A qualification for life skills development

scameron — Thu, 26 Feb 2009 14:19:00 +0000

Marius Frank, Headteacher, Bedminster Down School, Bristol

School context

Using ASDAN to reward PSHE

scameron — Thu, 26 Feb 2009 13:47:36 +0000

As the new curriculum gives back more control to schools on how to design the teaching and learning they provide their students, a framework that first came into being more than one-quarter of a century ago is back in ascendancy. More and more schools are incorporating ASDAN courses into their curriculum because they offer the chance to validate learning that other qualifications might not reach.

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Teaching citizenship in six easy steps

scameron — Wed, 25 Feb 2009 14:33:50 +0000

The eight millennium development goals (MDGs) were established by the United Nations in 2000. They set out a plan of action to improve global social justice – by eradicating extreme poverty and hunger; achieving universal primary education; promoting gender equality; reducing child mortality; improving maternal health; combating HIV/AIDS, malaria, and other diseases; ensuring environmental sustainability; and developing a global partnership for development.
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Encouraging citizenship values through sport

scameron — Wed, 07 Jan 2009 11:57:30 +0000

Like any other international sport, cricket is full of the sort of controversies and drama that can bring a subject like citizenship to life.
Whether examining social and moral responsibilities, facilitating community involvement or developing political literacy, cricket can add contemporary relevance and link abstract concepts to high profile events and real life situations.
The following activity ideas will help children access one particular area of the Key Stage 2 citizenship curriculum – rules and fairness.
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SEAL: teaching adults as well as children

scameron — Mon, 15 Dec 2008 14:49:40 +0000

My four-and-three-quarter-year-old, Matty, sometimes says to me: ‘I’m the oldest, I know!’ No matter how often I explain that, although he might be older than his walking-already-brother he isn’t older than me, he just doesn’t believe it.
One day, as I was walking along the Welsh lanes with my 10-month-old Ben, in between thunderstorms and sun shine, watching the lambs nuzzle their mothers for milk, I realised that, in one way at least, he might be right.
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Remembering child protection with older young people

scameron — Fri, 12 Dec 2008 15:30:59 +0000

Newcastle’s Safeguarding Children Board has recently published a serious case review in respect of a 16-year-old girl. To review the death of a young person of this age is an unusual step and this particular review highlights some of the dilemmas faced by professionals in respect of teenagers who are not quite old enough to be of concern to adult services. Child protection law defines a child as a person up to the age of 18 but there seems to be increasing difficulty in recognising the teenager as in need of child protection.
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Linking personal and social development to curriculum aims

scameron — Thu, 11 Dec 2008 12:42:17 +0000

Education minister Lord Adonis has said that personal, social and health education is ‘key to the effectiveness of schools in meeting all the national outcomes for children, and that ‘without effective PSHE, a school’s ability to demonstrate how they are contributing to the Every Child matters agenda, addressing pupil well-being and supporting personal development is compromised’.

Developmental process
Personal and social education is a developmental process that includes:
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Raise pupils' awareness of children's rights

scameron — Thu, 11 Dec 2008 12:17:39 +0000

What is ECPAT UK?
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Understanding and preventing suicide in young people

scameron — Fri, 05 Dec 2008 16:54:40 +0000

In the aftermath of the suicides of young people in Bridgend, Wales, where 19 young people under the age of 27 have hanged themselves, a suicide prevention project is to be set up using nearly one million pounds of lottery funding. Quite separately, the Samaritans is in the early stages of developing a suicide and self-harm response kit for schools, and has opened a consultation process to which anyone with relevant experience can contribute.
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Education employment law: statutory leave and pay entitlements

scameron — Fri, 05 Dec 2008 16:02:10 +0000

One of the defining features of the last 11 years of New Labour government has been its apparent commitment to, and promotion of, measures designed to encourage a work-life balance and to facilitate what is termed a family friendly working environment.
‘Good’ employers, therefore, have taken the view that the remuneration and benefits package should in some way exceed the statutory minimum requirements in terms of leave and pay.
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Promoting healthy eating in children

