Home Tags Posts tagged with "of"
Tag:

of

Education

School of hardish knocks posts warning to doting parents

by Rajdeep
written by Rajdeep

catholic-sign.jpg

A school in Arkansas has had enough of its pupils being mollycoddled by doting parents and has come up with a tongue-in-cheek response.

A photograph of a sign fixed to the front door of Little Rock’s Catholic High School for Boys proposing a tough-love approach has gone viral.

It reads: “If you are dropping off your son’s forgotten lunch, books, homework, equipment etc, please turn around and exit the building.

“Your son will learn to problem-solve in your absence.”

Father sues private school after son fails all but one of his GCSEs

The image has been shared more than 100,000 times since being posted a week ago.

Steve Straessle, the principal, said the idea was straightforward.

“It’s simply to help boys avoid the default switch of calling mum and dad when things don’t go right to bail them out,” he told KARK TV.

The pupils are sanguine about the notice.

“It makes me think for myself and not rely on other people to do things for me,” said Patrick Wingfield. “And if I make a mistake, I need to learn from it and try and fix it.”

Less so the parents, many of whom have bombarded the school’s Facebook page with concerns that children will starve if they have forgotten their lunch, for example.

One raised concerns about diabetic pupils.

“Of course I’m sure you’re not talking about diabetic or other needs, like mine who’s type 1. Because just so you know, I’d hurt any one of you that stood in the way of me getting my son’s medicine to him.”

[Source:- independent]

0 comment
0 FacebookTwitterPinterestEmail
Education

Geographer maps Oxbridge success of London state schools

by Rajdeep
written by Rajdeep

Oxford wall sculpture

Some London state schools send more pupils to Oxford and Cambridge than private schools in other parts of England, research suggests.

“A subset of elite state schools are contributing to the London and South East of England bias,” says a study by King’s College London researchers.

“At post-16, these schools are comprehensive in name only,” said researcher Sol Gamsu.

The research describes a concentration of elite schools in the South East.

The paper, to be presented to a Royal Geographical Society international conference later this month, maps the number of pupils sent to Oxford and Cambridge by different types of school from different regions.

Regional variation

It has long been known that students from schools in London and the South East are disproportionately overrepresented at both Oxford and Cambridge, says the study.

Using Department for Education data, it identifies the extent that access to England’s two top universities varies between regions.

Overall, considering both state and private schools together:

  • inner London sends 1.89 times more students to Oxbridge than the national average
  • the South East sends 1.46 times more students
  • outer London schools send 1.37 more students.

But other regions of England are underrepresented:

  • In the North East schools send 0.44 of the national average to Oxbridge
  • In the North West the figure is 0.57
  • and in the East Midlands it is 0.59.

When the figures were broken down further, according to school type, the study found state schools in the South East sent 1.43 times more students than the national average to Oxford and Cambridge,

In outer London, the figure is 1.24 times as many.

But private schools in regions including Yorkshire and Humber, the East Midlands and the North East sent about half as many as the national average, the study – which has not yet been published online – found.

‘Feeder schools’

Some Oxbridge “feeder schools” send up to 30% of their intake to the two universities, say the researchers.

“These are still largely the elite of the private sector, but this list also includes what have basically become elite sixth-form colleges,” said Mr Gamsu.

Mr Gamsu said London gentrification and selective sixth forms had contributed to the rise of “super-state” schools.

“The capital’s rapid economic and social change lies behind the rise of these schools,” he said.

“London’s housing market has resulted in the price of accessing sought-after comprehensives in gentrified neighbourhoods rising beyond the means of many less affluent residents.”

Mr Gamsu cited north London’s Camden School for Girls and Fortismere School, in Muswell Hill, as examples.

A report earlier this year by London Councils said that last year 64,953 young Londoners had progressed to higher education, up 4% on the previous year.

“While this is good news, more still needs to be done to ensure everyone can make the journey from school or college to higher education,” that report added.

The Department for Education pointed out that, in a bid to widen access, theHigher Education and Research Bill will require higher education providers to publish applications, offers and completion rates broken down by gender, ethnic background and socio-economic class.

“There should be no barrier to any child’s ambitions and we are already seeing record numbers of disadvantaged young people going to university.

