Budget 2016: George Osborne to Announce the End of the 3.30pm School Bell By Peter Dominiczak

Thousands of schools will be able to open for an average of an hour longer a day in an end to the “Victorian” tradition of the 3.30 pm bell, George Osborne will announce as he puts education at the heart of his Budget speech.

The Chancellor will vow to free the system “from the shackles of local bureaucracy” as he sets out a new fund will allow a quarter of secondary schools in England to lengthen the school day.

It will mean that hundreds of thousands of pupils will get at least an additional five hours a week of lessons or extra-curricular activities such as sport and art.

Mr Osborne will also pledge to force every school in the country to convert into an academy by 2022.

It will end local-authority control of schools in England, a system which has been in place since it was enacted by Arthur Balfour in 1902.

The plans amount to the biggest change to the way children in this country are educated since the national curriculum was introduced in 1988, sources said.

Mr Osborne will tell the Commons that more than £1.5 billion in additional funding will be spent on education over this Parliament.

“It is simply unacceptable that Britain continues to sit too low down the global league tables for education,” Mr Osborne will say. “So I’m going to get on with finishing the job we started five years ago, to drive up standards and set schools free from the shackles of local bureaucracy.

“I also want to support secondary schools that want to offer their pupils longer school days with more extra-curricular activities like sport and art. So we’ll fund longer school days for at least 25 per cent of all secondary schools.”

The Chancellor will use his Budget to announce an extra £4billion of cuts because of concerns about a “more uncertain” global economy.

The announcement of the cuts, equivalent to 50p in every £100 the Government spends, will be a marked contrast to the Autumn Statement four months ago, during which Mr Osborne said he had an extra £27billion to spend because of better-than-expected forecasts.

However, he is expected to raise the threshold at which people start paying 40p tax, in a move that could see hundreds of thousands of people pulled out of the higher rate of income tax.

Mr Osborne wants to “accelerate progress” towards the Conservative's manifesto pledge of raising the threshold for the 40p rate to £50,000 in 2020, it is understood.

Mr Osborne has already ruled out plans to scrap higher rate tax relief on pension contributions. However, he could announce further reductions in the lifetime allowance, the amount people can save into their pensions before incurring penal rates of tax.

He is facing a rebellion by more than 30 Conservative MPs who are appealing for his to freeze fuel duty instead of allowing it to rise by RPI inflation.

Cabinet ministers including Robert Halfon have this week urged him not to raise the duty amid concerns that the move would alienate motorists.

Mr Osborne is expected to announce a rise in insurance premiums that could see families pay £190 extra for motor, home contents, pet insurance and breakdown cover.

And on Tuesday, Sajid Javid, the Business Secretary, hinted that Mr Osborne will also use the Budget to announce a further cut in beer duty as part of a Tory drive to save Britain’s pub industry.

Mr Osborne will also introduce a huge national infrastructure drive by announcing plans for the HS3 railway in the north of England, Crossrail 2 in the South East, and one of Europe’s longest tunnels beneath the Pennines.

Mr Osborne will make his education pledges the centre-piece of a Budget designed to “transform life chances” across Britain.

Under the academy plans, schools will either have to have converted by 2020 or have a plan in place to commit them to converting by 2022.

If any school does not have a plan in place, the Government will intervene and take over control of the organisation.

Academies have powers to use their independence to alter staff pay, the curriculum, admissions and the shape of the timetable.

In a move aimed at working parents who struggle to organise child care on a daily basis, Mr Osborne will announce new rules to allow schools to apply for extra funding to lengthen the school day.

The Treasury said that 25 per cent of secondary schools in England – around 800 institutions - will initially be able to extend their hours under the plans.

Sources said that the measure “is just the start” and that thousands more schools will eventually start lengthening their hours.

“The Budget I’ll deliver today will put the next generation first,” Mr Osborne will say. “And at its heart will be a bold plan to make sure that every child gets the best start in life.

“Now is the time us to make the bold decisions and the big investments that will help the next generation, and that is what my Budget today will do.”

Mr Osborne will also announce a £1.5million NHS programme to provide activity prosthetics for children so they can compete in sporting events and to fund new research.

Mr Osborne said he had found the money after a campaign to highlight the issue by Sarah Hope, whose daughter Pollyanna lost her right leg below the knee when a bus hit her on a pavement in south London in 2007 when she was two years old.