scameron — Tue, 16 Sep 2008 11:36:55 +0100

We don’t always have to agree with her, but the first sentences of Janet Street Porter’s column in the Independent on Sunday 24 February 2008 are useful starting points when looking at healthy eating in schools. She suggests that: ‘A whopping number of kids – around a quarter – are now officially overweight before they’ve even started primary school, according to new statistics released by the Department of Health.
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Activity: Identifying and rationalising issues

sara — Sat, 30 Aug 2008 12:28:26 +0100

Written by Belinda Heaven

Hassle statements: To help young people appreciate what goes on in their lives and identify the scale of the problem.

This activity provides statements of issues to encourage students to disguish between minor hassles and major problems. An answer sheet, hassle cards and hassle statements are provided for this activity.

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A careers education lesson: Equal pay

sara — Sat, 30 Aug 2008 12:28:26 +0100

Equal pay

Written by Claire Harbottle with Genevieve Barlow and edited by David Leat

This activity, Fair play - fair pay draws upon the 1968 strike by a small group of women at the Dagenham Ford car factory as a starting point.

Pupils are encouraged to discuss the strikers' motives, intentions, reactions, attitudes, values and beliefs.

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A day in the life of a youth justice worker

scameron — Sat, 30 Aug 2008 10:20:53 +0100

I work for the youth offending team and I am the early intervention youth justice worker. I’m based at Hailsham Community College, which just so happens to be my old secondary school! It is a specialist sports college and a full service extended school that houses a number of agencies, including the youth offending team, police, Connexions, nurse, social services, counsellors, out-of-school-hours manager, community sports development officer, educational welfare officer, traveller education service, etc.

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Fair Trade Fortnight 2008

jlee — Sat, 30 Aug 2008 10:20:39 +0100

If your school is running an event for Fair Trade Fortnight we would love to hear about it and publicise it on the site. Please email us with details or simply post a comment below. From an assembly to a Fair Trade Fair – we're keen to hear about it.

If you've nothing organised, it's not too late – check out our Developing Citizenship area where there are lots of examples of school fair trade activities and events to inspire you.

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Legal basics: giving your pupils advice on sex and contraception

jlee — Sat, 30 Aug 2008 10:20:39 +0100

Government plans to bring sexual health services into schools have proved divisive, with ‘pro-life’ groups leading the charge: Rob McDonough, head of West Bridgford school, Nottingham, was accused by anti-abortion activists of conspiring to murder unborn babies — because his school gave the morning-after pill.
But what is all the fuss about? Here, we take a detailed look at new guidance on school sexual health services, placing it in the context of other pupil health initiatives.
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Listening to the views of very young children

jlee — Sat, 30 Aug 2008 10:20:38 +0100
Historical context

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Young sporting ambassadors

jlee — Sat, 30 Aug 2008 10:20:37 +0100

The London Olympic Games might still be years away but the work to ensure the Games leave a lasting legacy for young people and sport in this country has already started.

The Young Ambassador programme, managed by Youth Sport Trust and jointly funded by the Department for Culture, Media and Sport and the Department for Children, Schools and Families, has recently seen 1,000 more young people aged between 14 and 18 be selected to promote the values and ideals of the Olympic and Paralympic movement.

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Students have their say on learning

jlee — Sat, 30 Aug 2008 10:20:34 +0100
As recipients of your ‘curriculum offer’, the students themselves can give invaluable insights into what really works for them. Although one of the current trends in education is to pay more heed to student voice, some would say that those who create the national initiatives, which curriculum managers then have to make work in their school context, are not listening enough to the views of pupils. So this recent research review from the National Foundation of Educational Research (NFER) could make useful reading for policymakers as well as the schools themselves.

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African-Caribbean views on slavery

jlee — Sat, 30 Aug 2008 10:20:33 +0100
The bi-centenary of the passing of the Abolition of the Slave Trade Act and QCA’s recent announcement about the inclusion of slavery in the curriculum present teachers with a variety of opportunities to explore the legacy of the slave trade both past and present within society. For students of African-Caribbean descent the topic may be one to which they are particularly sensitive. If taught badly it can create feelings of hurt, alienation and discomfort and students may find themselves silently seething.

