School, Russell Slatford, on GCSE v IGCSE

Normally the Christmas period is a quiet time for those of us in education: the final assembly awash with Christmas jumpers - has been and gone and normally it is not a time for the airwaves to be inundated with education chatter. Not so this year following a publication based on the analysis about the GCSE v IGCSE debate from the Right Honourable Lucy Powell MP’s office. This led to headlines from national newspapers including ‘Private schools cheating GCSE system to boost results.’

IGCSE have long since been adopted into the curriculum of the independent sector, initially because they lacked the coursework element that ‘old’ GCSEs had and were therefore seen as more rigorous at the time. However, state schools are not able to choose these qualifications. As a geography teacher myself, coursework and controlled assessments have long been viewed as cumbersome and timeconsuming, few would argue that they take an inordinate amount of time, particularly from the teacher, for little gain in the final examination mark, perhaps as little as 20%.

As such, many independent schools chose to move away from that style of teaching and assessment, this has been the case for well over 10 years. The terminal examinations of IGCSE are generally longer and some of

the questioning perhaps more complex, it was certainly considered a ‘harder qualification’ in the early years of its inclusion into curriculum of many schools. IGCSEs are recognised by all tertiary institution, employers and universities, but oddly not by the DfE since 2014.

One tweet particularly caught my eye over the festive period from Mike Buchanan who is the Executive Director of HMC, he rightly commented in my opinion that ‘if only all head teachers could make similar choices (of examination boards) based on professional experience and knowledge’.

The latest debate though is more about how academically hard the new GCSEs have become following a review of these qualifications and therefore how they stand up to the IGCSEs, which are now viewed by some as being easier. The problem is that there is little or no evidence for this.

I have certainly always taken the view that if we genuinely value the individual pupil, we cannot have an education system where one size fits all, therefore the greater variety of pedagogy, non-examined and examined assessment the better. So, it can only be helpful to allow teachers and schools to choose what approach they think best suits the strengths and interests of their pupils.

Let’s not forget every subject is different and for every subject there are many GCSE boards for schools to choose from, each offering a different approach to similar content, each marked and assessed in a slightly different way. It has long been the view of those in education that it has been the competition between examination boards that has driven standards down.

In other words, a race to the bottom with examination boards vying for the highest percentage of pass marks and largest number of top grades. So, the recent review has made the examinations ‘harder’.

There is little doubt that many pupils in the last few years have found the increased content more difficult to master, but grade boundaries have rightly been adjusted downwards to compensate. The evidence therefore supports a very similar GCSE grade profile nationally as we have transitioned from the old to the new qualifications.

So, we find ourselves at somewhat of an impasse of views, with those broadly in state education believing that with the harder GCSE their pupils are at an unfair disadvantage to pupils in the independent sector whose teachers are able to choose IGCSEs. Evidence recently published by FFT Education Datalab states that those taking IGCSEs are at an unfair advantage.

However, there are noticeable concerns about how they have compared data. As a start there are over 500,000 results from state schools for English language compared with under 20,000 from the Independent sector. Furthermore, we have no way to judge of those 20,000 how many of the results are from selective schools, clearly this would make a significant difference to performance. Nonetheless, it seems they have tried to compensate for this in their calculations. They concluded that ‘at the top end of the distribution, perhaps IGCSEs are indeed not graded quite as severely as reformed GCSEs’, and adding, ‘the same effect was not evident looking at A*-C grades’. This is hardly convincing evidence to support such strong headlines in the press.

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After all, the outcome for our pupils will be very different as they head into further education or a widespread variety of careers and opportunities. Having data that allows us to make shallow and misplaced sweeping statements has always been harmful to how we educate our children. It also adds a growing burden to how young people compare themselves to others, but the issues of mental health, although extremely important and certainly tied up in this debate, are for another day.

So, let’s stop finger pointing and consider what is best for the pupils in all our schools, if we value a broad and varied approach to education then IGCSEs have a place in any school that considers them of value to their children. Surely the attention of those who feel that IGCSEs are giving some an unfair advantage should be towards the government and not the independent sector.

My advice would be to point your finger in that direction to facilitate a change that will provide greater educational opportunity and variety for the pupils in your schools.

We are always looking for good news on Education issues. Please call us if you have any ideas or articles you would like published.

Call 01234 348878 or email info@education magazine.co.uk We approve all articles prior to press.

Look forward to hearing from you!

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Are Your Staff and Students Ready for Lockdown?

Due to recent events, safety and security in UK schools are a paramount concern. There have also been reports of violent attacks on staff and students all over the country. However, it’s not just direct attacks on school property which are causing concern, but other incidents which potentially put staff and students at risk. Examples of dangerous occurrences include a youth wielding a knife outside a school in Sherborne, a teenage gang attempting to gain access to school grounds in Stoke-on-Trent and an air rifle being fired at a school in Almondbury. All these resulted in schools going into lockdown.

It is essential that accurate information is communicated clearly and quickly throughout the school, no matter whether the situation warrants evacuation or lockdown. Schools must have a working fire alarm fitted by law, but

many use the same fire bell to announce class changes. This can lead to confusion, and whilst a bell can provide a clear alert that an emergency situation has arisen, it cannot differentiate between lockdown or evacuation. In the event of a possible violent intruder on the premises, the last thing any school wants is pupils streaming out onto a playground and gathering at assembly points.

To solve this issue, some schools have installed integrated class change and PA systems such as Bodet’s Harmonys, which store a range of different tones, melodies and pre-recorded voice messages. As well as routine announcements such as class change, lunch or the end of school, in the event of an emergency they enable specific alarms to be broadcast across the entire site. These can be triggered via a range of wired or remote methods, such as wireless remote control, mobile phone, PC or multi-button control panel. That way, both staff and pupils know what’s happening and what action to take.

Due to the random nature of these attacks and threats, there is little schools can do to prevent them. However, by having clear and effective communication systems installed alongside robust lockdown and evacuation procedures, schools can be certain they are doing all they can to ensure the safety of staff and students.

Richard Manby is managing director of Bodet Class Change Systems

Website: lockdown.bodet.co.uk Tel: 01442 418800

Lease Options Lease options for Lockdown Alert Systems are available from Bodet’s financial leasing partner, over periods of either two or three years. For example, a financial amount of £10,000 plus VAT over a 36 month period would equate to monthly payments of £284.78 plus VAT plus an agreed residual payment. Please contact us for further details and to obtain a lease quotation for your school.

Bodet Limited is regulated and authorised by the Financial Conduct Authority. We act as a credit broker in this finance transaction and work with an asset finance lender to find a suitable arrangement for you. We do not make a charge to you for helping you to find a suitable asset finance lender, however, we may receive a commission payment from the lender for our work. Business customers only.

