WickED is a site bursting with resources and interactive games for 7-12 year olds. The site has lots of online activities such as crosswords and quizzes, an online storybook, story creation tools and mini projects.

www.tki.org.nz

The site has an Information Station which is a good starting point for research work. There are also lots of interactive games and quizzes, along with a Topic section which covers a wide range of concepts. Thanks to Simon Haughton for recommending this extremely useful resource.

If you’ve missed any of this week’s education news, here is a summary of the main events:

• The General Teaching Council for England is to be axed. Education Secretary Michael Gove told MPs that he believed that the organisation ‘does little to raise teaching standards or professionalism’. This follows the the scrapping of the Qualifications and Curriculum Development Agency and BECTA, and will allow the money to spent ‘on the front line’ instead. The TES spoke to Michael Gove about his plans in this report.
• Michael Gove has also stated that more than 1,000 schools have shown an interest in becoming an academy, stating that the level of interest is ‘overwhelming’.
• Failing schools will be ‘given a year to improve’. After that time, ‘organisations with an excellent track record of educational excellence’ will take them over.
• Concern has been expressed over the increasing use of modern technology in nurseries, rather than traditional play-based activities.
• A reading test for 6 year olds will be introduced ‘to make sure that young children are learning and to identify problems early’.
• The Institute for Fiscal Studies has said that there is not enough money to finish Labour’s ‘Building Schools for the Future’ scheme and to fund free schools. Therefore, building work on hundreds of schools may have to be abandoned.
• Despite cuts to spending on adult education, the new business secretary has described how ‘his mother’s mind was saved by adult education’. The BBC have also spoken to a number of adults who have returned to education and have started learning new literacy and maths skills.
• A report from the Guardian states that children need ‘a sense of the broad sweep of history’, rather than teaching of selected events.
• A group of young carers have joined forces to create a campaign to raise awareness and help find young people who may be hidden young carers so they can get the support they need. Watch their video below:

• A report from the CfBT Education Trust explains that schools policies are more influenced by the media and by pressure for quick fixes, than by research evidence. It also calls for the setting up of an independent chief education officer to give objective advice.
• A union leader has stated that university lecturers could opt for a national strike unless agreement is reached over redundancies.
• Plans to create a ‘ super college’ in Glasgow have been questioned by the Educational Institute of Scotland, who have said that few student places would be provided there than are already currently available.
• An A-level student has asked for an exam to be rescheduled because it clashes with one of England’s World Cup matches.
• A new survey had reported that parents spend an average of 49 minutes a day together with their children.
• Parents in Wales have been warned that under-15s should not drink alcohol, even under parental supervision.

The majority of parents frequently struggle to support their child’s learning outside the classroom according to a new report commissioned by Becta – the Government’s agency for technology in education.

The study of 2000 parents and 2000 nine to 13 year olds, found that:

• There is a desire from parents to become more involved in their child’s education with the majority (81%) calling for more guidance and advice on how best to support their children’s learning outside of the classroom
• 84% of parents revealed that currently their child’s school offered little or no resource to help support their child’s out of school learning.
• Nearly a quarter (22%) of parents admitted they frequently feel unable to support their child with their education at home.
• The core subjects of Maths and Science top the list as the most difficult for parents, according to 37% and 27% of parents respectively.
• More than one in three (37%) children admitted they were sometimes unable to complete their homework because there was no one to help them
• If they can’t complete their homework, 36% of children feel frustrated and want to give up completely, 29% feel embarrassed and 27% say it makes them feel like they are no good at the subject

Anson Primary School in Brent was recently awarded an ICT Excellence award for the pioneering work it has done to extend learning beyond the classroom. Headmaster Jeff Smith, comments: “Parents want to take an active role in their children’s education and the school works hard to make the most of this valuable relationship. However, it is essential that there is a consistency in teaching styles and techniques. Anson offers training sessions for parents on subjects such as Maths so that they can be informed of the ways that we teach different processes. Each parent is then empowered to support their child at home.”

“Our learning platform provides links, materials and tutorials for the child and parent to work through together. There is no doubt that helping parents to support their children has had a significant impact upon learning outcomes as well as developing even stronger links between the school, parent and child.”

