NEWS SecEd The ONLY weekly voice for secondary education To subscribe, call 01722 716997


SecEd Tel: 020 7738 5454 Fax: 020 7978 8319 www.sec-ed.com info@sec-ed.com sales@sec-ed.com


Managing director Matt Govett


Publisher and editor Pete Henshaw, 020 7501 6771 editor@sec-ed.co.uk Deputy editor David Taylor, 020 7501 6772 david.taylor@markallengroup.com Reporter


Daniel White, 020 7501 6750 daniel.white@markallengroup.com Illustrator Christos Mais


SecEd is advised by an editorial advisory panel. Members include: Paul Ainsworth: vice-principal, Belvoir High School, Leicestershire. Mark Blois: partner, Browne Jacobson (education law solicitors). Peggy Farrington: headteacher, Hanham High School, South Gloucestershire. Jane Frith: Rector, The Royal High School, Edinburgh. Mike Griffiths: headteacher, Northampton School for Boys. Hilary Moriarty: national director, Boarding Schools’ Association. Neill Morton: headteacher, Portora Royal School, Enniskillen. Jo Smith: vice-principal, Long Field School, Melton Mowbray. Tina Stockman: teacher, Harlaw Academy, Aberdeen. Dr Bernard Trafford: headteacher, The Royal Grammar School, Newcastle upon Tyne. Simon Viccars: headteacher, Leon School and Sports College, Milton Keynes.


Sales department Associate publisher and advertising manager Abdul Hayee, 020 7501 6767 abdul.hayee@markallengroup.com Classified sales Rachel McElhinney, 020 7501 6728 rachel.mcelhinney@ markallengroup.com


Circulation department Tel: 01722 716997 Fax: 01722 716926 email: subscriptions@ markallengroup.com Subscription manager Chris Hoskins Circulation director Sally Boettcher


UK annual rates: Personal £52 Institutional (libraries, companies etc) £115 European annual rates: Personal £92 Institutional £165


Rest of world annual rates: Personal £113 Institutional £209


Printed by Pensord Press, Wales


Published by


Send your news in to: news@sec-ed.com or call 020 7501 6771


‘Gove Compare’ comes under fire from unions


by Dorothy Lepkowska


Ministers have launched a new website that allows parents and the public to compare schools’ per- formance in their locality. Dubbed “Gove Compare”, the


online tool contains information about aspects such as examination performance and funding. But heads and unions have


dismissed the service, claiming it doesn’t offer a full picture of the work going on in schools. Russell Hobby, general secre-


tary of the National Association of Head Teachers (NAHT) said the


web tool was “handy but limited”, and failed to offer parents guidance on how individual pupils will reach their full potential. “If we reduce education to sta-


tistics, we lose almost everything that matters. It’s like judging a painting on the dimensions of the canvas,” he said. “Choosing a school is not like


shopping for groceries; it’s more like buying a home. You need to understand the culture, aspirations, ethos and ambition of a school. You need to know that your child will be successful, happy and safe. Try finding that on a website. “There are already cheap and


Survey highlights importance of work experience


Work experience is worth the equivalent of one or even two A levels, employers have said. A study of 1,000 businesses


by the Ambition AXA Awards and education charity Young Enterprise revealed that more than half believe it is important to have relevant work experience and one in 10 think it is vital. In fact, almost a third told


the study that they would value a young person with “strong rel- evant” work experience as highly as a candidate with two A levels. A quarter said work experience of this nature was worth one A level. Elsewhere, the employers said


an individual’s character and per- sonality is the most important fac- tor when employing new staff


at entry level. More than half of the respondents also believe that experience in the sector and an eagerness to learn are vital as well. Catherine Marchant, direc-


tor of Young Enterprise, said: “Finding work is increasingly tough these days, and what we’re seeing is that employers are after a more rounded ‘package’. They’re increasingly looking for staff who have experience in the workplace – and the right attitude towards business – rather than their aca- demic qualifications alone.” The Ambition AXA Awards


will support ambitious young people across categories includ- ing science and enterprise. Visit www.ambitionaxaawards.com and www.young-enterprise.org.uk


Most important factors when employing new staff at


entry level (per cent) • Character/personality: 60.2 • Experience in sector: 54.6 • Eagerness to learn: 52.1 • Any full-time work experience: 33.5 • Knowledge of industry: 31.1 • How well they would fit in with your organisation: 30.9 • Intuition/gut feeling: 26 • Degree-level qualifications: 22.2 • GCSE-level qualifications: 19.1 • Any part time work experience (including weekend work): 16 • Vocational qualifications: 15.9 • A level qualifications: 14.2


St Jude’s Church, Dulwich Road Herne Hill, London SE24 0PB www.markallengroup.com


Education for all: The current Young Ambassadors, Navdeep Bual and Yasir Yeahia, meet school children during their visit to Guatemala earlier this year. Photo: Graeme Robertson


Young Ambassadors needed to spread the word in Africa


The search is on for two secondary school students who will become Young Ambassadors working to spread the message about the importance of education to a child’s life.


