Diary of an NQT The battle for the mobiles


JUST BEFORE half-term we had year 10 parents’ evening, which was the perfect opportunity for me to chat with the parents of one or two of my more challenging students. With GCSE exams coming up, I am


worried that one or two students are not concentrating enough in lessons or revising enough because they are too busy messing about on their phones or worrying about their make-up. I wanted to seek


permission to confiscate the mobile phones and make- up. I’d previously spoken to other teachers and the leadership team to check I was actually allowed to do this, and was told I could, although to be prepared for a fight. I don’t mind students


using their phones in lessons to film experiments, look-up information online (it’s a lot quicker than using the school’s computers), or using the calculator function to solve maths problems (it saves me having to remember to order a set of calculators). But I really hate them BlackBerry


Messaging and Facebooking because they’re bored. I know when it’s occurring – students jump a little at the incoming message alert then seem to glaze over as their fingers start to twitch in anticipation of typing something. I admit, in boring meetings I have often found my


hand wandering to my phone and before I know it, I’ve no idea what’s being said because I’m texting. Personally, I would rather be told that my lesson


is boring and asked if I can do something to make it a bit more interesting than have half the class


disappear off into virtual reality (although I admit that with some classes this would be preferable!). When I explained to parents that I wanted to take


phones away from some students at the start of the lesson, no “ifs”, no “buts”, all of them agreed that this sounded like a good idea! They too found their children’s


phones distracting, rude and annoying. So in front of each student I sought permission to remove the phone (and make-up) for the lesson. The parents were very


supportive, some even said that if I have any problems to call them immediately and that they would allow me to put their child in detention – and after school if necessary. They also said that


they never texted their children during school hours, preferring to contact the school office instead (which removed the most persuasive excuse the


students come up with). I’ll admit I wasn’t expecting this amount of co-operation and wondered why they had been so supportive. With the parents of members of my own form, I probed a little deeper and discovered that the parents felt that they had “lost the battle” when it came to phones. Trying to take away a phone or even limit its use caused such a


commotion that they had simply given up. Hopefully I’ll have fewer problems with


unauthorised phone use in lessons, and can begin to use them for a more educational purpose.


• Our NQT diarist this year writes anonymously and is a teacher of science from a secondary school in the East of England. He returns next week.


A little less conversation Moral support


When teacher Amanda was pushed to the ground by one of her students, she was reluctant to report him as she feared an exclusion could damage his future. Fearing the consequences of his actions, however, the student, Jason, made a serious allegation about Amanda. Amanda was put under investigation and


suspended. The stress of clearing her name put a strain on her relationships with her husband, her daughter and her colleagues, until finally, she questioned her future in the profession. Amanda and Jason are not real. They


are the main characters in Vivienne Franzmann’s hard-hitting, award- winning play Mogadishu, but the play is not all make-believe. We know from speaking to


an increasing number of wrongly accused teachers through our support lines every year that these allegations not only cause severe emotional distress and anxiety, but also undermine confidence, have long-term mental health implications, and may drive some teachers from the profession entirely. In short, these allegations can


wreck not just the careers, but also the lives of the teachers, their families and the reputation of the schools where they work. This is exactly why everyone


in the education sector, particularly the teaching unions, together with our charity, have lobbied governments past and present hard to help protect teachers who are facing these allegations. The government’s Education Bill now


looks set to provide anonymity to teachers who have had allegations made against them. It is a move that we know teachers will welcome


too after 93 per cent of respondents to our Behaviour Survey last year said that giving anonymity to teachers who face a formal allegation by a pupil was essential or important. Yet, while I am sure everyone in education is


delighted with the government’s decision to protect teachers, just as we are, one question remains: how? Take for example the story of the teacher


suspended recently for allegedly encouraging pupils to skip school to take part in the tuition fee protests. While the school itself affirmed that it could not “comment further on any HR issue at this stage”, the teacher’s name, school and picture


appeared throughout the national media, before any investigation was complete. I have deliberately not named the teacher in order to maintain some anonymity. There was also the story of the students from a


London school who protested against the sacking of their favourite teacher. It is believed that 500 pupils skipped lessons to protest at the school gates after the news of the dismissal of a male teacher over child protection issues was leaked. “All of this should be confidential and dealt with in a confidential way,” the headteacher insisted. In this case, the teacher’s identity


has, at least, been kept secret from the press, but not from his colleagues or community. The students’ loyalty may or may not be applauded, but ultimately they have made his story even bigger. I wonder if cleared of all allegations, and of course the safeguarding of our children is paramount, he could ever return to teach at that


school? I would doubt it. Yet, if anonymity is to be used


to fully protect the innocence and reputation of teachers at risk of malicious and unfounded allegations as intended, then surely it must apply to the media, the school and the community at large? This brings me back to my initial question: how can we implement a


policy of anonymity in communities as close-knit and gossip-rife as most schools?