“We want to go further and ensure we are building a society that works for everyone,” said a spokeswoman.

[Source:- BBC]

0 comment
0 FacebookTwitterPinterestEmail
Education

Labour promises return of student maintenance grants

by Rajdeep
written by Rajdeep

Student exams

Labour says it would restore grants to help young people in England stay in further and higher education.

This would mean a return for education maintenance allowances (EMA) scrapped by the coalition government in 2010.

It would also mean reversing the decision to turn maintenance grants for poorer university students into repayable loans.

Shadow education secretary Angela Rayner said it showed a commitment to “investing in our young people”.

But a Conservative spokesman said that the current student finance system had seen record numbers in post-16 education and training.

Labour says it would pay for the support for 1.25 million poorer students by increasing corporation tax by up to 1.5%.

It is proposing that the EMAs, a flagship policy of the previous Labour government, should be reinstated.

They were means-tested payments of between £10 and £30 per week intended to encourage 16- to 18-year-olds to stay in sixth forms and further education colleges.

The policy had been scrapped by the coalition government, which described it as a poorly targeted use of education funding – but Labour says research has shown that it had been cost-effective.

Labour also wants to overturn the decision by the current government to end maintenance grants for students from poorer families and replace them with loans.

The former Chancellor George Osborne, announcing the scrapping of maintenance grants, said that the current cost of £1.57bn per year would have doubled to £3bn in the next decade.

Mr Osborne said there was a “basic unfairness in asking taxpayers to fund grants for people who are likely to earn a lot more than them”.

But Ms Rayner said: “It is only by investing in education that we can ensure that all of our young people, whatever their background, are able to succeed in whatever they aspire to.

“When we can help improve the education of over a million young people with a small increase in corporation tax, it is an investment we would be foolish not to make.”

In an article co-written with Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn, Ms Rayner says that investing in education is vital to improving productivity and competing in technology-based industries.

Mr Corbyn and Ms Rayner say that it is “disgraceful that the Conservative government abolished student grants that levelled the playing field for young people from low and middle income backgrounds”.

“Opportunity taken from them is a loss to us all, leaving Britain worse off,” they say.

“As two politicians who never went to university, we have nevertheless benefited from those that did – we do so every time we visit our GP or dentist, when our children go to school or when we buy the latest gadget.

“Education is a collective good that benefits all of us.”

But a Conservative party spokesman said: “Without a proper explanation of how all Labour’s education proposals could be funded in full, they amount to little more than warm words.

“Yet again Labour are proving themselves too incompetent and chaotic to build a country that works for everyone.

“We have reformed the financial support for 16-18 year olds who are most in need, in contrast to the costly and poorly-targeted Education Maintenance Allowance.

“This approach has helped tackle the real barriers to participation, with record numbers in education or training post-16.

“Our planned changes to maintenance for those in higher education will also increase support for the poorest students while making sure student funding remains sustainable.”

The National Union of Teachers said: “Family financial circumstances should not dictate access to education. The abolition of the EMA meant that many young people had to give up their education or were pushed into choices they did not want to make.”

[Source:- BBC]

0 comment
0 FacebookTwitterPinterestEmail
Education

More than a third of female students ‘have mental health problems’

by Rajdeep
written by Rajdeep

Distressed woman

One in three female students in the UK has a mental health problem, a survey suggests.

This compared with about a fifth of male undergraduates, the YouGov survey of 1,061 students found.

Overall, some 27% of the students said they had a mental health problem. This rose to 45% among lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender students.

Universities UK said institutions were working hard to develop good services that linked in with the NHS.

Of those students who said they had a mental health problem:

  • 77% had depression
  • 74% had anxiety

In May, official statistics showed student suicides had risen to their highest level since numbers were first recorded in 2007.

These figures – for 2014 – showed 130 suicides in England and Wales among full-time students aged 18 or above.

There has been concern about the level of mental health support services provided by universities.

But the survey showed the students were broadly aware of the mental health services offered by their universities.

Underlying illness

Some 18% had already made contact with university mental health services, and, of those who had, nearly nine out of 10 had seen a counsellor

Chief executive of Universities UK Nicola Dandridge said: “Universities take student mental health very seriously.

“For some students, an unfamiliar higher education environment can be stressful, particularly for those who already have an underlying illness.

