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BullGuard partners with BeatBullying to offer support for its Big March event
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lobal antivirus and mobile security company BullGuard has announced a new partnership with BeatBullying, an international charity dedicated to the prevention of bullying across the UK and Europe. BeatBullying provides young people aged 11-17 with a safe place to access real-time, online support from trained mentors, who are young people their own age they can talk to. The mentors offer support and advice, and professional counsellors can also provide more in depth therapeutic support. As a partner for its Big March event, during which hundreds of thousands of people will march across global websites to help put an end to bullying in both the real world and online, BullGuard will be hosting a tent and creating an avatar at the virtual Big March Park. Inside the tent BullGuard will provide resources for both children and parents on how to feel safe online, as well as outlining the benefits of parental control software to show how these tools can offer significant peace of mind without compromising an enjoyable online experience. The global, virtual demonstration, part of the #DeleteCyberbullying campaign, is aimed at establishing new laws to protect the rights of European children to live without bullying. It also calls on the European Commission to ring fence €77m to fund services that help prevent bullying, and the event will culminate in the delivery of an e-petition to the European Commission to establish a European Day dedicated to the cause.
“Bullying is a very real problem for many children, and the advent of social networking and the increased use of the internet mean that this issue is no longer restricted to the schoolyard,” said BullGuard CEO, Nedko Ivanov. “We’re delighted to offer our support to BeatBullying for its Big March event, and believe that raising awareness of these issues is an important step towards ensuring the safety and happiness of children both online and in the real world.”
Emma-Jane Cross, CEO of BeatBullying said: “The Big March gives everyone the opportunity to take a stand against bullying, and put pressure on European governments and institutions to protect the 25 million children across Europe who face the daily nightmare of being bullied.
“We urge children, families, schools and organisations to follow BullGuard’s lead and show their support for The Big March, and help change young lives forever.” The Big March Park is now open for registrations, where individuals can create their own BeatBullying avatar to visit the park, find out more about the cause and add their names to the e-petition. These avatars, including those of celebrities and well-known public figures, will be brought together to “march” across participating partner websites over a 48 hour period starting at 8am on 11th June. For more information please visit BeatBullying, or register directly at The Big March Park.
Changes to the English literature, English language, mathematics, and computer science GCSEs
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elen Cunningham, publishing director, Cambridge University Press, reviews the changes to the English literature, English language, mathematics and computer science GCSEs
New GCSEs designed to keep England competitive in the global economy will be taught in schools from September 2015, with the first awards being made in summer 2017. The first subjects to be introduced will be mathematics, English language and English literature and schools are now preparing to implement the new programmes of study.
Changes to all new GCSEs include:
• A new grading system from 1 to 9, with 9 being the highest.
• A fully linear structure, with assessment at the end of the course and content not divided into modules.
• Exams will be the preferred method of assessment. Non-exam assessment will be determined on a subject-by-subject basis.
• Tiering will only be used in subjects where untiered papers will not allow students at the lower end of the ability range to demonstrate their knowledge and skills, or will not stretch the most able.
Changes to GCSE English language and literature
The new English GCSE qualification will focus more on writing clearly with accurate spelling, punctuation and grammar. This will make up 20 per cent of the marks of the new English language
May 2014
GCSE and texts will be drawn from the 19th, 20th and 21st centuries. Speaking and listening will be assessed through a teacher but will not contribute to the overall grade. The assessment will be reported separately, alongside the qualification grade on the certificate. There will also be a greater emphasis on teaching students to become more confident in formal speaking. In the new English literature GCSE the focus will be on four areas of classic literature, and will include one Shakespeare play, one 19th century novel, a selection of poetry since 1789, including representative Romantic poetry and British fiction or drama from 1914 onwards.
Changes to GCSE mathematics
The new mathematics GCSE will feature broader and deeper content and will require extra teaching time. The tiering structure will remain the same as the old GCSE with some material formerly found in the higher tier being moved down into foundation.
There will also be a greater emphasis on problem solving skills especially at the higher tier. The new GCSE will include enhanced content in areas such as calculation, ratio and proportion.
GCSE computer science
GCSE computer science will be one of the subjects reformed for first teaching in September 2016, with the first awards taking place in summer 2018. The reformed computer science curriculum at GCSE level will have an emphasis on computer programming.
Helen Cunningham
Cambridge University Press UK Schools publishing Cambridge University Press is developing a new range of resources for Key Stage 4 and 5 curriculum changes in mathematics, English literature and English language, computer science and history and already has a range of digital resources to support the current subject specifications.
Cambridge School Shakespeare, an online teaching and learning tool for Key Stages 3, 4 and 5 addresses the 11 major Shakespeare plays used in schools, including Macbeth, Romeo & Juliet and Hamlet.
The free Cambridge GCSE Computing Massive Open Online Course in partnership with Raspberry Pi and OCR, teaches the basics of computer programming and offers an excellent opportunity for secondary school students and teachers to develop their skills in computer programming in preparation for the new computer science curriculum.
www.education-today.co.uk 5
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