News
Mentoring ‘absolutely
Online
CPD
essential’ for students
database
launches
School staff in England can now
access an online database of
by Charles Gubert
it difficult for schools and local One school at the conference, more than 4,500 CPD courses.
authorities to establish high profile St Thomas More Catholic School The database, compiled by
mentoring programmes. in north London, has had a peer the Training and Development
Schools need greater resources to He explained: “Funding for men- mentoring system in place now for Agency for Schools (TDA), is
deliver effective peer mentoring, toring and befriending programmes the last three years. the first of its kind, and it is being
according to leading experts on the at the moment is somewhat piece- Speaking to SecEd, the school’s touted as a “one-stop-CPD-shop”
subject. meal, and trying to put together mentoring co-ordinator, Catherine for teachers.
Sarah Wiley, head of projects effective schemes is a challenge. The McEvoy, described some of the Available via the TDA’s web-
at the Mentoring and Befriending funding for these schemes has to be work her school did, particularly site, the database features details
Foundation (MBF), told SecEd that made more stable and consistent. with new arrivals from primary. of courses linked to all main-
mentoring is “absolutely essential” “The recession might have an She said: “The peer mentors stream subjects, along with some
for young people, but that schools impact on public spending and help the new year 7s coming from more specialist topics – including
often struggled to cope with the therefore schemes that provide primary school and help them with Bollywood dancing and learning
increased workload. early intervention like mentoring the transition into secondary. Peer how to podcast.
Speaking to SecEd at the MBF’s could be affected, alongside many mentors go into the registration The resource comes follow-
national conference last week, she other services.” group and they do one-to-one men- ing a successful one-year pilot,
said: “Schools don’t like the extra The conference also saw a number toring. They build up a relation- which saw more than 55,000
paperwork and there aren’t enough of schools and local authorities show- ship and they usually work for two people using the service to search
resources, or enough time, to oversee casing their mentoring work. terms with them depending on their for CPD advice.
the programmes. There are also issues Among the examples was needs.” Graham Holley, chief execu-
such as having enough rooms avail- Bracknell Forest Council in Ms McEvoy said that many of tive of the TDA, acknowledged
able for meetings to take place.” Berkshire and its Safe to Learn those who have received mentoring that CPD was essential to ensure
Ms Wiley highlighted that it was initiative, which provides vulner- frequently went on to make excel- teachers were highly motivated
an “absolute necessity” that senior able students in all of the borough’s lent mentors themselves. and that pupils performed well
school staff and management were secondary schools with safe zones, Jerry Glover, chief executive of in school.
actively supportive of mentoring where they can go at lunchtime to the Bolton Lads and Girls’ Club, He said: “Effective CPD
programmes. play games with fellow pupils. a youth centre in Bolton, was a paves the way for a motivat-
“Schools need to be made more Older students also “surf” the keynote speaker at the conference. ed, well informed school team
aware of the impact mentoring can playground and offer support to stu- He said: “Mentoring is what young and improved performances by
have. The profile of mentoring dents who might be in difficulty. people need. It is an opportunity for pupils.”
needs to be raised,” she added. Speaking at the conference, kids in chaotic households to relate The launch is accompanied
Thanos Morphitis, director of Martin Gocke, the council’s act- to stable adults. It is a simple inter- by a series of regional events
strategy and commissioning at the ing director of children’s resources, vention and if it is made at the right Friendly face: Jerry Glover from Bolton Lads and Girls’ where educationalists and local
London Borough of Islington, who argued that one-to-one mentoring time, it can have a huge impact.” Club at the MBF conference with one of 15 Anti-Bullying authority staff will consider the
also spoke at the conference, said is the most effective approach, and For more on the MBF, visit: Elephants, which have been created in schools across professional development needs
that a lack of money was making urged more schools to adopt it. www.mandbf.org.uk England in the run-up to Anti-Bullying Week next week arising from the government’s
recent White Paper, Your Child,
Trust proposals spark criticism in Scotland
Your School, Our Future.
The White Paper called for
teachers to be given the same
amount of CPD as other pro-
A council proposal to create trusts, and give them more freedom However, Judith Gillespie, pooling buses for secondary and ed the policy of trust schools in fessionals such as lawyers and
Scotland’s first trust to run schools to spend money as they see fit to of the Scottish Parent Teacher primary in order to meet extra England, Scotland has none. doctors.
has drawn fierce criticism from serve their communities,” Mr Berry Council, said: “Reading between Mandarin provision would be met Scottish Labour leader Iain Bruce Joyce, a leading CPD
the leading national parents’ and said. the lines, they’re trying to offload with wails of protest because they Gray, MSP for East Lothian, also specialist, added: “All schools
teachers’ organisation, which says “The financial situation is very their budget deficit onto somebody come out of school at different opposed the idea, a spokesman said, should be encouraged to develop
the move would offload financial serious and we need to explore else, by asking somebody else to times. on the grounds that people felt there a learning culture, to become
responsibility without bringing any every avenue to provide services to manage it. “This is not going to make was no need for further devolution centres of learning for all, with
more flexibility. people without needing to borrow “The Scotsman (which reported budgets any bigger, unless you seek of budgets. CPD seen as an entitlement.