For further details and to obtain a lease quotation for your school, please contact Bodet.

Schools urged to ignore misleading claims from renewable heating suppliers.

Schools in rural, off gas grid areas are being advised to ignore misleading marketing claims stating that ‘oil heating will be outlawed by 2030’, following reports that a number have been targeted by renewable heating solution providers encouraging them to switch to alternative systems ahead of the false ‘deadline’.

OFTEC, the trade association for the oil heating industry, and the Federation of Petroleum Suppliers (FPS) have been contacted by several educational establishments concerned about their future options for heating after reading the claims made in promotional brochures and online.

Although government’s Clean Growth Strategy, published by the Department of Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy (BEIS) in October 2017 includes a broad ambition to end the installation of new high carbon fossil fuel heating, no specific policy proposals have been developed in this area. There are also no plans to ban the use of existing high carbon fossil fuel heating systems.

As a result, both organisations have referred the matter to the Advertising Standards Agency (ASA).

Commenting on the situation, OFTEC CEO Paul Rose said: “Naturally the schools were worried about these false claims which led them to believe they would need to switch to other forms of heating in the near future. This information is untrue.

“Perhaps unsurprisingly, the misleading marketing material also fails to mention that low carbon liquid biofuels are currently in development. These would directly replace kerosene and enable oil heating customers to significantly reduce carbon emissions without the need for expensive - and often impractical - appliance changes.”

FPS CEO Guy Pulham added: “We understand the misinformation may have been sent to many other schools and rural organisations and hope that, with greater awareness, the myths can be dispelled.”

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Why the UK needs tighter asbestos controls Charles Pickles, Chief Technical Officer, Lucion Services A founding partner of occupational safety and risk management company Lucion, Charles is directly responsible for the technical, administration and support aspects of the specialist hazard management business; including Lucion Environmental’ s specialist services for the surveying, identification and analysis of asbestos containing materials.

Drawing on 19 years of practical experience and in his role as Chief Technical Officer, in a recent paper Charles has considered the epidemiological, legislative and practical fundamentals of asbestos regulations with one question in mind: ‘do they stop us breathing-in asbestos fibres?’

International comparisons Historically the UK has imported and used more asbestos per capita than any other European country. In addition, much more of this material was of the more dangerous fibre types, amosite (brown asbestos) and crocidolite (blue asbestos), rather than chrysotile (white asbestos)

in the midst of mesothelioma epidemic as the long latency period of the disease begins to play out.

Even worse, the cumulative effects of chronic low level exposure to asbestos that remains embedded in our public buildings will continue to have an impact long into the future, with the younger age of first exposure and increased life expectancy of children making them particularly vulnerable to the deterioration of asbestos materials in schools.

Despite this situation, the UK’s health and safety regulations and preventative measures remain weaker than in other countries with less of a problem.

As a result, the UK’s asbestos deaths compare most unfavourably to that experienced in other European countries and are between two and three times worse than in France and Germany, for example.

Nevertheless, our European neighbours who have much less of a problem with asbestos have introduced considerably tighter asbestos legislation, including occupational exposure limits.

For example, in the Netherlands the level of mesothelioma deaths due to environmental exposure to asbestos led to an updated occupational exposure limit of 0.002 f/ml for all asbestiforms being introduced from 1st January 2014, with the intention of lowering the threshold for amphibole asbestos to 0.0003 f/ml sometime in the future.

Similarly in France there is an asbestos fibre environmental limit within buildings of 0.005 f/ml and Germany has adopted a national enforceable occupational exposure limit of 1000 fibres per cubic metre (or 0.001 f/ml).

The need for tighter UK controls In the UK, there is no doubt that earlier asbestos regulations have reduced the risks of asbestos exposure and demonstrated that legislation is the most effective tool we have to control the asbestos risk.

The paper from which this article is extracted aims to answer this question and help those responsible for maintaining the safety of schools and other education premises to better control the asbestos hazard within the UK.

However, there is now serious and growing concern over current

Copies of the full report can be downloaded at www. lucsionservices.com With increases in the number of teachers dying from passive exposure to asbestos fibres, Charles Pickles says it is now time for the UK to adopt much more rigorous air sampling and effective control limits to ensure that older school buildings are safe to use.

The UK’s legacy as the world’s largest importer of asbestos means that the asbestos containing materials (ACMs) installed in buildings during 1950s and 1960s remain present in many school and educational buildings that are still in use today.

This situation has contributed to our position as having the worst asbestos health-related problems in the world and we are currently 16

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exposure levels from asbestos that remains in-situ because the materials themselves have either been damaged and/or are degrading, which increases the likelihood of fibres being released into the air and increasing the likelihood of exposure.

exposure from asbestos left insitu.

•

In practice, managing asbestos typically involves the removal of high risk and accessible material whilst materials visibly assessed to be of lower risks are sealed and left in situ to be re-inspected periodically, usually annually. Building materials which are not easily visible are not re-inspected.

In the circumstances, as the actual risk to health is the inhalation of fibres, the measurement of airborne fibres present would enable the risk to be directly measured, rather than the current practice of inspecting the materials for damage.

Air monitoring would also determine any risk being caused by the release of fibres from asbestos that is within a building but cannot be seen, for example, as is often the case with insulation boards installed behind column liners.

A recent publication highlighted that teachers and nurses had about 5 and 3 times respectively more mesothelioma deaths than expected in populations not exposed to asbestos. The observed excess mesothelioma deaths suggest that both teachers and nurses were likely to have been exposed to significantly higher airborne asbestos fibre concentrations is typical in buildings containing asbestos-containing materials in good condition.

This illustrates why concern about low level chronic exposure to asbestos is now justified due to the following reasons:-

•

Much of the asbestos installed remains in-situ, with no effective regime for measuring any resulting current exposure.

•

Exposure is cumulative and there is little understanding of the level of the actual chronic

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Workers (e.g. teachers, caretakers, cleaning staff) not traditionally associated with acute exposure (such as trades people and construction workers) are dying from previous asbestos exposure and will continue to die in the future as a result of current and future exposure.

•

Generally, people are now living longer giving asbestos disease longer to manifest itself.

•

Children in schools risk becoming exposed to asbestos at a younger age, again increasing the years available for asbestos disease to develop.

enable targeted and cost effective asbestos abatement to be undertaken. Regulation 4 of the Control of Asbestos Regulations (CAR) 2012 stipulates a ‘duty to manage’ - however, under the current regime, what is not measured, is seldom managed.

Charles Pickles is the Chief Technical Officer, Lucion Services A founding partner of occupational safety and risk management company Lucion, Charles is directly responsible for the technical, administration and support aspects of the specialist hazard management business, including services for the surveying, identification and analysis of asbestos containing materials.