I confess I don’t know, and from what


I have seen and read the “how” is unclear to most others too. I suspect this is because we are yet to have the conversation, so now I am asking you: if you were to implement a policy


of anonymity to protect teachers facing allegations in your school, how would you do it? You can tell us in our discussion forum on our website or search for Teacher Support Network on Facebook or Twitter. In the meantime, there will be a charity gala


performance ofMogadishu on March 19 at 6:30pm in aid of Teacher Support Network. To book tickets, call 020 7697 2754.


• Julian Stanley is chief executive of the Teacher Support Network. Visit www.teachersupport.info or call 08000 562 561 (England), 08000 855088 (Wales). Moral support returns after half-term.


SecEd takes a look at the Shakespeare Challenge programme, which is inspiring students in the work of the Bard and offering Level 1 qualifications as well


for Shakespeare Manifesto, which calls for children and young people to “do Shakespeare on their feet, see it live, and start it earlier”. The company believes that when young people


I 8


experience Shakespeare in these active, lively ways, they deepen their understanding and appreciation of his work and are more likely to form a life-long relationship with it. Young people who achieve their Bronze Arts Award through the Shakespeare Challenge programme receive a letter of endorsement from Michael Boyd, the RSC’s artistic director, with their certificate. Arts Award is a national qualification at three levels


which supports young people to develop their artistic and leadership skills. It is managed by Trinity College London in association with Arts Council England. We see the impact, accessibility and benefits of the Shakespeare Challenge on two Arts Award centres.


Joy Harris Arts award advisor, Service Children’s Education Service Children’s Education (SCE) is an agency of the Ministry of Defence (MoD) that is dedicated to the education of the children of Her Majesty’s Armed Forces, MoD personnel and sponsored organisations stationed overseas. It seeks to provide a first class system of schools


and educational support services to enable children to continue their education when their parents are stationed abroad. SCE has been offering Arts Award for three-and- a-half years. As the children we work with move so


N SEPTEMBER2010, the Royal Shakespeare Company (RSC) and Arts Award launched an initiative to inspire young people to explore Shakespeare through the Bronze Arts Award – a Level 1 qualification. The Shakespeare Challenge is inspired by the Royal Shakespeare Company’s Stand up


ARTS AWARD


Shake the A


frequently – when their parents are posted to a new base – it can be very difficult for them to establish proper roots and develop lasting friendships. For many students, one thing that is helping smooth


the transition between different schools is the Arts Award as they can take it with them from centre to centre and continue their work on the qualification. It also gives them access to an immediate network of young people who have similar interests, and helps develop lasting friendships. We now offer the award at 41 of our schools across the world. Last year we helped to pilot Arts Award’s


Shakespeare Challenge, a new programme accredited through the Bronze Arts Award. Windsor School, a service children’s school, took part in the pilot with year 9 students. Shakespeare Challenge is designed to implement


the RSC’s approach to teaching and learning through Shakespeare-inspired activities. As we already had a partnership with the Globe Theatre in London, we wanted the programme to reinforce the value of Shakespeare in the classroom, while making it more accessible and enjoyable to our students. I was particularly keen to involve our overseas


schools. Drama and theatre subjects can be incredibly challenging for young people in foreign countries who are unable to speak the language, so the idea of offering a qualification that allows young people to “see” and “do” Shakespeare felt like an opportunity not to be missed. We thought that the kinaesthetic approach to


learning would provide young people with a treasure trove of insight into the characters, stories and language of Shakespeare, and stimulate a more resonant understanding of his work. The delivery for Part A of the Challenge – Taking


Part: Participating Practically with Shakespeare – was funded by SCE and led by the Globe Theatre’s education practitioner, Colin Hurley. The big challenge for students was approaching a Shakespearean text in the first instance. Working with Colin on Macbeth helped the group to overcome their barriers; he employed a logical 10-point plan of approaches to help students effectively engage with the script. Very quickly the group became more confident in


reading and sharing their work. We were very lucky to have a role model who led by example and who was not afraid to make mistakes. This made our students feel comfortable, reinforcing the message that Shakespeare can be for everyone. For Part B – Being the Audience: Experiencing


Shakespeare Live – we travelled to the Globe Theatre to see Macbeth. As part of Playing Shakespeare with Deutsche Bank – the Globe Education’s flagship project for London schools – our students received


SecEd • March 3 2011


Photo: The Virtual College, Birmingham


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