“Some students are reluctant to disclose their difficulties, which can also present a challenge for universities seeking to support them.

“However, the development of policies and anti-stigma campaigns is now beginning to address both these issues.

“The challenge for universities is to build on the support services and external links that exist already, enabling referral to the NHS where necessary.

“It is important to remember that university wellbeing services, however excellent, cannot replace the specialised care that the NHS provides for students with mental illnesses.”

Universities UK also said it had issued guidance to all universities last year with advice on dealing with students with mental health issues.

[Source:- BBC]

0 comment
0 FacebookTwitterPinterestEmail
Education

Exams day sees largest number of Scots pupils secure university places

by Rajdeep
written by Rajdeep

More pupils from Scotland got a university place on exams results day than in any previous year, it has been confirmed.

Helen Thorne from UCAS told BBC Radio Scotland that 28,300 Scottish students had successfully secured their courses.

More than 140,000 students north of the border have received their results.

The Scottish Qualifications Authority has sent out scores from National 4 and 5, Higher, Advanced Higher and Scottish Baccalaureate exams.

  • Where can pupils in Scotland find help?

The Scottish government said the exams had seen “another highly successful set of results”, including:

  • 152,701 Higher passes, the second highest number on record and 77% of those sat
  • 234,160 National 5 passes, 79% of those sitting exams
  • 114,635 National 4 passes, 93% of those sat
  • More than 43,000 National Certificates, Awards and National Progression Awards in courses such as early education, childcare and computer games development, up 27%
  • A 23% increase in National Certificate passes at SCQF level 6 related to work skills, to 4,920

Scottish exam results day

140,000

Pupils receiving results

50,000

Pupils getting results by text

  • 28,300 Scots pupils securing higher education places
  • 27,400 Scots pupils going to Scottish universities and colleges
  • 3,900 EU pupils securing places in Scotland
SQA/UCAS
PA

The latest results from the SQA suggested that problems with the 2015 Higher Maths exam have not been repeated. The 2015 pass mark had to be cut to 34% after the exam was deemed too difficult, but the 2016 pass mark was approximately 50%.

Fears that replacing part of the Higher English exam against a tight deadline would lead to problems also proved unfounded, with the pass mark for that subject also 50%.

Pass rates in National 4 and 5 exams were roughly in line with those in 2015, while the percentage of candidates passing their Higher exams dipped slightly from 79.2% to 77.2% – although new Higher exams have been phased in over this period.

New Advanced Higher exams were introduced for 2016, with an overall 81.7% pass rate.

Different paths

Dr Janet Brown, the SQA’s chief executive and Scotland’s chief examining officer, paid tribute to pupils, teachers, lecturers parents and carers.

She said: “This is the first year candidates will have been offered the full range of National Courses as part of Curriculum for Excellence. These results are testament to the dedication of the entire Scottish education system, working in partnership for the benefit of our young people.

“The new qualifications are performing well and the results clearly are enabling young people to transition between the levels and develop a wider range of skills.

“It is important to recognise the different paths candidates can take to achieve success, whether it be in National Courses, Skills for Work or National Progression Awards.”

Pupils in the Scottish Borders opened their exam results

The Royal Mail said it had “pulled out all the stops” to make sure results were delivered in the post on time, while more than 50,000 pupils also signed up to get their results online or via text message.

Speaking to the BBC’s Good Morning Scotland programme, UCAS director Ms Thorne said: “There is really good news, we have got 28,300 Scottish students who have secured a place at university today and that is the highest that we have ever seen on Scottish results day.

“So we want to say a big congratulations to all of them and when the UCAS track system opens students will be able to log in and see if they have got their university place.”

Ms Thorne also said the number of students from EU countries being accepted to Scottish universities was up 19% to 3,900, saying there was “no evidence of EU students being put off” by the Brexit vote.

The National Union of Students welcomed the “hugely encouraging” figures, while Colleges Scotland said it was “delighted” with the results.

Education Secretary John Swinney said students could be “extremely proud of their efforts”.

Mr Swinney said: “Today’s results show that Scotland’s learners continue to perform very well, with the second highest number of Higher passes on record, despite a fall in the size of the S5 and S6 year groups. This year is only the second time in history that we have seen more than 150,000 Higher passes, up from around 112,000 just ten years ago.