Other nations with much less of an asbestos problem, have adopted sensitive air monitoring techniques and thus are able to monitor much lower exposures. In contrast here in the UK, we simply do not know what exposures people in our public buildings and workplaces are being exposed to, although techniques are available to measure this and it is written into law elsewhere.

Campaign groups have long called for the introduction of a proactive programme of air sampling in schools and other buildings containing high risk asbestos and the establishment of more effective control limits to ensure that occupational exposure assessments are capable of proving that buildings are safe for continued use.

To respond to these calls the UK must now consider updating its health and safety guidance to ensure that actual asbestos health management techniques remain best practice and are equal to the task of effectively preventing ongoing exposure to potentially dangerous levels of asbestos fibres in the air.

Implementation of such measures would ratify that in-situ asbestos is indeed safe or 17

Drawing on 19 years of practical experience and in his role as Chief Technical Officer, in a recent paper, Charles has considered the epidemiological, legislative and practical fundamentals of asbestos regulations with one question in mind: ‘do they stop us breathing-in asbestos fibres?’

The paper from which this article is extracted aims to answer this question and help those responsible for maintaining the safety of schools and other education premises to better control the asbestos hazard within the UK. Copies of the full report can be downloaded at www.lucsionservices.com

Some reasons to get behind sports trips Helen Wynn is England Netball’s Head of Products and Programmes, and worked for 15 years getting children active in both schools and the community.

Sport can reduce stress, anxiety and has been found to significantly contribute to improved behaviour in classrooms. It can provide a sense of belonging, can be a source of inspiration and is often linked to academic achievement. So how can we help more pupils engage with it?

With the increasing lure of screens in their free time, children are more and more likely to be inactive, and childhood obesity is a growing problem that we’re all aware of. In schools we can help to change these behaviours, not only by educating pupils on healthier lifestyles, but by nurturing a love of active lives – namely, through sport.

Among younger pupils, physical activity and sport really help

the development of the whole child. Through this, pupils can develop their personal awareness, their social skills and obviously their knowledge and understanding of the activity, but also learn how to main a healthy lifestyle. As pupils enter year 7, sports can help bring out their personality, build their confidence, and forge new friendships at a potentially tumultuous time in their education.

As pupils enter their teenage years, research has shown that young people who play sport often benefit from improved concentration levels. For some young people sport can also be a great vehicle towards a positive attitude and outlook, which in turn can impact behaviour positively, especially in the classroom.

When thinking about girls in particular, some of the challenges around physical activity are amplified, with few girls meeting the recommended

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activity levels - this can for some mean a lack of connection to their PE lessons. Girls are potentially missing out on all the positive benefits sport can bring both on and off the court or pitch. There are lots of female sporting role models and whilst coverage is on the incline, sportsmen still receive a greater level of media attention than their female counterparts.

A sport such as netball is a great way to engage girls in a friendly environment, where lessons can be delivered specifically with them in mind, allowing them to join in without fear of judgement.

Getting pupils involved and enthusiastic about sport is vital and can be highly rewarding for both pupils and teachers.

In my view, one way to do this is by providing inspirational opportunities beyond the school sports hall. I have found that trips to live events are particularly beneficial; there is a great buzz, an incredibly positive feel and they create

fantastic talking points to get pupils motivated and interested when back at school. Pupils can observe first-hand the determination, resilience and pride of the athletes as well as seeing the role coaches, officials, sport scientists, physios and even event managers play – for some students it will be the first time they’ve seen the range of career paths that are available in the sporting industry.

Role models are not just confined to the players’ performance on court. The commitment, resilience and pride that can visibly be seen when viewing a live sports event is inspiring. For some young people role models are much closer to home, and there is value in showing your own enthusiasm for a sport or activity as an adult. Not all pupils experience this at home, and to show them the benefit of being involved in sport and physical activity as an adult is invaluable. Following on from

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a live event, it can often mean that pupils return to school more committed to their studies across the board, but particularly in PE which can have a positive impact on them both in and outside of school.

As I mentioned, the gender gap has an impact on girls engaging fully with sport and their PE lessons. For female pupils, watching positive role models live in action is priceless – and there are a whole host of upcoming events that are showcasing women’s sport, such as the Vitality Netball World Cup 2019 and the FIFA Women’s World Cup. The atmosphere and excitement of a live event really engages pupils, and a sports trip avoids the prescriptive air of a lesson.

Instead of teachers simply telling pupils what they can do, trips show them, and for girls in particular the chance to be able to see sportswomen live in action is invaluable.

I highly recommend planning well and mapping out what you want your pupils to learn

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through the trip. This will be very different for different groups; a group of engaged GCSE PE students will focus on a different learning outcome to a group of Key Stage 3 girls who are less engaged in PE. Trips are a fantastic way to embed knowledge in a more practical way.

In my experience, sport is an absolutely vital part of our education system, and trips to live sporting events are a great addition to this. At a time when the health of young people is high on the UK’s agenda, we need to keep physical education front and centre too.

With quality, inspiring, wellplanned sports trips, alongside PE and school sport provision, relevant to the young people in your school, we can hopefully keep pupils engaged and spark a lifelong love of sport.

If you work within the education sector and would like to subscribe to this magazine.

Just contact us on

01234 348878

Find out more about school package offerings for the Vitality Netball World Cup 2019 here: https://www.nwc2019. co.uk/schools

or visit the website www.education-magazine.co.uk

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Teach your pupils lifesaving skills Karen Bird talks about why the Government’s plans to introduce first aid in the curriculum is crucial to saving more lives.

what stage of their education they are at.

When someone goes into cardiac arrest every second counts. In the UK, too few people know the life-saving skill of CPR to be able to provide aid if such a situation arises. In fact, more than 30,000 people have an out of hospital cardiac arrest in the UK each year, with fewer than one in ten surviving(1). We have to boost the survival rate.

According to research by the British Red Cross(2), 95 per cent of British people would not be able to perform life-saving aid in the event of “the three most life-threatening emergency aid situations.” These scenarios include someone who is bleeding heavily, is unresponsive and breathing, or is unresponsive and not breathing. Teaching basic first aid and CPR to more people is one of the places we have to start to ensure we boost the survival rates of such emergency situations when they take place outside a medical facility or when no medical professional is present.

For primary schools, the current plan will be for children to be taught basic first aid, which includes dealing with head injuries and how to call emergency services. For young children, just having that knowledge and understanding of when to call 999, could be crucial in making the difference in or saving someone’s life.

When children reach secondary school, they would then learn life-saving skills such as CPR and about the purpose of defibrillators, which is so important. According to statistics, the chances of surviving a cardiac arrest jumps from just 6% to 74% if a defibrillator is deployed within three minutes. If we teach these vital skills to all children in England, then as a nation we are going to make a huge difference to the survival rates of those who need aid.

