books


An enjoyable book that focuses on the topics we all talk about


PCET. Learning and Teaching in the Post Compulsory Sector Edited by Jonathan Tummons Learning Matters (an imprint of Sage Publications Ltd): paperback, 384 pages


This is a most interesting book and would be a valuable addition to your library. It’s a step beyond the how-to books of initial teacher education, but it still provides a smorgasbord of chapters that focus on the topics we all talk about. It would be particularly interesting to lecturers, trainees and teacher educators who want to scratch beneath the surface of everyday practice or commonly held beliefs. I have recommended it to second year DET trainees, PGCE PCET (Level 7) trainees and teachers starting their QTLS journeys. I have enjoyed reading it and learning from some of today’s foremost thinkers. What struck me initially was the depth of discussion


around familiar themes. The latest information and challenges are examined – for example ‘Keep at a rolling boil’: policy changes in the PCET sector’ (Mike Saunders), which discusses funding changes up to and including 2018-19, and ‘How should we teach in FE?’ (Sasha Pleasance), which unpicks the sometimes conflicting pressures placed on FE teachers.


Each of the 26 chapters is a standalone piece, so that the reader can dip in and out of the book easily. The chapters have their own authors and areas of interest, but with uniform formatting features that


OTHER NEW PUBLICATIONS


Troubled Hearts, Troubled Minds. Making Sense of the Emotional Dimension of Learning By Peter Nelmes Crown House Publishing: paperback 176 pages This is a wonderfully human and humane book. Nelmes’ 30 years’ experience as a school teacher, much of it teaching young people with significant emotional and behavioural problems, is evident on every page and his personable,


36 ISSUE 39 • SPRING 2020 inTUITION


first-person narrative creates a persuasive internal voice. Throughout, Nelmes shares ideas, strategies and learning points distilled from his experience and study. Key to his teaching approach is the importance of establishing shared meanings with troubled and disruptive learners who need safe spaces and mutual trust to even begin the process of learning. Anyone expecting to find easy


answers to managing disruptive learners may be disappointed. But what this book does offer in spades is wisdom and insight from an experienced and highly reflective teacher who has taught and connected with some of our hardest to reach learners.


MEMBER OFFER


Members can claim 20 per cent off the RRP for this book when ordered from Crown House Publishing. Use


code inTuition20. This offer is valid until 30 April, 2020.


How to Teach Even Better: An Evidence-based Approach By Geoff Petty Oxford University Press: paperback, 304 pages Geoff’s book has something of the Tardis about it because its physical dimensions – not much larger than a classic Penguin paperback – belie the scale of the content.


make the information a lot more accessible. Text is interspersed with boxes of policy focus, key questions, key theories, and myth busters. There are chapter summaries, case studies and reading lists for further information. There are links throughout the book between


theory and practice. The case studies examine practical application of the ideas. For example ‘Mental Health and Wellbeing in the Post-Compulsory Sector’ (Nichola Kentzer, Jane Dudeney and Janet Lord) discusses how mental wellbeing strategies have changed a college’s disciplinary procedures. Meanwhile ‘Making Sense of Lifelong Learning’ (Sherene Meir and Carol Azumah Dennis) uses research from 2018 to examine motivation for the uptake of lifelong learning opportunities. There are chapters that examine practical aspects of teaching, such as assessment, learning theory and quality assurance. There are others that ask what we can learn from FE in Finland, and what the role of education in offender learning is, taking into account systems theory.


This book left me with new questions and new


topics of interest. It’s an enjoyable read and a good way to update specialist and professional knowledge for the busy further and adult education (FAE) practitioner, trainee and ITE educator.


Review by Alison Blackhall is a senior lecturer in Post-Compulsory Education and Training at Canterbury Christ Church University.


MEMBER OFFER SET members can claim 20 per cent off the RRP for this book when ordered direct from Sage. Use code SAGE20. The offer is valid until 30 April, 2020.


Book reviewers Want to review a book or have a book to review? Contact us at membership.


communications@ etfoundation.co.uk


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  |  Page 17  |  Page 18  |  Page 19  |  Page 20  |  Page 21  |  Page 22  |  Page 23  |  Page 24  |  Page 25  |  Page 26  |  Page 27  |  Page 28  |  Page 29  |  Page 30  |  Page 31  |  Page 32  |  Page 33  |  Page 34  |  Page 35  |  Page 36  |  Page 37  |  Page 38  |  Page 39  |  Page 40