“It is encouraging to see strong performances in qualifications related to wider skills for life and work and I greatly welcome the increase of attainment in Awards, National Certificates and National Progression Awards.”

Opposition parties also welcomed the results, with Scottish Conservative education spokeswoman Liz Smith welcoming the fact that issues from 2015 appeared to have been addressed.

Labour’s Iain Gray also voiced congratulations to pupils whose “hard work has paid off”, although he noted concern about the drop in the pass rate for Highers and called on the government to build on the results by giving schools extra resources.

‘Massive day’

The Royal Mail said results had been delivered to Scottish students in 45 countries around the world, from Australia to Singapore.

Planning teams had been working for months to ensure that all results are delivered on time.

Head of special events and planning Derek Keir said: “This is a massive day for every pupil in Scotland waiting for their results.

“All of our postmen and women, many of whom have children themselves, understand just how important this day is for families. Our people pull out all the stops to ensure the results are delivered as quickly and efficiently as possible.”

Skills Development Scotland has set up a free helpline to offer advice, information and support for pupils and parents, including information on college and university courses, apprenticeships, employment and volunteering. The number is 0808 100 8000.

[Source:- BBC]

0 comment
0 FacebookTwitterPinterestEmail
Education

Graduate debt ‘a third of average mortgage’, says charity

by Rajdeep
written by Rajdeep

Young employees

New graduates in England face average debt levels of more than a third of the average mortgage, research suggests.

When they start paying back their maintenance and tuition loans, this year’s graduates will owe at least £41,000, The Money Charity says.

Average outstanding mortgage debt is £117,162, the researchers say.

The government says the student loans system is fair and sustainable and that higher education boosts employability and earnings.

Rising rents

Rising maintenance loans and the higher tuition fees of £9,000 a year for students who started their degrees in 2012 or later have led to a hike in debt, the charity says.

The first students on the higher fees graduated last summer and, under the current rules, those earning more than £21,000 began paying back their loans in April.

The sum owed by students has risen steadily for the past decade, tripling since 2003, the charity calculates.

“Much of this is driven by the introduction and gradual rise of tuition fees,” the researchers said.

“The other, often overlooked, driver of rising student debt is the runaway cost of accommodation, which requires ever larger maintenance loans just to keep up.”

A study by the charity last year warned that average yearly rents outside London had grown by £277 in a year between 2014 and 2015, with maintenance loans and grants failing to keep pace.

University maintenance grants for lower income student in England Wales are due to be scrapped from next month.

Meanwhile, a petition against government plans to freeze the repayment threshold for student loans at £21,000 instead of increasing it with average earnings as was originally promised now stands at more than 130,000 signatures, and the issue has been debated in Parliament.

“For nearly half the young people in the UK, becoming a student will be the first step into adult life, with all the financial responsibilities that brings. We worry that these early, formative experiences of debt will leave a lasting legacy,” said The Money Charity chief executive Michelle Highman.

“Normalising large quantities of debt right at the start of people’s financial independence risks setting them up to fail.

“The size of these sums may also affect later borrowing such as loans and mortgages.”

‘Fair system’

The government says higher education boosts employability and earnings and the student loans system is fair and sustainable “as the [Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development] OECD has recognised”.

Ministers say the current system removes financial barriers for anyone hoping to study, with outstanding debt written off after 30 years.

Scotland does not charge fees for first-time Scottish undergraduates studying in Scotland.

Fees in Wales can be up to £9,000, but the Welsh government pays £5,100 of this for Welsh students.

Northern Irish students studying in Northern Ireland pay £3,925 a year.

[Source:- BBC]

0 comment
0 FacebookTwitterPinterestEmail
Education

Ofsted chairman ‘should not resign’ over Isle of Wight comments

by Rajdeep
written by Rajdeep

Ofsted chairman David Hoare went “over the top” when he called the Isle of Wight a “ghetto” but should not resign, Sir Michael Wilshaw says.

Ofsted’s chief inspector of schools told BBC Radio 4’s Today programme Mr Hoare had been “a good chair”.

Mr Hoare has apologised for his comments about the island, in which he also said “there has been inbreeding”.

He said he had been trying to highlight the unacceptably poor performance of schools on the island over many years.