Other countries in Europe lead the way on this and prove that teaching children lifesaving skills has a real impact. France, Denmark and Norway are already teaching first aid in schools and their survival rates can be up to three times higher, according to the British Heart Foundation.

World Restart a Heart Day Of course, for many schools, colleges, universities, businesses and organisations, first aid is already an important skill that they provide access to for their pupils, students or employees. At BB First Aid we have worked with many schools both to teach first aid directly to children and to provide first aid training to teachers and support staff, so they can offer training themselves.

First aid in schools In July 2018 it was announced that the government had put forward a draft proposal to include first aid as part of the curriculum both in primary and secondary schools in England. The draft legislation provides some insight into the sort of training children will receive depending on

In October 2018, we visited two schools, a secondary school in Lichfield and a primary school in Stonnall, both situated in Staffordshire, to train the children in CPR. It was all part of World Restart a Heart Day, which takes place every year and aims to teach 200,000 people what to do when someone has a cardiac arrest. It is organised by a number of charities and organisations which includes the Resuscitation Council and the British Heart Foundation. Our first aiders taught CPR on inflatable training manikins to 179 pupils from the Friary School in Lichfield 20

and 197 children from St. Peter’s Primary School in Stonnall.

Fifty pupils at a time were taught how to identify when CPR was required and the correct techniques and speed to administer it at. The children loved not only learning CPR, but you could see how proud they were to now have a life-saving skill. It’s not every day you have the opportunity to do that.

It was a special day and a good example of why schools should embrace the government’s proposal to introduce first aid to the curriculum, even before the legislation comes into place. It is currently planned for September 2020.

A clearer career path From working in schools and speaking with the children we have trained, we often find that it’s not just the skills we offer that have benefits for them, but the careers advice we provide can help to set them on a career path.

For some of the children we train, they already have a good idea that they want their future career to be in a medical field, but we have found that providing a course on first aid or CPR has inspired many to take a real interest in becoming a paramedic, a doctor or a nurse. We’ve even found that children who have taken one of our courses have then gone on to do volunteer work with charities and organisations that support people when in need of aid.

I encourage any school that wants to provide valuable skills like first aid to their pupils to speak to a first aid training provider to find out more about the types of training they can receive for staff and pupils. As a nation, teaching our children these skills can only benefit families, communities and the lives of many people. I hope once the legislation comes into place in 2020, we will see a significant increase in the survival rate of those in an emergency situation Karen Bird is the Head of Compliance Training at BB First Aid, run by BB Training, 1 https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/education-44883708 2 https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/education-44883708

Education Magazine

A guide to conducting effective interviews

By Lee Biggins Finding and hiring the right person can be complicated, but it’s important that you get it right.

This is particularly true in the education sector, which is continuously facing talent shortages alongside ongoing staff retention problems.

An effective interview process can do wonders for your recruitment strategy, helping you to find the best match for your organisation and importantly, the best person for the job.

What’s more, if you find the most fitting individual for the role, they will be more likely to stay with you and invest in your organisation. So here’s how to get it right.

Prepare criteria before Before you meet with any candidates, you need to understand the criteria that you’re judging them on. Think about the requirements you asked for in the job advert.

So for example, if you’re hiring for a senior teaching position, you might want someone with features such as:

• • • • •

have a colleague in the interview, you need to ensure everyone’s schedules are free.

Next, make sure you choose the best location for the interview. A tidy, professional room with a table to sit opposite your interviewee will be best. Be sure to let your colleagues know that you’ll be using the room to avoid any blunders.

You might even choose to do it in a remote location away from the school. Make sure you do your research and ensure your chosen spot is somewhere quiet where you won’t be disturbed.

Before the day, you should ensure all your documents are in place and everything is printed out and organised. For example, print out each candidate’s CV and application forms to refer to, with any notes you’ve made on these.

Begin with an introduction Fast forward to the day of the interview and your candidate has arrived. You’ve shown them to their seat so they’re probably feeling quite nervous. Therefore, jumping into more challenging questions right away could cause them to feel panicked and won’t give you the best feel for their potential.

Instead, start with an introduction of yourself, the school and the role. This is a good way to begin the interview because it can put them at ease and shows what’s great about working for you. After all, the candidate isn’t just convincing you they should be hired. They also need to see why they should want to work for you.

Ask the right questions It’s important that you’re asking the right questions. Avoid using too many closed questions – these are anything that can be responded to with a yes, no or a short one-word answer. The problem with these is that they won’t tell you a lot about your candidate.

Qualified teacher status

But how do you choose the right questions?

These can be broken down into three groups, if you use a combination of these types of questions, you’ll be able to make more informed decisions:

Three years teaching experience

Fact-based

Excellent classroom management skills

Factual questions can be used to check up on any information you need, or if you need to expand on anything on the candidate’s CV. Examples include, ‘How long did you work for your previous employer?’ and ‘Can you list your current qualifications?’.

Good leader Proven record of accomplishment with students

Breaking down your requirements for the role in this way can help you to choose the most suitable candidate for your workplace.

Plan ahead You expect your candidates to come fully prepared and ready - so it’s only fair that you do the same. This means considering how long the interview will be so you can organise your schedule. Also, if you plan to

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Behavioural/competency These questions focus on how your candidate handled situations in the past.

Here you would ask for examples of skills and experiences that are appropriate for the position. You might begin with ‘Describe a situation when…’ or ‘Give me an example of a time when you…’

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Situational/hypothetical Rather than referring to past events, these questions discuss theoretical situations. You can use these to find out how a candidate would react in a certain scenario, for instance, ‘What would you do if you had to collaborate with a difficult colleague’, or ‘How would you handle a disruptive student, who was negatively impacting the learning of others’.

Listen to your candidate Tune up your listening skills and encourage candidates to do the talking. After all, you need to hear what your candidate has to say to know enough about them. How else will you know if they’re right for the role? Make sure you listen carefully to them and are able to pick up on any key information that might influence your decision.

What’s more, be sure to prompt them to speak more about something if they don’t give you enough information. While interviewees should be able to expand on their answers to a degree, you also don’t want to miss an opportunity to find out any deal breakers.

Follow up after It’s important to put yourself in your candidate’s shoes. After the interview, they’re probably checking their emails every hour on the hour, keen to find out if you’ve made a decision. So you must keep them upto-date with what’s going on. Not keeping in touch looks bad on your organisation and can damage your employer brand.

At the end of the interview, be sure to let your candidate know when they can expect to hear from you. Try to be as detailed as possible, for instance, ‘We’ll let you know our decision by the end of the working day on Tuesday’. This can avoid candidates chasing you on Tuesday morning and worrying about why they haven’t heard back.

If this decision is delayed, let them know as soon as possible. But be careful with postponing too long, you might lose a great potential for the role.

