BESA CORNER


BESA CORNE R


This month, i in our ongoing feature highliighting thework ofmembers of the UK education suppliers’’ trade body BESA,we hear fromSPAR on improving numeracy to mprove socialmobi ty;while edtech p atform TRAININGSCHOOLZ is offering free online training to UK schools


Thismonth, n our ongoing feature highl ghting the work of members of the UK education suppliers trade bod BESA, we hear from SPARX on improving numeracy to iimprove social mobilliity; RAININGSCHOOLZ is offering free online training to UK schools .


ty while edtech pllatfor m


Improving theworld thro


rough learning


The scale of poor numeracy skills is one of the biggest challenges facing us due to the direct impact that innumeracy has on generations of adults and children, society in general and the economy.With roughly four in five adults possessing low levels of numeracy (below Level 2 on the UK adult qualifications scale), its debilitating impact is far-reaching an d extensive:


• People with poor numeracy skills are twice as likely to face unemployment.


• There is a direct correlation between poor numeracy and lower distribution of wages and poor health.


• 65%of adult prisoners have numeracy skills below that of an 11-year old.


We know that improving numeracy will directly impact socialmobility. It is statistics like these that drive the teamat Sparx to use technology to make a real difference.


Since 2010, we’ve been investigating how young people learn and collaborating wit h schools to look at the waymaths is taught and learnt . Our research has found that homework has a significant impact on overall attainment inmaths. Furthermore,maths confidence is the greatest attributed factor impacting studentmotivation.


Defined by our research, we developed an approach to learning based on strategies that are founded in pedagogy and that relies on our world- classmaths content. For secondary schools, SparxMaths is a complete solution that supports teachers in planning, delivering and reviewing lessons and homework and delivers personalised learning for students.


“It’s’s incre ibly clalarity of th isis prove they


rity progress and reach their fu


reste ress


finding way re ch th


ven to wo


redibly refresfreshing to work with a company lny liike Sp rxSparx. I like th their visision, and theirir dete fo


to wo with th


they ways of wo full potenti th


ey not onlyly have the wellbeing ofmy staff intere ted in fi


working wi


– Roger Pop tiaial.”


to work before they release it to sch ve th we lb ays


with us to ope, CEO, e, CEO, Educa the


terminatioion tomake sure the appro choolsls. I amconfi


roach


taff inmind but are genuinelyly to helplp our students


fident that ts


catioion SouthWes th We est


Rigorously tested and carefully crafted content, sophisticated technology, a wealth of data and the experience of our teamcreates maths learning at the right level for every student – to be challenging yet achievable – whilst giving teachers real-time insights into class and student progress. By knowing exactly when, where and why a student is struggling, teachers can focus their attention on targeted intervention and tacklemisconceptions when they first arise. Teachers are also comforted knowing that all students are receiving high-quality lessons and homework and have video tutorials to support themwhen they get stuck, encouraging independent learning.


We’ve found that studentsmake 65%more progress using Sparx. In one case, we saw a school’s homework completion rates increase from under 20%to over 95%after the implementation of SparxMaths. SparxMaths also saves teachers on average 30minutes per class per week by taking care of planning andmarking; flagging students and topics in need of intervention; and sending parents/


Newedtech platform, Tr


ff ith


TrainingSchoolz, offers fre online training to UK schools


ree


Recent research by the Teacher Development Trust revealed that spending on staff development dropped for the first time since 2012. W the extent of mandatory training requirements, along with additional CPD, plus the added expenses such as supply cover, it’s easy to see why the costs for training staff are being squeezed into diminishing school budgets. This problem was reinforced in a recent report from the DfE, where 70%of teachers cited cost as the most common obstacle to effective CPD.


To help schools overcome the financial barriers to staff training, TrainingSchoolz is offering schools full access to its powerful platformdeveloped specifically for the education sector, along with 100 free training invites.


TrainingSchoolz enables schools to create their own interactive, engaging online training courses and policies. The easy to use interface means that schools can efficiently distribute these to all staff with ease. If schools don’t want to start from scratc h, they can also pick from a ready-made library of courses that are fully editable.


Trainees can participate at home or school on any device and once completed, they can print a certificate.


The systemautomatically records the activity,making it easy to demonstrate and evidence statutory training and policy compliance.


Schools are already seeing the benefits


Roedean School in Brighton has been using TrainingSchoolz to track their training and keep it in one easy-to-manage place. Having used both training from the library and also creating their own,Max Carpenter commented “It’s very easy! I’ve had no problems with it, it’s easy to send training to the candidates and to track the results of th e training”.


Kim Edwards of Bovingdon Primary Academy has been using TrainingSchoolz to give them the tools they need to tackle challenging topics. Kim agreed, “It’s easy to use. There is loads of really good content, so the courses are really relevant as well, especially to the school environment”.


s/carers weekly emails.


St James’ Primary School in London had been searching for a way to streamline training. They added, “I really like the freedom to be able to add your own content! It was helpful to have evidence that everyone had completed their training”. Find out more


For schools who would like to find out more about the platform, TrainingSchoolz offers a free sign up, where schools can create thei r own training courses or policies, or pick one from the fully editable library. And with 100 training invites included in the free package, schools can fully test out the system by inviting staff to complete an assignment and see the results .


Find outmore atww 14 www.education-today.co.uk.co.uk www www.TrainingSchoolz.com Octobe r 2019 2019


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  |  Page 41  |  Page 42  |  Page 43  |  Page 44  |  Page 45  |  Page 46  |  Page 47  |  Page 48