His comments, made at a recent teaching conference and highlighted in the Times Educational Supplement, prompted a call for him to resign. He has apologised for any upset or offence he may have caused.

Sir Michael said: “He’s handled the board well and he’s passionate about raising standards.

“On this occasion he used inappropriate language and he’s apologised profusely for that because he’s offended people in the Isle of Wight, and he should have done that.”

‘Low standards’

Sir Michael added that while Mr Hoare’s words had been “inappropriate”, he was raising an important issue.

“He has drawn everyone’s attention to the problems of areas like the Isle of Wight and coastal resorts. We undertook a focused inspection of the Isle of Wight four years ago and found standards to be terribly, pitifully low.

“The reason why London and other big cities are doing well is because they’ve got good heads and they’ve got good teachers and people are attracted to those areas.

“It’s much more difficult to attract staff to areas which are less popular and where the challenges are that much greater.”

‘Insulted residents’

Mr Hoare, who has a home on the mainland near the island, said education on the Isle of Wight was often a topic of conversation with his dinner party guests.

“They think of it as holiday land. But it is shocking,” he said. “It’s a ghetto; there has been inbreeding.

“Seven state schools were all less than good. There is a mass of crime, drug problems, huge unemployment.”

Ofsted said the chairman had been expressing his personal views and they did not reflect those of the inspectorate or its chief inspector.

But Isle of Wight council leader Jonathan Bacon said he would contact Education Secretary Justine Greening to seek an explanation from Mr Hoare for his comments.

He said: “David Hoare’s comments about ‘inbreeding’ and ‘ghettos’ on the Isle of Wight are truly offensive to the people of the Isle of Wight and bear no relation to the facts.”

And Ms Lowthion, who is a teacher on the island, said: “‘I am absolutely appalled that the chairman of Ofsted thinks it helpful, truthful or professional to describe our families and young people in that way.

“I think it reflects more on himself than it does on our hard-working teachers and schools.

“It is well-known that coastal towns need investment and support to improve education standards and participation.

“He has insulted residents of coastal towns across the country and should resign.”

Following the outcry, Mr Hoare said: “My intention was to highlight how concerned I am about the unacceptably poor performance of schools on the Isle of Wight over many years and how this is damaging the prospects of young people who live on the island.

“Those who know me will realise that I am passionate about improving outcomes for children from our most disadvantaged communities and my comments were made in this context.”

[Source:- BBC]

0 comment
0 FacebookTwitterPinterestEmail
News Update

Importance Of Architecture Owner While Dealing With Technical Debt

by admin
written by admin

You have heard a lot about technical debt and its relation with architecture owner. AO is an integrated part of DAD or Discipline Agile Delivery. It helps in offering you with guidance for applying several forms of refactoring. It comprises of code refactoring, user interface and database refactoring. These services are quite small, like that of splitting database column or even renaming operation, making it part of daily development. Rework seems to be more substantial and can be planned explicitly. Now, it’s time for the architecture owner for negotiating rework-oriented work items with the current product owner.This product owner is mainly the person, known for prioritizing the work on technical debt.

Dealing with regression test continuously

The easiest ways to find problems in work is by having comprehensive regression test suite, ready to run on a regular basis. This test suite is designed in such a manner, which help in detecting the defects, as injected into code. It further helps in enabling you with ways to fix it proficiently. It can eve enable you to back out changes, in right possible manner. These are some of the interesting points for you to focus at, while working on expert services around here.

More on automated code services

Just like working on refactor technical debt, you need to work on automated code or schema analysis. There are different types of tools available and used for accessing quality of code. It works perfectly for database schema, as well. The disciplined agile team will help in including use of tools in current Continuous Integration strategy. You will come to know the areas, where tech debt exists, and primarily steps to remove it. These are some of the interesting strategies, which you better follow, while working on tech debt related strategies.

Measuring the technical debt

Firms, which are quite serious with tech debt, always try to measure it. For that, they might have to take help of code or schema analysis tools. Furthermore, you need to work hard to keep eye on the chosen trends, which might go down with passing time. You might even want to choose to track code quality metrics. You can even take help of data quality metrics, with usability metrics, time to add features, time for addressing defects and some other points, to be added in the same kitty. These are some of the interesting features, which you have to work along, while measuring technical debts.

