The Education Continuum

Tom Bennett live on TES to help you to prepare for the new school year

Experienced teacher and behaviour guru, Tom Bennett will be available 3-5pm Wednesday 31 August to answer any questions you've got about getting ready for the new school term. Questions from NQTs, trainees and qualified teachers are very welcome.

http://newteachers.tes.co.uk/node/46023&s_cid=Mon_News_RES

 Tom is author of The Behaviour Guru and Not Quite a Teacher.

Melanie Wilson
Commissioning Editor (Professional Education)

Is youth leadership not a facet of the 'Big Society' movement?

Students want to be trusted and challenged, even when it looks like they don’t! Leadership gives them a sense that they have something to offer, and that their experiences can be useful and helpful to others. Even the most disruptive, difficult student is showing leadership qualities – it’s just not in the right direction, yet.

A few months ago, the DfE cut funding to the school strand of The Youth of Today programme which was being led by the Citizenship Foundation. The Youth of Today began last year to improve the quality and quantity of youth leadership opportunities for teenagers aged 13-19. The resources produced for the scheme are no longer available and the Foundation are no longer able to offer specific support to schools on the topic of school leadership.

Learning to Lead – Using Leadership Skills to Motivate Students, published in March, demonstrates that students have positive leadership abilities, and they can be taught how to use these abilities and then to teach others. Just as important, if not more so, these students make a difference in the classroom, in their school and in their local community. When students see themselves as potential leaders they rethink the concept of involvement in their community. They move from a sense that leadership is for other people to a feeling that schools are places of opportunity.

Incorporating leadership learning into the curriculum in both primary and secondary schools challenges students to take responsibility for themselves and others, build their self-esteem and improve the lives of others in the school and local community. Isn’t this what the Government’s ‘Big Society’ is supposed to be all about?

 

Melanie Wilson
Commissioning Editor (Professional Education)

The Behaviour Guru unleashed!

 

Tom Bennett, author of The Behaviour Guru, took part in a live web chat for the TES last Friday. If you missed it, you can read the full transcript here.

 

 

 

 

 

Melanie Wilson
Commissioning Editor (Professional Education)

Let's make it better for boys

It's common knowledge that girls consistently outdo boys in their GCSE results in the UK, but did you know that more boys than girls drop out of school? Or that last year, 17.2% of young male undergraduates were unemployed, compared to 11.2% of their female counterparts?

One exam board recently announced that they were considering offering different exams for boys and girls. One can only imagine that this is an attempt to close the attainment gap, but by stigmatising in this way, are we not going backwards? Surely we need to find and tackle the root causes of the difference between achievement and employment of our young men and women, rather than attempting to balance the books on a superficial level?

If you caught any of Gareth Malone's recent project, you'll have seen that by taking a step back and adding elemtns of competition, creativity and activity into learning can do wonders for pupil engagement.

'Making it Better for Boys' author, Ali McClure has a new range of courses for parents and professionals coming up in the Autumn. Ali is an author, education and parenting consultant.  

Making it Better for Boys: Creativity and the Primary Curriculum (for KS1/2 professionals) 
Guildford: Friday 15 October 2010, 10am-4pm

Positive Power (for parents)
Woking: Thursday 4 November 2010, 8pm-10pm

Making it Better for Boys: Understanding Boys (and Girls) Learning (for EYs and KS1 professionals)
Guildford: Friday 19 November 2010, 10am-4pm

Sibling Rivalry (for parents)
Woking: Thursday 25 November 2010, 8pm-10pm

Behaviour, Consequences and Discipline (for parents)
Woking: Wednesday 16 Feburary 2011, 8pm-10pm

Melanie Wilson
Commissioning Editor (Professional Education)

TES Education Show 2010, Friday 1 & Saturday 2 October, London Olympia

If you are speaking at the show or attending as a delegate, please come and say hello! We will have a stand this year (B42 in the National Hall), and it would be lovely to put some faces to some names, and receive some feedback on our books.

I'll be there on Friday and Saturday, although on Friday I won't be on the stand much. On Friday you can meet our new Editorial Assistant, Rosie Pattinson; our new Marketing Executive, Kayleigh Chalcroft; and David Avital, who is covering Anna Fleming's list while she is away on maternity leave (Anna had a lovely healthy little boy last week). David and Kayleigh will also be there on Saturday.

We'll have a range of books available to buy at a special discounted rate, including the brand new edition of Getting the Buggers to Behave by Sue Cowley, and we'll be giving away some promotional USB sticks and teddy bears, so get there quick to avoid disappointment!

Some Continuum authors will be speaking at the show: Brian Male, CEO of the Curriculum Foundation will be leading a seminar called 'A Curriculum for the 21st Century' at 12.30 and one entitled 'Curriculum Creativity' at 3.30 on Friday; Patrice Baldwin, Chair of National Drama and International Director of Drama for Learning and Creativity (D4LC) will be talking about 'Drama in and Across the New Primary Curriculum' also at 12.30 on Friday; Fintan O'Regan, Behaviour Management Consultant will be discussing 'SF3R: A Formula for Behaviour, Learning and Life' at 11 and 'The Language of Learning' at 2 on Friday; and June O'Sullivan, Chief Executive of London Early Years Foundation will examine 'Leadership in the Early Years: Making a Difference' at 11 and 'Why Intergenerational Practice is the Way Forward for Children's Centres' at 3.30 on Saturday.

I hope to see some of you there!