Living together in the UK

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Young people support family diversity

jlee — Sat, 30 Aug 2008 10:20:33 +0100
Young people participating in the recent HeadsUp (www.headsup.org.uk) online forum It’s a Family Affair! What Is the Place of Family in Society? were adamant in their support for the quality of parenting they receive. They identified several reasons behind what keeps families together and also what drives them apart. Many were speaking from first-hand experience.

Key questions in the debate

What makes up a family? Does every family need a father/mother figure plus 2.4 children to function?

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Tools to ensure healthy relationships

jlee — Sat, 30 Aug 2008 10:20:33 +0100
Healthy relationships are at the heart of lifelong emotional wellbeing, good mental, physical and sexual health. Schools and colleges can be places where young people can talk openly, share experiences and get the support and information they need as they and their relationships grow and change.

Positive relationships

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Creating a generation of lifesavers

jlee — Sat, 30 Aug 2008 10:20:33 +0100
The revised QCA guidelines for PHSEE KS3 outline knowledge of basic first aid as a core component of personal wellbeing. Educators with little or no experience of the topic need not fear: The British Red Cross has just what the doctor ordered.

Why first aid matters

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Settling disputes in school

jlee — Sat, 30 Aug 2008 10:20:33 +0100

Many teachers believe that young people are becoming more difficult and less deferential. This may be so, although we all have read quotes from different historical eras making exactly the same complaints. Public debate on school behaviour exclusions focuses largely on the powers of heads and the rights of the community and individual. The complex bureaucratic rules on exclusion make only implied reference to fundamental values.
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Developing 'citizenship-rich' schools

jlee — Sat, 30 Aug 2008 10:20:31 +0100

Whether one looks to the involvement of young men, born and educated in Britain, in the London bombings, the rise of the far right in local politics or the suggested emergence of an ASBO generation and its close relatives – teenage pregnancy, drug abuse and binge drinking – the need for a clearly defined and well-resourced social curriculum, centred around the challenge of developing citizens, has never been stronger.

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Relevance of storytelling in schools

jlee — Sat, 30 Aug 2008 10:20:29 +0100

A staffroom announcement that a storyteller is going to pay a visit won’t be met with much enthusiasm at most secondary schools. Certainly, cynics’ corner will mutter that it’s a bit ‘fluffy’ – little more than a headline grabber for the bulletin and a treat for the Year 7s.
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Build skills and stop gang culture

jlee — Sat, 30 Aug 2008 10:20:29 +0100

All of us crave respect. Most adults spend much of their life building a reputation based on positive recognition of who they are, what they earn and what they do. In a world where success is based on the amount of money accrued, much of the reputation and respect integral to the adult world is based on how much you have.
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Educational equalities: raising the stakes

jlee — Sat, 30 Aug 2008 10:20:29 +0100

Without doubt the educational attainments of young people have a profound influence on their futures and it is still the case that discrimination has a major impact on educational outcomes.
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Sustainable development and global citizenship in Wales

jlee — Sat, 30 Aug 2008 10:20:29 +0100

Wales is one of only two countries to be committed by governing statute to sustainability. The other is Finland. As part of its statutory commitment to sustainable development the Welsh Assembly Government (WAG) has provided considerable support and encouragement to ensure that Education for Sustainable Development and Global Citizenship (ESDGC) is incorporated and embedded throughout the formal and informal education systems. Although not statutory, ESDGC is already subject to inspection which is undoubtedly helping to pave the way for its full integration into school life.
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Education in the Commonwealth

jlee — Sat, 30 Aug 2008 10:20:29 +0100

For almost five decades, the Council for Education in the Commonwealth (CEC), has concerned itself with improving international, multicultural and development education throughout the 53 member states which make up the Commonwealth of Nations. This aim is being accomplished by liaising with the Commonwealth secretariat and Commonwealth high commissions, cooperating with government departments in the UK and EU and collaborating with NGOs and professional bodies.
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Values education resource: the National Curriculum Statement

jlee — Sat, 30 Aug 2008 10:20:29 +0100

Official pronouncements and initiatives on values education come and go, and some have much longer-lasting effects than others.
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Facing up to loss

jlee — Sat, 30 Aug 2008 10:20:26 +0100

In the last week of the spring term, I led a SEAL training session on loss and mourning. It was also the end of my last full term before going off on maternity leave. Together with other things that were happening, this led me to thinking about loss and grief.
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Human rights education: what should you be teaching?