David Berry, East Lothian money – and that means doing some the idea) misrepresents the amount private sector support. And that is But Liz Smith, Conservatives “The new and improved data-
Council’s SNP leader, has floated fairly unconventional things.” of freedom schools already have to going to vary enormously through- education spokeswoman, backed base is an excellent resource and
the plan as part of a wider budget His SNP/Liberal Democrat determine their spending. It’s not out the local authority. Headteachers the plan as she said headteachers will provide schools with suf-
review, saying he hoped it would coalition outlined the “serious” as if every child in Scotland is on would be spending much more time were too often restricted by local ficient flexibility to address indi-
prompt a debate about how to give plan in a document described as a exactly the same programme of on running a business, which they authorities. vidual needs, as well as local and
schools greater freedom on spend- “community consultation paper”, learning. And there is huge variety usually dislike at the moment. “Private (financial) inputs are national priorities.”
ing. though the Holyrood government in terms of partnerships with local “The main question, though, is perfectly acceptable but that should To access the CPD guidance
“The idea is to look at school has not given its backing and says colleges and so on. what happens to pupils who are not not in any way undermine state and resources, visit the TDA CPD
clusters – high schools and their the issue is one for local authorities “The notion that you can cut admitted to a particular school?” education, which is what the tax- zone at www.tda.gov.uk/cpd
associated primaries – to form to determine. transport costs, for instance, by Though Labour has promot- payers are paying for,” she added.
Government refuses to back Teachers welcome plans to
iGCSEs in state schools
make PSHE compulsory
The government’s decision instance, young people would be fication into what is being devel-
not to approve international able to opt out of answering ques- oped as a national qualifications Teachers’ leaders have welcomed they “contravene the right for chil- that PSHE education is not simply
GCSEs (iGCSEs) in English, tions on Shakespeare. framework. the news that PSHE is to become dren to be taught according to their an extra subject, but that it deter-
maths and science for teaching “Our qualifications strategy is “We do not want a market compulsory in all state schools parents’ tradition”. mines the purpose of education as
in state secondary schools securing real choice for young peo- in qualifications. Exams are not from 2011. But Mr Balls said: “After care- well as the moral vision and values
has sparked a debate between ple with different learning needs, items on a supermarket shelf. The move was unveiled by ful consideration of the outcomes we share as a society.”
ministers, opposition MPs, and a in a way that is clear, deliverable, They determine young people’s ministers last week and is intend- of discussions with experts and The changes come after a
headteachers’ union. and avoids confusion over options futures and should not be subject ed to ensure that all young peo- other interested parties, including review by headteacher Sir Alasdair
The iGCSEs are popular choices.” to market pressures.” ple receive information on issues representatives of faith groups, and Macdonald, who published his rec-
alternatives to the standard UK The government’s stance was However, Tory shadow min- such as sex and relationships, of the findings of this research, I ommendations on making PSHE
qualifications in many private welcomed by the Association of ister for children, schools and alcohol and drugs, and personal have concluded that parents’ right statutory in March and April of
schools, which argue that they School and College Leaders, which families, Michael Gove, said the finances. to withdraw their children from sex this year.
are more rigorous in content. said that the standard GCSE had decision not to approve iGCSEs Schools secretary Ed Balls has and relationships education should The move also means that all
But the government has “rightly established itself as the would only serve to increase the also ensured that all children will continue until their children reach students will have a statutory right
refused to give its seal of major qualification route at the level of inequality in education. receive at least one year of sex and the age of 15. to receive lessons on careers educa-
approval to the iGCSEs offered end of compulsory schooling, and He added: “Top independent relationships education by the time “I have come to this view tion, managing personal finance,
by the Cambridge International has been hugely successful in giv- schools are already opting for they turn 16. Currently, parents can because I believe that proceeding body image, and healthy lifestyles.
Examinations awarding body on ing many more young people the the more rigorous international pull their children out of these les- on this basis is balanced, practically However, Chris Keates, gen-
the grounds that they “fail to opportunity to achieve well at 16”. exam because it is more valued sons up until the age of 19, but deliverable and legally enforceable, eral secretary of the NASUWT,
meet the requirements of the Dr John Dunford, general sec- by universities and employers. under the new plans, this cut-off and maintains the right of with- said that a detailed consideration
curriculum”. retary of the union, said: “Another If children from state schools are point will be lowered to 15. drawal for the small number of of how schools would be support-
Iain Wright, the 14 to 19 qualification would cause confu- unable to trade in the same exam Some faith groups have criti- parents who wish to exercise it.” ed in delivering PSHE was now
reforms minister, said: “Approval sion for parents, pupils, employers currency as their wealthier peers, cised the move, including the The Dr Mary Bousted, general secre- required in order to ensure schools
(of these qualifications) would and the general public. GCSEs are the government is effectively Muslim Council of Britain, which tary of the Association of Teachers were not over-burdened. She added:
present a risk to the focus on the well established and it would not ensuring that they cannot com- was quoted in The Times claiming and Lecturers, said that the move “Teachers simply do not have the
vital curriculum elements – for help matters to add a further quali- pete on a level playing field.” that it would mount a challenge to was “long overdue”. capacity to absorb and cope alone
the new laws on the grounds that She said: “We strongly believe with another statutory requirement.”
 SecEd • November 12 2009
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