News
Teenage mothers ‘forced
Welsh
pupils put
to abandon education’
time into
science
Students preparing for GCSEs in
by Dorothy Lepkowska
According to official figures, up From 2015, teenage mums will Wales spend more time learning
to 70 per cent of young mums are form part of the cohort of 16 and science than those in more than 30
not in education, employment or 17-year-olds who will be required major countries around the world,
Too many teenage mothers are training (NEET), compared with to stay in education or training until new figures have revealed.
being forced to abandon school one in 10 16 to 18-year-olds gener- they are 18, under the government’s Wales has a higher propor-
and with it their career ambitions, ally. plans to raise the school participa- tion of 15-year-olds studying four
and are resigning themselves to a Dr Jane Evans, Barnardo’s’ tion age. hours of science per week than
low-income lifestyle, because they research and policy officer and Dr Evans added: “Raising the any of the 33 countries surveyed
find it hard to remain in education, author of the report, said: “The age of compulsory education to by the Organisation for Economic
according to a new report. 20,000 girls and young women 18 puts the issue of support for Co-operation and Development
The children’s charity, under 18 who become mothers teenage mothers in even sharper (OECD).
Barnado’s, said young mums face each year include some of the focus. We need to look now at But when it comes down to
bullying and other difficulties at most vulnerable and isolated in what help young mums will need results, Wales ranks 15th in a
school and often truant to avoid any society. If they drop out of educa- to make sure they do not fall further league of countries, behind the
problems. tion or training it will impact not behind.” likes of Austria, Belgium and
Its report, Not the End of the just on their own future prospects, The charity wants to see great- Ireland. Finland is top of the sci-
Story, found that while most teen- but on the life chances of their er efforts made to keep young ence table, with Mexico bottom.
age mothers had not been formally child. mothers in education, including When it comes to class sizes
excluded on becoming pregnant, “Schools may worry about having their educational needs in lower secondary education,
they had felt under pressure by pregnant teenagers, but it is assessed when they first see a Wales had an average of 22 pupils
schools not to return because of important that they do all they midwife. per class, which was below both
“unfounded” health and safety can to help them complete their It said publicly-funded child- the UK and OECD averages.
fears. studies. We’re not denying that care should be available on site, The findings were released by
Many simply dropped out being a young mum brings extra or nearby, for all teenage mothers the Welsh Assembly government
because of a lack of support and challenges, but teenage mother- returning to education or training as part of its own analysis of how
flexibility regarding their preg- hood shouldn’t spell the end of whose babies are under two. Wales compares internationally
nancies. Some of those inter- the story. It also wants to see an extension on a range of educational issues.
viewed said they had received “Helping and supporting them of the upper age limit for the Care The report compares edu-
no offers of home tuition or alter- back into education will afford to Learn benefit, to allow teenage cation indicators across the
native arrangements that would young mothers greater independ- mums who have taken a break to globe, using Programme for
have allowed them to continue ence and secure a better start in life care for their baby time to complete International Student Assessment
their studies. for their children.” their studies. (Pisa) and Education at a Glance
(EAG) figures. It was issued by
Deciphering the world of ‘edubabble’
the statistical directorate at the
Assembly and relates to data
gathered in 2006 and 2007.
The figures also show that in
both reading and maths, Wales
The world of education is renowned designed for students on educa- was significantly below average.
for its jargon – or “edubabble” as tion courses so I would hope that
Quiz: How well do you know your education terminology? Test your colleagues!
And the Wales figure of 17
some critics have nicknamed it. trainee teachers would find it use- students to each full-time equiva-
But now an academic at ful to help them in their read- Benchmark: SWOT analysis: lent teacher was one of the high-
Strathclyde University has com- ing and essays,” Dr Gillies told
A term borrowed from surveying. In education An approach by an organisation – such as a school
est ratios in secondary education.
piled a unique online dictionary to SecEd.
it usually refers to something which is taken as or department – to self-evaluation which seeks to
The UK ratio was lower with
shed light on more than 1,000 key “For secondary teachers, it may
a point of reference or comparison: for example identify Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, and
approximately 14 students to
terms and concepts commonly used be most valuable in relation to CPD each full-time equivalent teacher.
in teaching. or any advanced studies courses
school children’s attainment in a subject area at a Threats.