jlee — Sat, 30 Aug 2008 10:20:24 +0100

On Human Rights Day, 10 December 2004, Kofi Annan, then United Nations secretary general, said ‘Human rights education is much more than a lesson in schools or a theme for the day; it is a process to equip people with the tools they need to live lives of security and dignity.’
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Babysitting: an Irish Red Cross project

jlee — Sat, 30 Aug 2008 10:20:24 +0100

What is babysitting?

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Informed decision making and IT

jlee — Sat, 30 Aug 2008 10:20:24 +0100

Anyone working with young people can be sure of at least two things. One, that they are very open to influence by peers, role models and those they admire. And two, that they can be equally resistant to influence by adults interested in their behaviour, attitudes and values. While hardly revelations, they have important implications for the resources used in life skills curricula.

New technologies
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Wellbeing: what is it and why does it matter?

jlee — Sat, 30 Aug 2008 10:20:24 +0100

Personal wellbeing has always been a central concern of PSHE. Today it has also become a prominent notion in discussion of educational and political policy.
In the QCA’s secondary curriculum review, an important cross-curricular role is given to personal development, which has two central strands: personal wellbeing and economic wellbeing.
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Managing loss, grief and bereavement

jlee — Sat, 30 Aug 2008 10:20:23 +0100

‘Death neither obeys the school timetable nor appears on it… it enters the classroom without knocking’ (from the website ‘Winston’s Wish’).
A charter for bereaved children can be found on www.winstonswish.org.uk
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Teaching global citizenship in school

jlee — Sat, 30 Aug 2008 10:20:23 +0100

The UN Convention of the rights of the child states that: ‘All children and young people have the right to have a say in the decisions that affect them, to access relevant information and to express their feelings. This statement includes all the children in the world.’
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How well is diversity promoted in the curriculum?

ewtemp — Sat, 30 Aug 2008 10:20:22 +0100

Particularly pertinent after the debates surrounding Celebrity Big Brother, the report advises that there needs to be greater consideration by schools of what is meant by cultural diversity, how it can be achieved through curriculum innovation and how it should be linked to teaching and learning.
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Flexible working at school and at home

jlee — Sat, 30 Aug 2008 10:20:22 +0100

What a week! My three-year-old, normally so full of bounce, whined his way through Sunday, has spent the rest of the week with a temperature, a cough and very little desire to eat. On Tuesday, his dad came down with it too. So began the nightmare that is being a working mother and a teacher.

Missed lessons
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Learner identities under pressure

jlee — Sat, 30 Aug 2008 10:20:22 +0100

The school

Our research was carried out at a two-form entry, five to 11 primary school in central London. The school does well against national performance data and consistently finds itself at or near the top of league tables in its local authority, which is one of the most deprived in the country.
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The 'fitness and wellbeing' MOT

ewtemp — Sat, 30 Aug 2008 10:20:20 +0100

Each year PSHE teaching moves into ever more sensitive territory. Subjects such as drugs, drink and sexual behaviour are met head-on and, following the Jamie Oliver campaign, healthy eating gets similar uncompromising treatment. Now, at Monkseaton Community High School, the students’ physical fitness is to be the subject of serious inspection.
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Teaching enterprise or enterprising teachers?

ewtemp — Sat, 30 Aug 2008 10:20:20 +0100

Enterprise education (EE) is now compulsory in the English school curriculum. Can enterprise education be viewed as a school subject or is it an attitude to teaching? How may schools ‘teach’ enterprise? And does success require basic assumptions about how schools are organised to be challenged?

