NEWS

International Links

The global language of education has helped a Cambridgeshire school foster links with colleagues in Slovenia. Aided by the NASUWT’s global connections, members at Comberton Village College recently enjoyed a flying visit from a delegation of students and teachers from ESTUS, a Slovenian teachers’ trade union.

The NASUWT has built relations with ESTUS through its international campaigning and policy work and, on learning that a delegation from the union was visiting the UK, arranged for the group to visit the school.

Appropriately, Comberton is a specialist language college and has links with several other schools around the world. The visiting pupils were given a flavour of the British school system by being given a tour of the school and participating in a lesson about the nature of good and evil. The Slovenian teachers were given a presentation about the school and met two deputy headteachers who talked about aspects of the school’s ethos, including its reward and sanctions systems and its anti-bullying work.

The guests were particularly interested in the pupil-led focus developed by the school to tackle bullying, with pupils being encouraged to become trained peer mentors and lead anti-bullying campaigns within the school. Niki Smith, NASUWT Local Association Secretary for Cambridge, who organised the visit, said: “The teachers were given a tour of the school and met our teachers in the staffroom where email addresses were furiously exchanged. “It was a real flying visit; the visitors commented that they could have spent a week.”

The sound of music

Young teachers in eastern England have been urged to take a musical approach to tackling racism. The power of music to engage young people and stimulate debate was demonstrated for delegates at a young teachers’ seminar organised by the NASUWT’s Eastern Region and chaired by NASUWT Young Activist of the Year and Local Association Secretary Sarah Veater.

Representatives from Love Music Hate Racism (LMHR) led members in a practical workshop on using hip hop music with pupils to encourage community cohesion, tackle prejudice and increase awareness of the issue of racism. Music can provide a forum for teachers to instigate debate with students on issues such as racism, delegates heard, as they were given a presentation on the relationship between music and antiracism, ranging from Woody Guthrie through to the modern LMHR events, taking in Rock Against Racism (RAR) on the way. The NASUWT is a key supporter of LMHR and all delegates were urged to use the classroom resources created by the charity and the Union to engage pupils in discussion about racism and fascism. The two-day event, held in Bedford, also included sessions from the NASUWT’s Deputy General Secretary, Jerry Bartlett, who spoke to members about some of the challenges facing teachers and the

NASUWT’s international work. A practical workshop outlining some successful strategies on behaviour management gave delegates some hints and tips for tackling pupil indiscipline. Advice on performance management and Ofsted was also on the agenda with delegates reminded of their rights under the revised performance management arrangements and encouraged to share their experiences.


Tool to stay safe online

An NASUWT member has helped develop a new way for schools to assess their online safety. Ron Richards has been working on a new diagnostic tool for schools to review their e-safety policies and practices. The online 360° safe Self Review Tool allows schools to assess their current provisions for Internet safety and security and suggests improvement actions they could consider. It also provides links to resources and good practice guides and allows schools to compare their provisions with other schools. Ron has developed the tool through his work as E-Safety

Consultant for the South West Grid for Learning Trust, which provides broadband and learning services to schools in the South West of England. The tool is available to all schools, not just those in the South West region. The website also includes downloadable template policies on cyber safety and gives the opportunity for schools that meet the required benchmarks for e-safety to apply for a 360° safe eSafety Mark. The website can be found at www.360safe.org.uk.

www.nasuwt.org.uk