A funding package of over £49 million to help young people into employment and education has been announced by Education Minister Leighton Andrews. Speaking at the Welsh Assembly Government’s first economic summit of 2010 the Minister said: “It is imperative that we make sure every young person aged between 16 and 24 is given a genuine chance of a proper job, training or education.”
The Minister for Children, Education & Lifelong Learning (CELL) announced on 18th January that he is commissioning a major independent review of the costs of administering education in Wales. Phase one of the review has now been awarded to the consultancy firm PricewaterhouseCoopers.
The aim of the event is to provide clarity on the legal duties placed on stakeholders, and practical advice on taking forward the Learning and Skills (Wales) Measure. The event would be of interest to Secondary School Head Teachers, Learning Pathways 14-19 Network Reps, College Principals and School/College Governors. Register your interest at learningpathways14-19@quadrant.uk.com or contact 029 2069 4898.
From Monday 15 February, Estyn’s Strategic Director, Ann Keane, will take up the position of Her Majesty’s Chief Inspector of Education and Training in Wales until a longer term appointment is made from the autumn. Ann Keane said, “It is an honour to take up the role of Chief Inspector and I am confident that Estyn is in a strong position to drive forward the good work that Dr Bill Maxwell accomplished during his leadership.
Education Minister Leighton Andrews has warned of the danger of the phrase NEET becoming a noun. The Minister said: “If we think and label young people not in employment, education or training as a single category, using the shorthand ‘NEET’ to define an individual like the word geek, we miss the complexity of the true picture and the individual challenges young people face in life.”
An experienced team has been appointed to ensure that work based learning plays a full role in developing 14-19 learning partnerships as the Welsh Assembly Government bids to transform education and training provision across Wales. The Assembly Government is supporting a project that aims to get schools and training providers working together to provide teenagers aged between 14 and 19 with a full range of vocational, applied and academic learning opportunities. The project should also help to address reports by employers that young people are leaving school with a skills gap.
There were 126,475 HE Student enrolments at Welsh HEIs, 1 per cent higher than 2007/08. 36 per cent of enrolments were part-time. There were 102,395 Welsh domiciled HE student enrolments at UK HEIs, less than a 1 percent increase from 2007/08. 43 per cent of enrolments were part-time. 34,645 higher education qualifications were obtained at Welsh HEIs.
Young apprentices at Barry College were in for a surprise when Lesley Griffiths - the Deputy Minister for Science, Innovation and Skills - not only paid them a visit but also tried her hand at a number of plumbing and electrical tasks. During her taster session she took up the ‘apprentice challenge’ and after watching demonstrations by apprentices she undertook a number of assignments and gained a few skills.
Deputy Minister for Children Huw Lewis met with young people from across Wales at an event aimed at providing young people with the opportunity to participate in decisions that affect them. More than 250 young people from schools, youth forums, youth settings and Funky Dragon met at the Liberty Stadium in Swansea to have their say on a range of topics such as school uniforms, basic skills and child poverty.
Teachers and researchers have been concerned with how best to help pupils overcome their difficulties with mathematics for many years. This Research for Teachers summary describes an approach that has helped some teachers address these difficulties. The project used a student-centred, collaborative and discussion based method for learning, with some positive results.
This report is based on evidence from a small-scale survey carried out between April and July 2009 in 35 maintained schools in England. It evaluates the extent to which the schools taught pupils to adopt safe and responsible practices in using new technologies, and how they achieved this. It also assesses the extent and quality of the training the schools provided for their staff.
It is easier to climb the social ladder and earn more than one’s parents in the Nordic countries, Australia and Canada than in France, Italy, Britain and the United States, according to a new OECD study. Intergenerational Social Mobility: a family affair? says weak social mobility can signal a lack of equal opportunities, constrain productivity and curb economic growth.
Scotland’s future prospects – its route out of recession, its chances of a successful recovery, and sustainable economic progress thereafter – depend on the industries, businesses and jobs it is able to create, and on having the skilled workforce it needs to do those jobs well.
This newsletter provides an update on TDAs work with teachers and other stakeholders. It includes an update on the 'Train to Teach' events and the Masters of Teaching and Learning.