Conduct an effective interview with ease It’s crucial that you get the interview process right, especially in the education sector which needs top talent now more than ever. Follow this guide to help you out and you’ll soon find that right candidate to fill your role.

Lee Biggins isthe founder and managing director of CV-Library.

CV-Library is one of the UK’s leading job boards, boasting the largest independent CV database of over 13 million CVs, and expanding by 198,000 new CVs every month. We work with tens of thousands of employers, offering the most competitive range of packages with comprehensive recruitment solutions for businesses of any size.

GDPR is critical to a school’s success.

by Christine Jackson Christine Jackson, partner at Midlands law firm Wright Hassall and an expert in data protection law, said that schools will be subject to increased scrutiny from regulatory bodies and parents due to the sensitive nature of the information they collect.

She added that compliance is not something that can be completed and then forgotten about, encouraging schools to take measures to ensure ongoing compliance.

A leading data protection law specialist has told schools that GDPR compliance is ‘critical’ to their long term success.

The latest figures from the Information Commissioner’s Office indicate a rise in disclosure issues and cyber-attacks in education since the introduction of the General Data Protection Regulation, with figures jumping from 355 in the second quarter of 2017-18 to 511 in the same period for 2018-19.

“This person should also have a thorough understanding of GDPR and what it means for schools, as well as your school’s processes.

“You should also be prepared for small or large issues, sometimes human error will be to blame, other times it is a fault of the systems in place.

She said:

“GDPR isn’t designed to catch schools out, rather it seeks to change attitudes as to how data is gathered, managed and stored.

Your school should, by now, have “ policies, procedures and robust

“With the number of breaches increasing, ongoing compliance is critical to the longterm success of a school as it breeds trust.

systems in place to protect the data your school holds; however, in order to make sure you remain compliant, you must be vigilant and seek out potential problems before they appear.

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“It is the responsibility of people running a school to educate staff on what is needed to achieve compliance and your Data Protection Officer should be fully aware of what is required.

“Compliance isn’t something that can be achieved and then forgotten about, so staying informed and proactive is crucial.”

Common disclosure issues for schools include the loss or theft of data or paperwork, information sent to the wrong person via email and accidental verbal disclosure.

Christine Jackson is a partner at Midlands law firm Wright Hassall.

LEGO engineers of the future celebrated at Parliament Schoolchildren were recognised for award-winning projects at event marking LEGO Education support for the Year of Engineering Forty-four budding young engineers were the guests of honour at a special reception at the House of Commons on Wednesday 12 December, where they showcased their award-winning engineering projects – all inspired by LEGO play.

The students are part of five winning teams in the Engineers of the Future competition, a robotics and coding challenge which inspired children aged 7-16 across the UK to get hands-on and creative with real engineering projects – like developing ideas for renewable energy or sustainable water systems.

Engineers of the Future has seen the Government’s Year of Engineering campaign, LEGO Education and the Institution of Engineering and Technology (IET) join forces to give more children around the country the opportunity to meet engineering role-models and to take part in engaging STEM activities.

The event, hosted by Stephen Metcalfe MP, which took place at the House of

Commons, provided an opportunity for Parliamentarians to consider the central role of engineering to society and the importance of direct early experiences for children in inspiring and developing the engineers of tomorrow.

As part of the campaign, the Engineers of

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the Future roadshow visited primary schools across the UK this autumn and winter, with a focus on schools that hadn’t previously taken part in engineering activities. Led by engineers equipped with LEGO Education coding and robotic activities, the roadshow aimed to inspire children by giving them access to quality hands-on learning

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experiences to help them discover the exciting opportunities available to aspiring engineers.

Minister for the Year of Engineering Nusrat Ghani said: “Today’s event is a celebration not just of the immense promise shown by these young engineers, but also of the partnerships that have helped us bring the profession to life for so many young people throughout the Year of Engineering.

“Working with LEGO Education and the Institution of Engineering of Technology, we have been able get many schoolchildren involved in engineering projects for the first time – a vital way of showing young people from all backgrounds the amazing things they could achieve as engineers.”

Nigel Fine, Chief Executive of the Institution of Engineering and Technology, said: “Engineers of the Future gives young people the chance to experience engineering in action. The hands-on challenge has seen the teams develop their coding and programming skills and their aptitude for team-work, problem-solving and communication which gives a real insight into the creative and innovative careers that engineering and technology presents.

“There is a great need for young people to develop and have STEM skills to fill the next

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generation of engineering roles. We need to ensure we are nurturing young people’s curiosity about how things work and allowing them to investigate and explore their own solutions. Inspiring young people about STEM and its many applications will set them on an exciting path that could lead to a fulfilling career in engineering and technology.”

groups. The Year of Engineering campaign has been working with more than 1,400 partners to help change this by giving young people in all corners of the UK the chance to experience engineering for themselves – from meeting engineering role models in their school to taking part in hands on activities and workshops or engineering open doors events with their families.

Victor Saeijs, Senior Vice President, Western Europe for the LEGO Group said:

For more information about Engineers of the Future, visit www.firstlegoleague.theiet.org

“Our core mission is to inspire and develop the builders of tomorrow, equipping children from an early age with the right skills to succeed, whatever their background or ambition.

“Today’s showcase is about recognising those children and giving them a platform to share their innate creativity, passion and aptitude for STEM with decision makers.

We are delighted to have supported the Government on this initiative and believe it sends a clear message about the importance of investing in the development of key skills from an early age.”

The engineering profession needs 203,000 skilled people each year to 2024 and has an annual shortage of 20,000 graduates. The workforce also faces a major lack of diversity – only 12% of engineers are female and just 8% come from black, Asian or minority ethnic

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The Engineers of the Future Challenge was aimed at teams that had competed in the FIRST LEGO League 17-18 Season.

The IET are the proud UK & Ireland delivery partners of FIRST® LEGO® League which is a global STEM competition that asks young people aged 9-16 to work in teams to design and program an autonomous robot to complete given challenges, research a real-world problem, and design a solution to solve it. Whilst completing these challenges, they must also demonstrate the FIRST Core Values, some of which are; teamwork, inclusion, problem-solving and having lots of fun!

The IET are also delivers FIRST LEGO League Jr. which is a programme for 6-9 year olds, continues overleaf u

What to keep in mind when teaching pupils with autism and the brand new Discovery programme, which is for 4-6 year olds. Both programmes are also centred around this year’s theme, the concept of space, and teams are tasked to complete different challenges. A team from each programme was also selected to display their work at the event.

About the Institution of Engineering and Technology The IET is one of the world’s largest engineering institutions with over 169,000 members in 150 countries. It is also the most interdisciplinary – to reflect the increasingly diverse nature of engineering in the 21st century. Energy, transport, manufacturing, information and communications, and the built environment: the IET covers them all.