Niel McLean, Executive Director of Becta, said; “Becta believes that when used effectively both in schools and at home, technology can be extremely beneficial to a child’s education. Schools benefit from proactive involvement from parents and if children feel they are getting the right support from the schools and families, this has a positive effect on their grades.”

“Many schools are already using technology in innovative yet practical ways to advise parents on how best to support children’s education at home and are reaping the rewards as children’s performance improves at school. We’d encourage any parent wanting to find out more about how technology could help them support their children outside the classroom to visit www.nextgenerationlearning.org.uk and start talking to their child’s school about the technology available to them.”

How does your school support parents with homework and learning at home?

A survey from BBC Newsround has found that many children are kept up late at night by video games, mobile phones and televisions. An article on the BBC News site explains that:

“Newsround sent a questionnaire to 1,000 children aged between nine and 11 at schools across the UK. Most said they went to bed at 2130, but a quarter said bedtime was 2200 or later and half said they were not getting enough sleep and wanted more.

Health experts have linked a lack of sleep to problems with concentration, behaviour and school work. About half the children asked said they were staying up to play on computer games or their mobile phones or to watch television.”

Image - Dreaming Children

The article goes on to explain that:

“Scientists have linked a lack of sleep in children to problems with concentration and schoolwork. Energy levels can be lower and sleep-deprived children can be irritable or behave badly. A recent study by academics in Finland suggested a good night’s sleep could reduce hyperactivity and bad behaviour among children.”

Does this affect the children in your classroom?

New research from Becta (the government agency leading the national drive to ensure the effective and innovative use of technology throughout learning) reveals that misunderstandings, a lack of confidence and unclear communication channels are putting children’s education at risk.

The study of 2,000 parents and 1,000 teachers across the country revealed over half of parents are in contact with their child’s teacher just once a term or less and for various reasons are taking a back seat in their child’s education.

Four key issues in the parent-teacher dynamic have also emerged:

• ‘Invisible’ parents: Of the parents who admitted they rarely made contact with their child’s teacher, nearly a quarter (22%) said they did not see the benefit for their child. The majority (67%) of school staff said that these parents simply do not realise how important their support is in their child’s development. And 60% said that these parents often feel their job stops at the school gates.
• Confidence issues: 42% of teachers said the reason so-called ‘invisible’ parents have so little contact with the school is that they lack the confidence to discuss their child with teachers – 43% of school staff admit parents might find them ’difficult to approach sometimes.’ One in five (19%) parents are worried about bothering teachers and more than a fifth (22%) say they don’t want to add to the teacher’s workload, resulting in many taking a back seat in their child’s education.
• Lack of information: More than one in ten (11%) of the parents who do initiate communication said they felt dismissed by teachers as an ‘overly demanding’ parent and a further 11% commented they often feel they are imposing on the teacher’s time. More than a third (36%) of school staff encounter parents who want ‘constant reassurance’ and others (19%) who try to ‘influence everything that goes on in the classroom.’
• Lack of effective communication channels: 89% of parents say technology could help them become better informed about their child’s education so that they can then have more focused face-to-face discussions with teachers. However, despite all schools having electronic communication tools, 46% of parents say their schools don’t communicate with them in this way.

As part of its Next Generation Learning campaign, Becta is leading the national drive to ensure the effective and innovative use of technology throughout learning. The benefits of technology in schools are twofold: making lessons and learning more enjoyable and rewarding, whilst also keeping parents better informed and involved with their child’s learning.

Becta is urging parents to talk to their child’s school to find out how and if technology is already being used, and how it can help improve regular communications between them and the school in future. For more information on the research and how you can get involved in the campaign, explore the site. The ‘Parents as Partners‘ section also has some useful advice and case studies exploring how technology can help schools, parents and learners to work together.

How do you involve parents in their children’s learning? Do you use new forms of technology? Do you see positive changes as a result of these strategies? I would love to hear your thoughts in the comments…

Image – Becta

The BBC is today reporting on the results of the Cambridge Primary Review. One of the suggestions of the report is that children should not start formal learning until they are six. At the moment, most children in England start school aged four.

Our ‘Early Years Foundation Stage’ is a play-based curriculum including some early literacy and numeracy goals. The report suggests continuing this informal but structured learning for a year or so, bringing education in England in line with many European countries, where school starts at six or even seven, and standards are often higher.

What do you think? Should our children start formal learning later? How will it have an impact on the children and their learning?

Image – Extra Credit