Responding to the figures,
Dr Donald Gillies, who worked which they may be pursuing,” he particular age or stage. an Assembly spokesperson said:
as a secondary English teacher for continued.
Virtual learning environment (VLE):
“The indicators used in the statis-
21 years and is now a lecturer in “Like many fields, education
In loco parentis: An interactive computer software system designed
tical article relate mainly to 2007
the university’s department of edu- has its own terminology but it’s
A Latin, legal term meaning ‘in the place of the to support teaching and learning.
data so much of it is now out of
cational and professional studies, of universal interest. Making these date. However, this data provides
spent six months writing A Brief terms clear and accessible can
parents’. In educational contexts, it refers to
a useful comparison point placing
Critical Dictionary of Education. help to increase understanding of the role of teachers in assuming the duties and Closed question: Wales’ educational indicators in
He originally envisaged it as a educational theory and practice.
responsibilities of a parent towards young people in Usually used in the context of a teacher’s oral
the international context.
pocket-sized paperback but decid- The key is ease of use – for this
their charge. interaction with learners where a single, ‘right’
“The Pisa study follows a
ed that publishing it online would reason, the definitions have been
answer is expected. It is viewed as being of little
three-yearly cycle; students in
make it easy to amend. He hopes to kept brief.” Wales recently participated in the
recruit a team who will be responsi- A Brief Critical Dictionary of
Paradigm shift: value and restrictive, especially when questioning is
2009 Pisa assessment round – the
ble for revising and updating entries Education can be accessed, free of A complete change in one’s perception of a considered as an aid to learning rather than a test results of which will be published
in due course. charge, at http://dictionaryofeduca-
concept, or way of understanding a phenomenon. of learning.
in late 2010.”
“The dictionary is mainly tion.co.uk/default.aspx
Ministers clash live on air
The education spokesmen for the He said: “We have done better (in
three main political parties clashed recent years) if you look at A level
live on television last week for and GCSE results, but the critical
an education special of BBC2’s thing is not ‘are we doing better than
Newsnight. in the past’, but ‘are we doing better
The current affairs show dedi- compared to the best’. Critically,
cated a full 50-minute edition to we’ve moved behind other countries
education, after a poll carried out by in international league tables.”
the programme found that English In response, Ed Balls, the schools
voters feel the Labour party has the secretary, claimed that recent surveys
best education manifesto. contradicted Mr Gove’s claims.
Of the 865 people who were Mr Balls said: “In the latest
questioned, 27 per cent said the cur- TIMSS (Trends in Mathematics and
rent government had the strongest Science Study) international study,
education policies. The Conservative we went up while Sweden went
party amassed 25 per cent of the vote down, so Michael Gove’s model for
– a drop of 10 percentage points on improvement in schools is getting
August 2009 – while the Lib Dems worse internationally while we’re
picked up 10 per cent. getting better.”
Despite these findings, seven David Laws, the Liberal
out of every 10 people asked felt Democrat’s education spokesman,
that Labour had failed to deliver on came under fire by both Mr Balls
its “education, education, educa- and Mr Gove for re-iterating that
Olympic vision: Six students from Appleton Academy in West Yorkshire were celebrating last week after winning the tion” promise. his party would not make any cuts
first of 10 STEM Challenges (science, technology, engineering and maths), which challenge teams of secondary pupils to During the exchanges, Michael to the education budget.
produce designs based on Olympic themes. The youngsters are pictured with their winning design for an eco-friendly Gove, the Tory shadow education Mr Laws said: “Not only will
National Handball Centre. The second challenge, launched recently, is to design gloves for rowing, canoeing or sailing. secretary, said that schools in the there be no cuts in education, we
Teams have until Monday (March 22) to register. Visit www.stemchallenges.net for more information UK were falling behind those from will also move more money into
other countries. education from other departments.”
 SecEd • March 18 2010
04 news.indd 4 15/3/10 15:21:19
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