The IET is working to engineer a better world by inspiring, informing and influencing our members, engineers and technicians, and all those who are touched by, or touch, the work of engineers.

We want to build the profile of engineering and change outdated perceptions about engineering in order to tackle the skills gap. This includes encouraging more women to become engineers and growing the number of engineering apprentices.

For more information, visit www.theiet.org Follow the IET on Twitter.

About LEGO Education LEGO® Education offers hands-on crosscurricular STEAM solutions for early learning, primary and secondary education, competitions, and after-school programs.

We provide subject-specific activities, from guided to open ended, that are aligned to curriculum standards and our values of quality, safety, and sustainability. Our research-based solutions are developed to give educators effective, structured, and relevant teaching

tools. They are compatible with multiple operating systems and coding platforms to offer more choice for students and their teachers. Designed to support progression through the school years, solutions from LEGO Education help students hone their creativity, collaboration, and problem solving skills through real-world, engaging experiences.

About the Year of Engineering The Year of Engineering is a Government campaign which aims to encourage young people from different backgrounds, and their teachers and parents, to take a closer look at the opportunities engineering careers offer. The campaign has seen Government join forces with more than 1,400 partners from industry, education and the charity sector to give young people an expected one million direct experiences of engineering by the end of 2018.

Government is working with more than 1,400 partners to give young people direct and inspiring experiences of engineering, from interactive learning resources and challenges to behind the scenes tours and the chance to meet engineering role models.

Engineering UK Brand Monitor research carried out following the first six months of the campaign has shown that the number of 11-16 year-olds who would consider a career in engineering has risen by 9% since last year, and among 7-11 year olds those who would consider engineering careers has increased by 36% since last year, from 47% to 64% - the main campaign key performance indicator.

The research also showed that an increase in positive sentiment towards working in engineering was higher among those young people who had attended a STEM outreach activity in the last 12 months.

To find out about the Year of Engineering, including activities, events, videos and school resources, visit www.yearofengineering.gov.uk

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by Tania Marshall, M.Sc Tania Marshall, M.Sc., is an award-winning author, psychologist, AspienGirl Project lead for girls with Autism or Asperger Syndrome, and Autism Ambassador for Education Placement Group, specialists in education recruitment. Tania works in private practice with individuals of all ages with a variety of mental health difficulties, psychological disorders and/or education needs.

She provides a wide variety of evidence-based inventions including: Cognitive behaviour therapy (CBT), Cognitive Affective Training (CAT), Motivation Interviewing (MI) and Interpersonal psychotherapy (IPT). Here, she talks to Education Magazine on best practice for teaching pupils on the autism spectrum, primarily focusing on highfunctioning females.

Education Magazine

Boys and girls with autism differ in the severity of their symptoms, personality, IQ, social skills, sensory processing sensitivities, cognitive profile, disorders and learning disabilities. Some other signs of autism are over-apologising, social immaturity with high intelligence, different eye contact, and coordination issues.

Girls with autism at school have difficulty working in groups, do not like participating in class discussions, do not enjoy attention being placed on them, and often make unintentional social faux pas. Other signs of autism are: Generally, girls with autism fit into two groups: one is passive, compliant, and follows rules – they dislike getting into trouble and do not manage stress or conflict well. The other group are outspoken, may correct the teacher in a socially inappropriate manner, be overly talkative, tell on other peers and become a school leader. Both groups are often high achievers, perfectionistic, and highly sensitive. Many individuals with autism also have a high sense of justice and are rigid in their thinking.

The way autism presents in girls can range from severe impairment to barely noticeable characteristics. In relation to intelligence, girls with an intellectual disability tend to be more severely affected, whereas girls with higher IQ’s are characterised by more subtle presentations and are often not diagnosed until they are older.

Their intelligence often masks their issues and they are more motivated to learn the necessary skills to fit in with their peers.

Prior to the age of 10, it can be difficult to pick up a female with autism. Females are typically

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diagnosed during their teen years and, overall, are less likely to be diagnosed than males due to their ability to camouflage, mask and compensate their way through school. Speech delay can be used to diagnose autism but girls are likely to learn to speak earlier than boys so their language development may not be seen as delayed.

Girls with autism do not tend to engage in what they consider ‘meaningless’ chatter and this is one major challenge when they interact with other girls.

Education strategies:

Females have been found to have more social understanding than their male autistic peers.

Girls are usually more motivated to be sociable and make friends.

Their ability to do this often results in a realisation they are ‘different’ and their effort and ‘social over-analysing’ can predispose them to mental health issues.

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Education strategies for teachers

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Focusing on an individual’s talents, while assisting them with their challenges, is crucial. It is important to take a strengths-based approach to offset a tendency towards selfdeprecation, which students with autism often have.

Inflexibility in learning methods and misunderstanding an autistic child’s preferred learning style is harmful. Most girls on the autism spectrum who are highfunctioning prefer to be selftaught and have a teacher check in on them. The allowances of an individualised education plan, sensory tools, academic accommodations, support and teachers who understand the world from an autistic pupil’s perspective is vital.

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Social skills training:

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The following accommodations and provisions can help those with autism to thrive at school:

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Alternatives to unstructured time:

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Unstructured time is when pupils with autism may feel most vulnerable, due to difficulties with change – their traits often become more obvious during breaks and lunchtime and they may choose not to socialise with their peers. A good alternative is setting up a lunchtime club.

Topic-based learning – pupils with autism have a tendency to hyper-focus for a long time on special interests Pre-teaching of content – this enables students to be more confident, and improve their ‘status’ with peers Teaching touch typing and using dictation apps as students with autism often have difficulty with fine/ gross motor skills Small group work and step plans to help students with autism work in groups Reduced and/or supervised homework at school so students don’t feel overwhelmed Un-timed tests/exams and 50% more time to complete their work due to processing speed issues Visual spatial teaching – the use of visual instructions and demonstrations Clear, specific instructions and the teacher regularly checking in with the student A low-arousal, calm environment A sensory toolbox (a collection of sensory strategies that help the pupil with sensory regulation) Regular breaks.

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Peer programmes: using small groups of sociallyaware and trusted students to support students with autism Modelling, e.g using roleplay and writing narratives to explain social situations factually Providing opportunities for pupils with autism to make friendships with like-minded In secondary school, female-specific teaching about hygiene, personal development, gender identity and sex education Strength and interestbased activities, such as supervised groups, leisure and sporting activities, volunteering, work experience and career training which focuses on talents and interests.

Primary versus secondary school In primary school, girls with autism tend to be included in groups by neurotypical girls and will mimic them. Due to the fact that girls with autism appear to be part of a group (although they often flit between groups and stay on the outer edges), teachers may not recognise their social difficulties. Many girls experience depression and anxiety from an early age – as young as six – which often goes unnoticed.