It is all part of the Global


Campaign for Education, which is a coalition of aid agencies, education unions and others set up in 2000 to hold world leaders to their promise of an education for all by 2015. The Young Ambassadors will


visit Africa with charity Action Aid in February and will meet project workers, community lead- ers, and politicians, as well as children their own age who are missing school.


On their return to the UK, the


campaigners will speak at union conferences, to the media and also feature in a short film which will help spread the word about the need for education. Students applying must be aged


14 or 15 and must have full support from their school. They will have to give a presentation explaining why they are passionate about the issue, why they would make good ambas- sadors, and what creative ideas they have to promote the campaign. The best ones will be invited to present in front of a panel of judges in London. The current ambassadors are


Navdeep Bual and Yasir Yeahia, both 15, from Seven Kings High


School in Ilford who visited Guatemala earlier this year. This award was created in 2008


after the death of the general sec- retary of the National Union of Teachers, Steve Sinnott, for whom the fight for a global education for all was a personal passion. It is thought that there are still 72 mil- lion children globally missing out on education. Navdeep said: “My passion has


grown I think I have also grown as a person on this journey. There is nothing that comes close to this experience which is why I would recommend it to anyone who has the opportunity.” For more information, visit www.sendmyfriend.org/award


Children missing free school meals due to stigma


MA Education Ltd is an independent publishing company also responsible for education titles Delivering Diplomas, Headteacher Update, Fundraising for Schools, Early Years Educator and 5to7 Educator.


© All rights reserved. No part of SecEd may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise without prior written permission of MA Education The publisher accepts no responsibility for any views or opinions expressed in SecEd.


ISSN 1479-7704


Thousands of secondary school pupils from hard-pressed families in Northern Ireland are missing out on free meals because chil- dren feel stigmatised, it is being claimed. The North’s Department of


Education estimates that as many as 8,000 students in both sec- ondary and primary settings are failing to take advantage of their entitlement. Education minister John


2


O’Dowd said many parents are not aware that they are eligible for assistance. Teachers, however, say stigma may be preventing families from claiming. It is estimated that free school


meals could save recession-hit Northern Ireland families up to £50 a month for each child. The Ulster Teachers Union is


further concerned that rising food costs will price more children out of the school dinner hall.


Families may have to pay up to


17 per cent more for their school dinners this year compared to last. Union general secretary Avril


Hall Callaghan said this rise could undo the progress made in recent years towards improving children’s access to healthier meals. She added that the North’s


schools need clear guidelines on how best to implement a stigma- free meals system. Some schools already use a


‘cashless system’, which could be one solution, but schools need advice and support, Ms Hall Callaghan said. “We know from research that


the aspirations of children in pov- erty are the same as those from better off families when they are seven or eight-years-old, but by 10 or 11 their aspirations are signifi- cantly lower. “There’s a perception too that young people living in poverty have


of themselves – that financial secu- rity and a career is something that ‘other people’ have. “Teachers need the training and


support to identify and intervene at an early stage to help young people living in poverty. Teachers must be fully equipped to support these people so that they are given the best possible chances.” Mr O’Dowd said that free meals


“should not carry any stigma” and will be administered in confidence.


SecEd • September 22 2011


highly effective ways of check- ing this: visit the school; talk to existing parents. Parents know a great school when they see one and the word gets round quickly. Some things can’t be done online.” Brian Lightman, leader of the


Association of School and College Leaders, said the site encouraged parents to “choose a school in the same way they choose car insur- ance”. He explained: “Schools have no


problem with data being in the public arena but it is unhelpful to encourage parents to compare schools in the same way they do car insurance, and some of the informa-


tion on the website is seriously out of date. “Most parents have never


expressed a desire to analyse data in this detail. What really matters is that everyone has an excellent local school, an aspiration that school leaders are working hard to achieve. Leave the market to the meerkats.” Headteachers who logged on


to the site to see how their school compared were also unconvinced. Mike Griffiths, head of


Northampton School for Boys, said the tables included data which even professionals could not interpret. He told SecEd: “Several of the funding headings are meaningless,


and schools will have generated the numbers in different ways. “I cannot see that a single parent


will find this information useful in deciding to which school to send their child for a happy and success- ful education.” Jo Smith, vice-principal of Long


Field School in Leicestershire, said: “My school is compared with three primary schools if I follow the basic link. I chose two but learned noth- ing more about the quality of educa- tion either provides.” The site is at www.education.


gov.uk/areas-and-establishments • See page 6: SecEd On Your Side.


Page 1  |  Page 2  |  Page 3  |  Page 4  |  Page 5  |  Page 6  |  Page 7  |  Page 8  |  Page 9  |  Page 10  |  Page 11  |  Page 12  |  Page 13  |  Page 14  |  Page 15  |  Page 16