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Improving Education at School By Tarvinder Singh

Spreading the word of educating the masses is not going to help unless ‘quality' is stringed with every bit of knowledge imbibed at school. Gone are the days when only the privileged used to walk down to schools and experienced a distinguished phase. Today, even the rural areas are equipped with schools where most of the students can attain good education. Some of the active improvements that are usually ignored when considering the frame of educational policies are as mentioned below. Inclusion of these factors can bring about a great difference in the educational domain:

Mind cannot do well without a healthy body

Healthy activities like an hour of morning play or division of the class strength into certain groups involved in various games that can depend on individual choice. Exercising the body increases the flow of blood within the body and brain thereby introducing better capability to learn. Introduction of mandatory gaming activities at schools is the very first step towards educational enhancement.

Engage students in real-time demonstration

The contemporary schooling is only related to the theoretical explanation of the stratagems and phenomenon involved in the events of day-to-day life. This is what makes the classroom session monotonous and the students fail to maintain the same levels of concentration. Acquaintance with interactive audio or live experimentation can not only bring about a difference in the level of understanding of the students but can also help them in better relating certain phenomenon to the surrounding environment.

Establishing Connections in the various subjects

The students are sometimes unable to understand why it is important to study such a large number of subjects. This is because they fail to identify the connection of one subject with the other. History, Geography, Mathematics, Physics, Chemistry, Biology, Civics and so many subjects are all related. When students become capable of distinguishing between the themes of each of these subjects, it is essential to explain to them the connection and that any missing component can bring their knowledge to a dead end.

Expansion of the existing skill arena

The teachers at school play a crucial role in understanding the psychology of students and in helping students follow a certain path. Analysis of the skills of students and their area of excellence is the responsibility of the teachers. Assigning responsibilities to carve the existing talent in students beautifully is all about educating students perfectly. The teachers can also interact with parents to guide them about helping them with the areas in which they are found to perform exceptionally. 

Guiding students at an emotional level

The intellectual quotient may differ from student to student but a greater factor to be taken care of is the level of support that students feel at an emotional level. Some students may be active while some may be occupied with a series of thoughts that may be concerning the way they are treated at home or any other concern. Counseling of students is important in finding out what they think. Young minds can be easily directed in the right direction with a little amount of support. 

It's time to fill in the gaps in the education system so that students can count on the younger years of their life for building a successful career ahead.

https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/improving-education-school-tarvinder-singh?trkInfo=VSRPsearchId%3A4073233731447066774878%2CVSRPtargetId%3A6024054094530961408%2CVSRPcmpt%3Aprimary&trk=vsrp_influencer_content_res_name

About Us

Who We Are

Established in 1989 TimePlan Education introduced the concept of a professional recruitment service for schools and teachers. Since then the company has expanded to include a network of 9 offices throughout the UK and international recruitment in Canada, America, New Zealand, Australia and Ireland. To date TimePlan has provided 100,000 staff to schools all over the country and has well established links with Local Education Authorities. TimePlan was awarded the Quality Mark when it was introduced in 2003, and has achieved 100% compliance in every Quality Mark Inspection.

What We Do

TimePlan Education supplies highly qualified teachers, nursery nurses and class room assistants for schools throughout the UK, we provide permanent staff as well as cover for day-to-day and long-term positions. Our teachers and School Support Staff (SSS) range from newly qualified to the highly experienced.

Our Hallmark

TimePlan’s success stems from its determination to provide schools, teachers and SSS with a professional service; our educational ethos is our hallmark. Strict checks and vetting procedures ensure that we only take on the very best teachers and SSS. We also match the subject and age specialism of the teachers or SSS to the needs of the schools. This not only provides schools with the right teacher or SSS in the right place at the right time, but also ensures teachers’ and SSS’ job satisfaction. It is TimePlan’s quality control and emphasis on education which sets us apart from other employment agencies.

Our Commitment 

We only recruit qualified teachers and SSS who are adaptable, positive and have proven classroom management skills.

We fully support all of our teachers and SSS and encourage

constructive feed back so that our knowledge base as an organisation is constantly growling. Likewise our close relationships with head teachers have allowed us to adapt and enhance our service to meet the changing needs of schools

What can TimePlan offer?

TimePlan teachers and SSS are there to help you in a variety of ways.

Day-to-day: Staff illness or training may mean that you need a teacher or SSS for one or two days. The teachers and SSS we use to cover these situations are flexible, resilient and authoritative.

Long-term: Maternity leave, long term staff sickness or an unfilled vacancy can leave a gap in the timetable for half a term, a term or even more. In cases such as these you need a teacher or SSS who will fully participate in school life and provide curriculum continuity for your pupils. 