What is EE?

There is a long-standing problem of definition with EE and its learning outcomes (Davies and Brant, 2006). There are three broad types of definition:
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World heritage - examining the threats

ewtemp — Sat, 30 Aug 2008 10:20:20 +0100

One cannot fail to be inspired by the human effort it took to build the Great Wall of China; or to be awed by the sheer power of Victoria Falls in Zambia; or to witness the result of the most destructive force ever created by humankind at Hiroshima in Japan. The care and protection of these World Heritage Sites falls to individual nations that have ratified the 1972 UNESCO World Heritage Convention. Nations have committed to protect, conserve and manage the sites for future generations. But despite all this, damage can and does happen.
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What does 'my space' look like?

ewtemp — Sat, 30 Aug 2008 10:20:20 +0100

From the places where they live to remote online spaces, young people are constantly working out the best way to navigate their worlds. They learn not only about their relationship with physical space but also the communities of which they are part and how they fit into them. PSHE and citizenship both address these needs by exploring a wide range of contemporary issues from local crime to global warming, but coordinators of these subjects might do well to consider how geographical thinking can support people in making sense of their complex existence.
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Teaching human rights to combat discrimination

ewtemp — Sat, 30 Aug 2008 10:20:20 +0100

2007 marked the 200th anniversary of the abolition of the slave trade in Britain and the colonies – the first step to outlawing slavery altogether. Such events provide a great opportunity to explore the slave trade in class. There are lots of connections to PSHE. For example, teachers and students can look at discrimination, human rights, responsibility, and how people stand up for what they believe in.
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Community cohesion - will history help?

ewtemp — Sat, 30 Aug 2008 10:20:19 +0100

‘Community cohesion’ may have gone into the Education and Inspections Act 2006 as an afterthought but we can be sure that Ofsted is even now planning how to enforce the obligation.
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Promoting peace in our time

admin — Sat, 30 Aug 2008 10:20:18 +0100

On 12 May 2006, Charles Edward Brooke School (CEBS) in the London borough of Lambeth enjoyed its first dedicated PSHE day. The school mobilised its specialist arts status to promote learning about peace through cross-curricular activities which engaged students and teachers in reassessing their visions of the future and their roles in society.

Origins of a peace day at CEBS
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PSHE & Citizenship Coordinator

Developing Citizenship: about the project

The benefits of peer support and student participation

A qualification for life skills development

Using ASDAN to reward PSHE

Teaching citizenship in six easy steps

Encouraging citizenship values through sport

SEAL: teaching adults as well as children

Remembering child protection with older young people

Linking personal and social development to curriculum aims

Raise pupils' awareness of children's rights

Understanding and preventing suicide in young people

Education employment law: statutory leave and pay entitlements

Promoting healthy eating in children

Activity: Identifying and rationalising issues

A careers education lesson: Equal pay

A day in the life of a youth justice worker

Fair Trade Fortnight 2008

Legal basics: giving your pupils advice on sex and contraception

Listening to the views of very young children

Young sporting ambassadors

Students have their say on learning

African-Caribbean views on slavery

Young people support family diversity

Tools to ensure healthy relationships

Creating a generation of lifesavers

Settling disputes in school

Developing 'citizenship-rich' schools

Relevance of storytelling in schools

Build skills and stop gang culture

Educational equalities: raising the stakes

Sustainable development and global citizenship in Wales

Education in the Commonwealth

Values education resource: the National Curriculum Statement

Facing up to loss

Human rights education: what should you be teaching?

Babysitting: an Irish Red Cross project

Informed decision making and IT

Wellbeing: what is it and why does it matter?

Managing loss, grief and bereavement

Teaching global citizenship in school

How well is diversity promoted in the curriculum?

Flexible working at school and at home

Learner identities under pressure

The 'fitness and wellbeing' MOT

Teaching enterprise or enterprising teachers?

World heritage - examining the threats

What does 'my space' look like?

Teaching human rights to combat discrimination

Community cohesion - will history help?

Promoting peace in our time