As girls become teenagers, the social complexities are more challenging. During these years, girls with autism have great difficulty with their changing bodies, in addition to heightened anxiety due to the combination of having autism, an increase in hormones and increased social challenges.

Teaching girls how to be independent, resilient, assertive and socially-aware reduces their vulnerability.

The complexity of female relationships in secondary school is overwhelming for girls with autism and the earlier they are taught social skills, the better the outcome. Working on girls’ self-esteem, self-image and building their confidence is crucial, as is focusing on their wellbeing.

The important role of teachers The type of teacher a child with autism has can make or break their school experience.

Many girls on the autism spectrum have great difficulties starting school and the teen years are particularly challenging and are when many females dropout or are home-schooled. Teachers should learn how to identify autism, recognise individual educational needs early and take a strength-based teaching approach. Teachers need to understand the full breadth of autism conditions, from extreme demand avoidance autism, low-functioning autism, high-functioning autism to twice-exceptional (2e).Teachers who are patient, adaptive and persistent can majorly improve the school experience of a child with autism.

Teacher Externalships

recent tyranny of progress measurement leaves little room for anything else.

Given teachers are so time-poor, it’s understandable there seems to be little opportunity to spend days out of school, and teachers often feel guilty when they do so, but a recent evaluation of our Give Yourself the Edge (GYTE) programme (now part of Edge Future Learning) demonstrates that teachers ‘skipping school’, can have huge benefits for their students – and themselves.

Access and exposure to the world outside the classroom is just as vital for teachers as it is for their students, as it can make learning more meaningful and relevant, put the curriculum in context and helps to answer the students’ ‘so what?’ question, Why am I learning this? When will I ever use it? It can also reinvigorate and inspire teachers when they see first-hand how themes they are teaching are used in the real world, and this can help inspire not only themselves, but their students.

by Helen Beardmore

GYTE is based on the Academies of Nashville model in the United States where highschool students access a variety of career academies alongside core education.

There is a strong emphasis on project-based learning and employer engagement; students effectively learn through the lens of a professional sector, for example, architecture, construction or medicine.

Helen Beardmore taught geography and Business Studies in secondary schools before joining the Specialist Schools and Academies Trust as National Specialism Coordinator for Business and Enterprise, supporting the 250+ B&E colleges across England.

She also led on the DfE’s National Enterprise programmes including the Enterprise Network.

Most recently, prior to joining the Edge Foundation, she was Head of Education at the Peter Jones Foundation working with FE Colleges, and advising Pearson on the new L3 BTECs in Enterprise and Entrepreneurship, as well as completing an MBA with the Open University in her spare time.

Having worked in the education sector for over 27 years as a secondary teacher, a National Specialism Coordinator for the SSAT and Pearson awarding body advisor, I have witnessed many changes to UK education.

As a succession of education ministers attempt to put their own stamp on the brief, those in the teaching profession often feel they are blown between one new policy and another, struggling to meet targets and mandatory curriculum requirements whilst at the same time actually teaching.

Visiting schools in my capacity as Education Delivery Manager

Teachers complete placements or externships with local employers and bring that knowledge and experience back into the classroom to share.

Students then participate in a six week project to learn more about the business, what it does, what sort of roles are available with that employer and create a presentation to be given to peers, teachers and local employers at the end of the project.

for the Edge Foundation, it seems to me that teachers are under unprecedented pressure.

Teaching has always been a demanding career, one you have to be committed to, and one you need a passion for. I left the classroom after 15 years as I was truly burnt out, juggling the demands of middle management whilst aiming to do the best by my students and putting the hours in to ensure all students achieved their potential.

However these pressures have increased exponentially. The sheer quantity of content now deemed necessary to pack in to the new GCSEs, many are starting in year 9, the results driven culture and the more

Over the course of 2017-2018, Edge initiated GYTE in fourteen schools in Nottingham, Derby and the North East. Year 8 and Year 9 teachers undertook a one-day externship with a local employer and the project was scheduled into school timetables during tutor time or PSHE. The evaluation by the International Centre for 26

Guidance Studies (iCeGS) threw up some interesting, although perhaps not too surprising data.

Students benefitted by learning about the types of jobs and career paths available; 84 per cent of students agreed both that they had learned a lot about local employers and about local jobs available to them, while 82 per cent said they had learned about jobs they hadn’t thought of before.

But it was the learning by teachers which might potentially be most impactful. Of the teachers surveyed, 85 per cent said that the externship experience had increased their knowledge of possible career paths in local businesses. One said: ‘I had no idea how many different types of roles there were in the sector and what they did for their clients.’

Others were aware of the employer they’d visited, but not of many of the roles they employed. Indeed, I went along to one externship day at a housing company in the Midlands. Several of the teachers were completely unfamiliar with HR or communications functions within the firm, but were most astonished by the annual salary of a quantity surveyor and the fact that there is a national shortage of them.

A headteacher probably articulated it best, noting that while employability is a key objective of the school, it is hard to embed without knowing what the larger world of work is like.

‘I had a straightforward career path of school-uni-school and I didn’t really know what the outside world of work was like.

[GYTE] gave me an opportunity to learn.’

By giving teachers experience of the workplace, they are better placed to provide careers advice to their students and three-quarters of those surveyed subscribed to that. Some particularly appreciated the insight it gave them into apprenticeships which they had felt illequipped to talk about before.

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A survey conducted by Edge over three years ago found that the majority of teachers did not feel confident talking about apprenticeships, so it’s disappointing that, anecdotally at least, little seems to have changed. Since then the government has vaunted its arbitrary three million apprenticeship target and the introduction of the Baker Clause compels schools to give access to learning providers, including those who offer apprenticeships, to talk to students about education pathways other than university.

The Gatsby benchmarks require schools to offer opportunities for students to meet employers, gain relevant work based experience and provide quality careers information, advice and guidance. This is all good news and Edge is a strong advocate for the value of profound employment engagement and the benefit for students.

But for all this to happen – and to happen well – teachers need the information and experience and the skills to share it in the classroom. Only a third of teachers taking part in the GYTE programme said the externship had improved their curriculum teaching. This may be in part that the programmes were only delivered during PSHE or tutor time. Also as a learning organisation we at Edge have also taken lessons from the evaluation and welcome its recommendations to improve our practice.

Schools like the XP School in Doncaster or School 21 in the east end of London, successfully embed careers information into the curriculum itself by putting learning in the context of the workplace. For many children and young people this can be key for engagement and introducing them to jobs they might not be aware of.

Taking teachers out of school may seem counter-intuitive as they struggle with increasingly onerous workloads, but what they bring back to the classroom can potentially not only tick some careers guidance boxes, but enrich their teaching and their own professional lives.