Ways to reduce your debt

It is time for you to know more about ways in reducing technical debt. It needs to be a part of your culture. Technical debt is not going to be fixed all by itself. It might even accrue interest over time, and slower form, with expensive evolution of existing assets.You might even try to address technical debt before trying to handle over assets. If you want to know more about these features, waste no time, and consider procuring help from experts. They are available over here, and you must click here, to come in direct contact with them.

0 comment
0 FacebookTwitterPinterestEmail
Internet

Yahoo Communications Chief Leaves in Advance of Verizon Takeover

by Rajdeep
written by Rajdeep

Yahoo Communications Chief Leaves in Advance of Verizon Takeover

Anne Espiritu, Yahoo Inc.’s vice president of global public relations and communications, is leaving after four years at the company that’s now selling its core assets to Verizon Communications.

Espiritu was the first person hired from Google after Marissa Mayer left the search giant to take the job as Yahoo’s chief executive officer in 2012. Espiritu and Mayer had been discussing for some time when Espiritu might leave Yahoo, according to a person familiar with the matter.

“We are incredibly grateful for her hard work, dedication and unwavering support over the past four years,” Yahoo said in a statement. “We wish her luck in her next adventure.”

Sheila Tran is being promoted to become Yahoo’s head of global public relations, according to the person, who asked not to be identified because the appointment hasn’t been made public.

Espiritu’s departure follows Verizon’s announcement July 25 that it will acquire Yahoo’s Internet assets for $4.8 billion, bringing the web portal together with longtime rival AOL. The telecommunications company will add Yahoo web services that still draw 1 billion monthly users, including mail, news and sports content and financial tools.

Espiritu was a key figure in helping shape and manage the communications at Yahoo during Mayer’s tenure as CEO, which included heightened criticism on Wall Street and in the press as sales growth sputtered over time amid market share losses.

[Source:- gadgets.ndtv]

0 comment
0 FacebookTwitterPinterestEmail
Education

Ofsted boss sorry for calling Isle of Wight a ghetto

by Rajdeep
written by Rajdeep

The chairman of Ofsted has apologised after he called the Isle of Wight a “ghetto” where “there has been inbreeding”.

David Hoare said he had been trying to highlight the unacceptably poor performance of schools on the island over many years.

His comments, made at a recent teaching conference, prompted a call for him to resign.

Mr Hoare apologised for any upset or offence he may have caused.

Green Party education spokeswoman Vix Lowthion said Mr Hoare’s comments made him “unfit” for his post and called on him to step down.

‘Shocking’

Isle of Wight council leader Jonathan Bacon said he would contact Education Secretary Justine Greening to seek an explanation from Mr Hoare for his comments.

He said: “David Hoare’s comments about ‘inbreeding’ and ‘ghettos’ on the Isle of Wight are truly offensive to the people of the Isle of Wight and bear no relation to the facts.”

Ofsted said the chairman had been expressing his personal views and they did not reflect those of the inspectorate or its chief inspector.

The controversial comments, made at a teaching conference last week, were highlighted in the Times Educational Supplement.

Mr Hoare, who has a home on the mainland near the island, said education on the Isle of Wight was often a topic of conversation with his dinner party guests.

“They think of it as holiday land. But it is shocking,” he said.

‘Insult’

“It’s a ghetto; there has been inbreeding.

“Seven state schools were all less than good. There is a mass of crime, drug problems, huge unemployment.”

But Ms Lowthion, who is a teacher on the island, said: “‘I am absolutely appalled that the chairman of Ofsted thinks it helpful, truthful or professional to describe our families and young people in that way.

“I think it reflects more on himself than it does on our hard-working teachers and schools.

“It is well-known that coastal towns need investment and support to improve education standards and participation.

“He has insulted residents of coastal towns across the country and should resign.”

Following the outcry, Mr Hoare said: “My intention was to highlight how concerned I am about the unacceptably poor performance of schools on the Isle of Wight over many years and how this is damaging the prospects of young people who live on the island.

“Those who know me will realise that I am passionate about improving outcomes for children from our most disadvantaged communities and my comments were made in this context.”

[Source:- BBC]

0 comment
0 FacebookTwitterPinterestEmail
error: Content is protected !!