NEWS Ofsted applauds
Macclesfield College for career-focused learning
Macclesfield College has proved the value of effective leadership and an employer-led approach to further and higher education after lifting provision from Ofsted’s ‘Requires Improvement’ to ‘Good’ in just 18 months.
The achievement has been heralded by the newly-published Ofsted report following an inspection
late last year to check on progress with implementation of the leadership team’s vision for ‘Empowerment through Learning.’
Stating that “College leaders have fostered a culture of high expectation in the college …addressing most of the areas for improvement identified at the previous inspection”, Ofsted inspectors found that Principal and Chief Executive, Rachel Kay, has inspired, motivated and galvanised the whole college team. Consequently, improvements have been made across all areas of college management, course design and frontline provision, placing a high emphasis on employer engagement and employability. Explains Rachel: “As a senior education management professional with a specialism in work-based learning, I knew when I was appointed as Principal and Chief Executive that wide-ranging improvements needed to be made to the college to improve outcomes for our students and ensure that we provide excellent standards of learning that will be relevant to a wide range of local and national employers.
“My goal has been to take those aims a step further and actively engage employers in course design and development so that our courses are closely aligned to workplace requirements – whether traditional, technical or vocational – and genuinely prepare our students for successful and rewarding careers.”
www.macclesfield.ac.uk
RSC’s approach to Shakespeare improves language skills
New research from the University of Warwick shows that using the Royal Shakespeare Company’s (RSC) approach to studying Shakespeare can significantly improve student language acquisition and skills – with some schools reporting better SATS and GCSE English scores as a result. The research, carried out on behalf of the RSC by The Centre for Educational Development, Appraisal and Research (CEDAR) at the University of Warwick, included 100 schools nationwide who are involved in the RSC’s Associate Schools’ Programme*. The study focussed on
Jacqui O’Hanlon
evaluating the impact of the RSC’s approach to teaching Shakespeare, which uses the same techniques used by actors in rehearsals, and its impact on the language development of children and young people. Work with schools using RSC techniques in the classroom has been rigorously tested over 10 years.
Jacqui O’Hanlon, Director of Education at the RSC, said: “For the first time the research results provide us with evidence that supports what we’ve always known: that the combination of Shakespeare’s complex language and a theatre-based approach to teaching, combine to give children of all abilities the language and confidence to express themselves and their ideas more easily. The results also reinforce the importance of taking a long-term partnership-led approach - building local networks of talent and expertise with theatres and schools across the country. This enables us to deliver this work together and reach many more young people than would be possible for any of us on our own.
“In a recent speech, the new Secretary of State for Education, Damian Hinds, talked about the importance of equipping our children with character resilience and the ability to communicate, articulate and think critically. These skills are more important than ever in the 21st century and this research reaffirms why the arts and culture are such an important part of every child’s education, regardless of where they live and what school they go to.”
Rachel Kay
www.rsc.org.uk/education
Children’s mental health charity launches free new resources for teachers
YoungMinds, children and young people’s mental health charity, has launched its new 360° Schools’ Community, a free resource on mental health and wellbeing for all teachers across the UK. There is currently a mental health crisis for children and young people - three children in every classroom has a diagnosable mental health condition – and the charity believes that teachers can have a huge impact in helping young people by identifying problems early, and building resilience. Many teachers already do good work in building resilience and promoting wellbeing in their classrooms, but for others, knowing what to do can be extremely difficult.
YoungMinds’ new 360° Schools’ Community is responding to this gap by providing bi-monthly
emails packed full of resources, advice, tips, blogs, lesson plans and case studies to every teacher and school professional who signs up. The community will also provide a place for teachers to share content and best practice such as their own coping strategies or things that might have worked particularly well for them in the classroom.
Hannah Kinsey, Head of Training at YoungMinds, said: “We know that teachers are under a huge amount of pressure from all directions. While they often want to support young people’s mental health, it can feel daunting if you don’t know how to start or where to find information.
“That’s why we’ve made the 360° Schools’ 8
www.education-today.co.uk
Community, so that all teachers need to do is sign up to receive our interactive and informative resources into their inboxes. We hope that the schools’ community will make teachers feel a little bit more equipped to help if they notice that one of their students is acting a bit differently, and to make mental health and wellbeing a rewarding and core part of their teaching.”
www.youngminds.org.uk/360schools February 2018
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