Permanent: Many long-term teachers and SSS become fully-fledged members of staff once a school have assessed their suitability for the role.

For all types of work teachers and SSS are matched to meet your needs. At primary level we differentiate between nursery, infant and junior, and at secondary level we recognise that teachers and SSS are subject specialists.

Where do our teachers and SSS come from?

TimePlan also recruits teachers and SSS from around the world, however most of our overseas candidates hail from Canada, America, New Zealand, Australia and

Ireland. 

Outside of the UK, international advertising draws a regular number of well-qualified applicants. Prior to a candidate being introduced to a school our network of International Recruitment Coordinators take the candidates through our rigorous checking procedures and in depth interviews.

How do we support our teachers and SSS?

We pride ourselves on giving sound, personal support from the moment a teacher or SSS registers with us. On accepting an assignment a teacher or SSS is given a full briefing on what is expected and is also provided with travel directions. We also provide our teachers and SSS with:

Head Teacher Consultants: Mike Kelly our Head Teacher Consultant is able to offer practical advice and guidance drawn from his many years of experience as both subject teacher and Head Teacher.

Training Programmes: we run seminars covering behaviour management, Literacy and Numeracy Hours and all aspects of the national curriculum.

Accommodation assistance: We offer advice and assistance to all our staff seeking both temporary and permanent accommodation.

Airport Collection: TimePlan South East offers free airport collection to all teachers or SSS that will be working in our area and arrive at one of the following airports, Heathrow, Gatwick, Stanstead. We collect teachers and take them to their chosen guest house or permanent accommodation.

Banking: We have an arrangement with Lloyd's Bank which enables us to help our teachers or SSS set up bank accounts.

National Insurance Numbers: We guide all our overseas teachers or SSS through the process of applying for their NI Number.

Healthcare: We explain to our overseas teachers or SSS how to register with a doctor and dentist and provide local lists.

Social Events: We organise regular Social events for our teachers.

If you would like to have a chat about how we can help you give us a call! On 01732 373340 or email us at kent.sussex@timeplan.net

Getting the best out of classroom discussions

Discussion is a powerful tool, but using it in class can be a minefield. Mike Gershon shares tips on making it work

A problem shared is a problem halved, goes the old saying. But what does it really mean? Analysing the maxim helps us to understand why discussion is a powerful tool in the classroom that can help pupils to make significant progress, no matter what the subject.

If we share a problem in the classroom through discussion, we:

• use language to articulate the thoughts and experiences that are in our minds;
• share this with another person;
• respond to that person, first by rephrasing and altering our speech to make our meaning clear and second by taking account of what they say;
• decode, analyse, compare and assess what they have said; and
• create new thoughts and pieces of speech as a result.

In addition, the teacher can benefit from listening to what his or her pupils are thinking and use this information to adapt the teaching.

Discussion prior to writing gives pupils an opportunity to order and arrange their thoughts before having to translate them into that more complex medium. This allows them to give their full attention to the process of articulation, without having to divide their energies between writing and working out what they want to say.

Paired discussion

In most classrooms, pupils will be seated in such a way that they can team up with their neighbour or someone sitting behind them. This makes paired discussion simple to use and easy for the teacher.

Here are three ways in which you might put it into practice:

1. Do a little bit of teaching in which you lead the class through a new idea or piece of information. Ask pupils to pair up with the person next to them. Display two or three questions related to what has been taught. Ask pupils to discuss the questions with their partner.
2. Put pupils into pairs. Give each pair some stimulus material. This could be provided to each group, perhaps in a hand-out, or to the whole class, possibly in the form of a video. Ask pupils to share their thoughts on the stimulus material. (You could scaffold this with some open questions, such as “What are your thoughts on this?”) Finally, invite the pairs to feed back the results of their discussions to the whole class.
3. Throughout the course of a lesson, give pupils 30- to 60-second windows in which they can discuss a point that has been raised with the person next to them. This will assist them in understanding things that come up during the lesson.