Education Magazine

Britain’s educational crisis revealed: indifference towards learning and development putting futures at risk. A new study by AVADO reveals.

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32% of Brits hold negative sentiments or are indifferent towards learning

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Over half (59%) use the internet to look for an instant answer

A third (33%) admitted they were lazy students at school or did not work to their full capacity Costs (48%), having to travel (27%), family/work commitments (21%) and feeling like they’re back in the classroom (18%) are all putting us off learning

The UK might be home to some of the most famous learning institutions in the world but many admit they are left uninspired when it comes to learning, with a new study by AVADO revealing that almost a third (32%) have a negative or indifferent attitude towards learning, including feeling lazy, unmotivated, nervous, tired or bored.

Consistent learning and development will be essential in future proofing the nation’s workforce if they are to remain a competitive powerhouse in the future. Our lack of interest in learning as highlighted in this research poses a real threat to future generations if they are to keep up with the ever changing career landscape.

It seems that perhaps this negative sentiment towards learning began in our school years.

Whilst 22% said they enjoyed learning at school, a similar number (21%) admitted they definitely didn’t work to their full capacity, with one in ten saying they were lazy students (11%) or didn’t enjoy the learning process and just wanted to get on with things (10%).

Women in particular were twice as likely to feel nervous towards learning than men, (6% vs. 3%). This is despite them also being more likely to have a better attitude towards learning, with almost 1 in 5 (19%) admitting they worked their hardest throughout their education compared to 1 in 7 (15%) men.

The findings found it has been 9 years since the average person last invested time in furthering their education. It’s no surprise then that 18% felt Masters and PhDs were a total waste of time. A fifth (19%) also admitted that if they were offered the chance to further their education now, they would still feel that it wasn’t a valuable use of their time.

When it comes to learning new skills in the workplace we are more likely to rate their value, with respondents rating apprenticeships and workplace courses as more valuable than degrees, although only 18% said a workplace course was the last time they learnt something, with more saying the last time they learnt was at degree level, college or at school (38%).

So why are we a nation of lazy learners? When it comes to furthering our education as adults, the perceived cost of learning (48%) is most likely to put us off. Other factors include travel (27%), family and work life (21%) and feeling

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back in the classroom (18%).

Some believe the opportunity for instant answers from the internet is to blame too.

Over half (59%) use the internet to look for an instant answer or to copy and paste from, leading 27% to say the internet has made us a lazy nation when it comes to looking for information.

Conversely, over a third (35%) say they use the internet as a tool to further educate themselves, and 55% say they would definitely take part in an online course that further their education. Conversely, over a third (35%) say they use the internet as a tool to further educate themselves, and 55% say they would definitely take part in an online course that further their education. Could online courses be the answer? With increased flexibility, no need to travel and no danger of work interferences, it’s perhaps unsurprising that AVADO averages more than 2 million hours of learning per year on their courses.

Amy Crawford, MD AVADO said, “Whilst it’s a shame to see we were not surprised by some of the perceived barriers towards extracurricular growth and development, including cost, travel and family commitments. It was, however, really positive to see the high number of people who would consider partaking in an online course to further their education.

We do not believe we are a nation of lazy learners, but instead are looking for ways we can better ourselves that fit within already busy schedules. With online courses and learning opportunities now more accessible than ever, we would urge everyone to park their school-time prejudices and consider learning something new, whether it be to progress in your existing career or enter into a completely new industry.”

The research for AVADO was carried out online by Opinion Matters between 19/10/2018 and 23/10/2018 amongst a panel resulting in 2,014 general respondents and 1,239 employed respondents. All research conducted adheres to the MRS Codes of Conduct (2010) in the UK and ICC/ESOMAR World Research Guidelines. Opinion Matters is registered with the Information Commissioner’s Office and is fully compliant with the Data Protection Act (1998).

Epson to showcase its comprehensive range of educational technology solutions at BETT 2019 Its cost-effective scanners, printers and projectorswill create engaging and interactive learning environments For more information on how to win a suite of products for your school, please visit www.epson.co.uk/bett This projection technology can be supported by Epson’s ELPDC21 education document camera, which features both optical and digital zoom for clear magnification and enhances classroom learning.

Technology that brings learning to life Schools constantly face the challenge of being able to effectively engage pupils throughout the day, and inclassroom AV technology set-ups can help with this.

Inclusive and high-quality tech can create a collaborative learning experience – enabling teachers to engage a whole classroom of students, simultaneously, from their desks.

Epson is continuing in its mission to boost pupil learning and help teachers engage students. At BETT 2019, which takes place from 23rd-26th January, the global technology company be exhibiting (on stand D270) and showcasing the tech that’s becoming fundamental to enhancing the educational experience.

Its range of printers, projectors and scanners will help teachers and educational outlets boost pupil learning – whilst keeping costs down.

Technology that is inclusive Screen size matters when it comes to education. A lot of classrooms are still using flat-panel displays, but these are often too small to give students optimum readability.

Research shows that 58% of students can’t read content on a 70” flat panel – meaning that not all pupils benefit from the same learning experience.

This is where Epson – now the top projector manufacturer for all business projectors across Europe, Middle East, Africa, and Russia (EMEAR) and the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS) – and its audio-visual (AV) technology plays a crucial role. Its projectors can be used to display content on a scalable screen of up to 100» in full HD quality.

This ensures that all students get a perfect view, without losing image quality or needing constant zoom adjustment.

Having the right-sized image for a room can make a huge difference to pupils’ levels of concentration, engagement and comprehension.

Epson will be showcasing its range of cost-effective interactive projectors at BETT, which can help teachers boost pupil engagement, improve their concentration levels and ultimately deliver a better learning experience.

With 80 per cent of educational material remembered when delivered via visual means and 90 per cent through interactive lessons, projection technology that enables flexible presentation methods is becoming the bedrock of progressive learning.

Projectors, including Epson’s EB-2265U, EB710Ui and EB-990U, allow every student to be part of the learning process. Pupils can create, inspire and work together, with inbuilt WiFi capability enabling ‘bring your own device’ (BYOD) collaboration in every learning environment.

Technology that keeps costs down As schools across the country continue to face funding crises, technologies that help educational outlets save on their energy and consumables bills – whilst helping boost pupil engagement and learning – will be fundamental to the teaching process.

At BETT, Epson will be highlighting the benefits of its WorkForce and EcoTank printing ranges, which can help schools save on both energy output and consumables.

WorkForce printers, like the Epson WF-M5799, WFM5298 and the WF-C20590, offer energy savings of up to 90 per cent compared to laser models. Epson’s new mono EcoTank printers – including the ET-M2140 – save users an average of 90 per cent on ink costs, offering a low total cost of ownership (TCO).