Melanie Wilson
Commissioning Editor (Professional Education)

Dave Vizard's workshops

Dave Vizard, author of Meeting the Needs of Disaffected Students: Engaging students with social, emotional and behavioural difficulties will be presenting two seminars at Special Needs London on Friday 15 October: Keeping the parents of children with complex needs onside (11-12) and Words don’t always count…how body language can be effectively used to manage behaviour in the classroom (2-3).

Dave will also be leading a session on supporting disaffected students at the Teach First conference on 13 November.

Dave is a behaviour solutions consultant and trainer. Click on the link above to preview the book or purchase a copy.

Melanie Wilson
Commissioning Editor (Professional Education)

The Behaviour Guru is now in the blogosphere, and is on the BBC 1 breakfast show at 7.20am on Friday 10 September!

Just to let you know that the Behaviour Guru himself now has a blog!

Tom is also appearing on the BBC1 Breakfast Show tomorrow morning, so be sure to tune in!

Melanie Wilson
Commissioning Editor (Professional Education)

A day in the life of a behaviour guru

Two or three times a week I check into the TES online forum to see if any problems have been posted for me to advise on – sometimes it's more often, depending on the time of year – the weeks leading up to the beginning of term starts to see a trickle of students nervous about beginning their NQT year, after which it goes quiet.

Most of the problems I answer are behaviour related. I find that for many of the correspondents, what they're looking for is reassurance and somebody else to remind them that they're not alone. Teaching can be a terribly lonely process; there can't be many other jobs where you can spend your whole day surrounded by people and yet feel completely alone. Especially if they feel like it's all going down the tubes. So I regard it as my duty to remain upbeat, positive and supportive no matter how bad the problem sounds; the correspondent can usually supply his own negativity, they don't need me for that. I can't believe it when I see some forum Troll jumping in and belittling the writer's problems. One of the perils of the internet, I suppose. But I'm delighted to say that the majority of the people who contribute are experienced and supportive. I think teaching is like that – I've certainly found that there’s a bunker mentality in the profession. Perhaps it's because we're so beleaguered on both sides – above and below.

That's why I wanted to write The Behaviour Guru – because there are loads of behaviour books on the market, but they're all a bit theoretical, or lengthy. New teachers need behaviour tips they can take into the classroom the next day, packed into their schoolbags. They don't need fifty pages of psychology or neuroscience. They want to know what to do or say right there, right then. I looked at all the questions and answers on the forums and thought, ‘You know, a new teacher would really benefit from reading these’. Real problems, real solutions, real fast. I hope it helps other teachers, because we're all in it together.

Tom Bennett is the Behaviour Guru on the TES website and is author of The Behaviour Guru, available for preview and purchase now. Tom recently wrote an article in the TES called ‘Courage under Fire’, which you can read here.

Melanie Wilson
Commissioning Editor (Professional Education)

Fourth edition of Getting the Buggers to Behave is out now!

Pedigree Chum, anyone?

To celebrate the launch of the new edition of this international bestseller, we're offering you the chance to win a copy and a mention on the companion website!

For those of you who’ve never read Sue Cowley’s prodigious bestseller Getting the Buggers to Behave, you won’t yet be familiar with some of the slightly zany tactics Sue employs to get her kids to listen, and actually enjoy listening. My personal favourite is ‘The Can of Dog Food’, which can be found on p.115 of the new edition:

Description:

This activity was originally used for design technology, and it shocks the students into paying attention. Of all the suggestions I’ve ever made, this has attracted the most controversy. Your teaching style probably needs to be ‘comic and quirky’ or possibly ‘edge of madness’ to pull it off. Prepare your can ahead of time: cut the base off the tin or split open the pouch carefully; empty it out and wash it well; chop up the Mars bars and mix this with the jelly; refill the can or pouch and fix it back together with glue or tape. (Note: an easier alternative is to swap the labels over between dog food and something more appetizing.) Explain to the class that the lesson is about packaging. Show the students the can of dog food, open it up, and then eat from it. Offer it round the class, to see if anyone will have a taste. You’ll get a lively reaction to this opening, but your students will eventually quieten down to hear what you have to say.

Have you ever used a slightly off-the-wall starter to get your students’ attention? If so, we want to hear from you! If Sue likes your idea the best, you’ll win a free copy of the new edition and a mention on the companion website. To enter, just email mwilson@continuumbooks.com with your ‘edge of madness’ story before 30 September 2010.

Melanie Wilson
Commissioning Editor (Professional Education)

When “listen to me” is not enough…

Guest post by Continuum authors, Jacqui Woodcock and Liz Spooner

Last weekend, we were lucky enough to be asked to speak about our work on developing listening at the International Chromosome 22Q.113 deletion syndrome conference. We met parents and practitioners from across Europe and America and it was interesting to hear that they face similar challenges when trying to teach children with poor listening skills. The question we were most often asked was “What has changed? Why do children now find it so hard to keep listening?”.

The answer is not straightforward but the rise in screen-based entertainment and its impact on children’s play seems to be a common factor in many countries. New findings from The Nielsen Company (October 2009) show children aged 2-5 now spend more than 32 hours a week on average in front of a TV screen. This is 32 hours a week when they are not playing and listening to other people.

Consequently, increasing numbers of children are starting school without these foundations in place. When this happens saying “Listen to me” is never going to be enough. However, the good news is that our own research has shown just a small amount of targeted teaching can make a big difference to this key skill in school.

Jacqui and Liz are authors of Teaching Children to Listen: A practical approach to developing children’s listening skills, published in January 2010. It recently scored 5/5 in bulletin: The Official Magazine of The Royal College of Speech and Language Therapists.

Melanie Wilson
Commissioning Editor (Professional Education)