Group discussion

This sees the teacher giving up some control in order to gain the benefits that come from pupils working collaboratively. The risk is that pupils may lose focus or become distracted. Here are some strategies you can use to structure discussion and avoid such pitfalls:

1. Keep group sizes small. Three or four pupils per group is ideal. This diminishes the possibility that some pupils will sit back and let their peers carry them through.
2. Assign roles. Give each member of the group a specific role to fulfil, for example, timekeeper, scribe and motivator. A good way to imbue the “role ethic” in your class is to develop a collection of roles with them at the beginning of the year, specifying what each one entails.
3. Divide the discussion into separate parts and give each of these a specific length of time. This helps pupils to maintain focus, creates a sense of pace and urgency and avoids protests that they don’t know what they are meant to be doing.
4. Provide a series of mini-tasks or questions for groups to work through. Again, this helps to keep discussion moving and prevent pupils from becoming bogged down or losing concentration.
5. Display clear instructions on the board. These could include all of the above, giving pupils a reference point they can turn to throughout the activity.

In each case, the emphasis is on distinguishing group discussion in the classroom from group discussion elsewhere. The key is to make it clear that discussion is being used as a means to an end - learning - rather than an end in itself, as in social discussion.

Whole-class discussion

Whole-class discussion differs considerably from paired and group discussion in terms of its structure. In the other two approaches, all pupils get a multitude of opportunities to talk and be heard. In whole- class discussion, only one pupil at a time is allowed to speak, while the rest must listen.

This has three great advantages. First, pupils are exposed to a wider range of ideas and viewpoints than might otherwise be the case. This will lead to a more nuanced and rounded understanding of the matter in hand.

Second, it is easier to facilitate debate because a whole class is much more likely than any single group to contain competing perspectives.

Third, the teacher is in a position to make teaching points during the discussion. These will be attended to by the whole class and will either be in reference to something a pupil has said or based on something the teacher feels has been missed.

If the teacher can facilitate pupil-pupil interactions (instead of pupils’ comments always coming back through the teacher) then more powerful learning will take place. A good way to do this is through “bouncing” what one pupil has said over to another pupil, without commenting on it. For example:

Pupil A: “In my opinion, the greatest threat to our freedom is government surveillance.”

Teacher: “Thank you for that point. Pupil B, what are your thoughts on what Pupil A has said?”

This leads to a more natural discussion in which pupils engage directly with their peers. It avoids a situation where a series of separate conversations between individual pupils and the teacher takes place, which are then bracketed together as a whole-class discussion.

In summary

Discussion is a powerful tool for helping pupils to learn. It allows them to bridge the gaps between minds, to order and articulate their thoughts, to process and respond to the ideas of others and develop new knowledge and understanding.

There are many ways it can be used in lessons. But for the discussion to be effective, it has to be structured and clearly aimed towards some goal.

How to show progress through discussion

• Appoint a scribe to keep a record of what is talked about.
• Follow up discussions with a written task.
• Provide pupils with a worksheet on which they can make notes. This could be used prior to, during or after discussions.
• Ask pupils to note down their thoughts before beginning a discussion. At the end of the activity, ask them to revisit these and to write a reflection.
• Use peer- and self-assessment. This could be done at the end of lengthy discussion activities or in response to pupils’ contributions.

Rules for discussion

It is helpful to have clear rules guiding discussions in the classroom. These could be negotiated with pupils at the beginning of the year. Here are the rules I stick to when using discussion:

• If someone is talking, everyone else must listen.
• One person speaks at a time.
• Everyone is entitled to their opinion.
• Everyone must support their opinions with reasons, evidence or examples.
• Everyone must remain polite at all times.

Tips for keeping any discussion on track

1. Make it interesting. Choose engaging topics or questions.
2. Keep it structured. Make sure pupils know what you are asking them to do.
3. Move around the room. Keep an eye on pupils and get involved in their discussions.
4. Be flexible. If your questions turn out to be less stimulating than you imagined, draw things to a close sooner.
5. Create guidelines. You can then refer pupils to these if necessary.

Different types of discusser

• Pupils who prefer to talk, rather than listen. Encourage these pupils to do the latter by asking them to relay to you what their peers think. In addition, you may want to appoint them as scribes. This will mean that they have to pay attention to the ideas of others.
• Quiet pupils. These pupils may be timid or shy and so reluctant to take part. Encourage them by showing interest in what they think and praising the insight that underpins their ideas. They will most likely find paired discussion easier, so use this technique where possible. Put them in a group with supportive peers.
• Dismissive pupils. These pupils may not be prepared to accept or tolerate the reasonably held views of others. Model good etiquette and discussion manners for them and refer them to the rules by which all pupils are bound. If they persist, give them an individual task as a sanction.
• Pupils who want a social discussion. These pupils look for opportunities to turn talk away from the learning and towards other matters. Stay close to them and gently redirect them when necessary. If they persist, exclude them from the next discussion.
• Pupils who run out of things to say. Give these pupils prompts such as further questions and sentence starters.

Read more about using discussion as a classroom tool

How to encourage structured speaking and listening
Mike Gershon shares his tips for enhancing students’ thinking skills by working on speaking and listening.

Tried and tested questioning strategies
Questioning is a valuable tool to use in lessons and these techniques will help you get the most from your pupils

Find Mike Gershon's books on Amazon here

Free teaching resources for use in class

Discussion Toolkit
Guides you through a variety of activities you can use to structure and encourage discussion in the classroom.

Debating lesson
Lesson detailing rules and strategies for a class debate - includes co-operative learning strategies.

Developing empathy
This lesson plans get students to develop empathy and consider the impact of their actions on other people’s feelings through script work or hot seating.

Source: http://newteachers.tes.co.uk/content/getting-best-out-classroom-discussions

How to teach … Summer Fairs

With the summer term on its way, it’s time to start thinking about face paint and hooplas. Here’s how to plan and organise the perfect school fair

 From face painting and bunting, to safety advice and fundraising suggestions – our resources to make your summer fair shine. Photograph: Alamy

The traditional summer fair has become an important date in the school calendar – not only as a social event for the local community, but also as a major fundraising opportunity.

You don’t need iPads or foreign holidays in your raffle to make the event a success. But there’s no escaping the need for careful planning and an army of parent, teacher and student volunteers.

Choosing the right date and planning an exciting programme of events is key. Consider the timing of other school activities, such as exams or sports days, and events in the wider community, such as carnivals or football matches.

Once everything is in place behind the scenes, you can think about what you’d like the fair to look like. It helps to pick a theme and plan stalls and activities around this. You could have a barbecue and tin-can alley in the wild west, for example, or a coconut shy and treasure hunt at pirate island. A great way to do this is to ask students for their ideas and have a whole-school vote to select a winner. You’ll find more themes and fundraising ideas in this leaflet by the SPTC.Equally important is making sure that your summer fair is safe and legal, especially when it comes to things like bouncy castles and pony rides. PTA UK, a charitable body that supports parent-teacher associations, has put together astep-by-step guide to help you plan the perfect summer fair. It includes tips on getting people involved, obtaining the correct licences, handling money and checking your insurance. You’ll find more ideas in these leaflets from the Scottish Parent Teacher Council (SPTC), a charity that provides information and support to parents and carers who want to be involved in their child’s education, that cover fundraising, planning andhealth and safety.

Student involvement is important to the success of any fair. Get them excited in the lead up by holding a poster competition to help promote the event, with a winning entry chosen from each year group. Send these out to local libraries and shops, and turn them into fliers for students to take home. Also, find out what stalls pupils would like to organise and help run. Face painting and hair braiding are often popular activities. Students can also help to grow and sell plants –marigolds and nasturtiums work best as they are relatively fast-growing.

And as you head towards the big day, ask students to make their own summer fair-themed puzzles, like thisword search by PrimaryLeap. We also have a set of worksheets for early learners about the fair that feature writing, matching and drawing activities.

A good programme of events will ensure that people spend more time – and more money – at your fair so it’s worth putting the time into planning it well. Consider asking local groups, such as gymnastic clubs or martial arts instructors, to put on a display. And there might be a local band or dance group that would be willing to perform for free. You can find more ideas in this SPTC leaflet.

Raffles and competitions are another good way of engaging your crowd. Why not try “Bean Champion”, a contest to find out who can eat the most beans with a cocktail stick in 30 seconds? Players pay 50p to take part, with a portion of the takings or a prize going to the champion. Or there’s the more ambitious “Guess the square” game, which requires an area of grass and a borrowed cow, horse or donkey (you can always try contacting local farms). Mark out squares of grass and sell them for £1. The winning square is the one where the animal poos first – disgusting, but kids love it.

When it comes to the finishing decorating touches, we have banners for thetombola, raffle, lucky dip, hoopla, barbecue and beat the goalie, along withsummer fair bunting with lettering – all created by Twinkl.

And for students’ work that will be on show during the fair, check out this page border from SeeMe Resources. On the day, assign some students as reporters and photographers to gather vox-pops and information for a summer fair newsletter. You can publish and send these out to parents and helpers to celebrate the success of your event and encourage support for next year.

Source: http://www.theguardian.com/teacher-network/2015/may/05/how-to-teach-summer-fairs-school