Ann Walker's avatarLifelong Learning Matters

Warm tributes are being paid to Eric Frith, a committed and active volunteer for the Workers’ Educational Association. Eric, who was the Chair of our Walthamstow Branch, died on Christmas Day at the age of 90.

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Eric and his late wife Elise had wide-ranging interests and were very well-known in their community. They first started to organise courses at what is now the Adult Education Centre in Greenleaf Road, Walthamstow in the 1960s. Eric and Elise founded the Walthamstow branch of the WEA in 2005 to make sure that courses could still run at the Centre after the original service changed. He and his wife were over 80 years old when they took on this challenge.

He served as the Branch Chair and continued to do so after Elise died in 2010 at the age of 88. He chaired an active committee which meets regularly for typical WEA Branch…

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Birmingham Against The Cuts's avatarBirmingham Against The Cuts

This is from the Birmingham Law Centre:

Birmingham Law Centre is facing a very bleak future and may soon have to close. As with every law centre, we are having to deal with a massive reduction to our income due to the government’s legal aid cuts. However, unlike most law centres, we receive no funding from our local authority.

Please sign our online petition

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Birmingham Against The Cuts's avatarBirmingham Against The Cuts

TUC welfare misconceptionsResearch today released by the TUC has shown that people’s impressions of benefits are way out of line with the reality of the system and claimants who rely on it. Can that be a surprise when every time a politician opens their mouths and talks about benefits they present what must be deliberately misleading figures or just outright lies to paint a picture of claimants as unemployed, lazy, feckless scroungers who have never worked a day in their lives, don’t want to work, could take any number of jobs if they wanted to.

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Birmingham Against The Cuts's avatarBirmingham Against The Cuts

The proposed closure of further children’s homes was the one cut where the moral and economic case coincided. This oft repeated claim made at Decembers Budget consultation meetings by Brigid Jones, the Cabinet member for Children and Young People, bears further critical examination.

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An interesting resource, thanks for sharing.

Ann Walker's avatarLifelong Learning Matters

I found this link to a 5-minute lesson plan via @TeacherToolkit on Twitter. I’ve put it into a quick blog as it was popular with Twitter followers. (Social media is a great source of continuing professional development and sharing.) You can click on the picture to enlarge it.

The elements are:

Circle – The BIG picture?

Square – Objectives

Star – Engagement?

Cloud – ‘Stickability’,

Hexagons – AfL and Differentiation

Rectangles – Learning Episodes, each with the options of ‘Teacher Led or Student Led’

This example is for a Year 7 activity but it can be adapted easily for adult education. It’s especially useful that it includes a section on AfL (Assessment for Learning), which incorporates peer assessment in this example.

AfL with positive, relevant and ongoing feedback is vital for students’ progress and it’s important that each student understands their own progress and development throughout all stages of any adult education course.

There are many…

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Birmingham Against The Cuts's avatarBirmingham Against The Cuts

dec8 011Yesterday demonstrations took place in Birmingham city centre as part of a national day of action called by UK Uncut and Boycott Workfare. Starbucks on Colmore Row and New Street were occupied in protest at tax avoidance which costs us £25bn each year, whilst Argos, Superdrug, Poundland and McDonalds were visited by people demonstrating against the use of forced unpaid workfare labour by these companies, and the work programme which reduces your chances of finding work.

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It is a service we need, those of us who can’t rely on patronage to secure a future for our children. It was successful and so it should come as no surprise that funding should go, that its experienced and dedicated front line staff treated so shabbily and their skills lost to the city. The trashing of services essential to a disproportionately impoverished urban working class demographic is a topic I have posted on before. Sadly, it seem likely that I will continue doing so.

Since there will be a general parliamentary election in 2015 and there appears to be no ‘official’ left wing visibility on education beyond the usual platitudes, it is high time that the discussion on where education fit for the 21st century should be going was joined by all interested parties. In 2015 there needs to be a groundswell of opinion that the most clueless incoming government cannot ignore, and indeed would adopt as their own. Initiatives like this conference in Birmingham are both welcome and overdue.

askparentsfirst's avatarAsk Parents First

On 27th November a meeting was held to discuss the establishment of a Birmingham branch of the Campaign for State Education (CASE). This was supported by Ask Parents First among others. It was agreed by all present to establish a Birmingham CASE group and that the first action of the group would be to organise a Birmingham Conference of Education in early March, the most likely date being Saturday 2nd March.

CASE membership forms were distributed. They can also be downloaded from the national CASE website here.

CASE Birmingham does not have a web presence or email address yet, but that will be coming soon. In the meantime you can contact APF for more information or to get involved.

The next CASE Birmingham meeting will be on 8th January 2013, 7pm, venue to be confirmed.

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Birmingham Against The Cuts's avatarBirmingham Against The Cuts

Monday December 10th, 6.00pm at UNISON office 19th Floor McClaren Tower, Priory Queensway, B4 7SL.
Offices have level access and accessible toilet, children are welcome at our meetings. If you have any access needs please contact us and we will do our best to ensure you can attend our meeting.

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Birmingham Against The Cuts's avatarBirmingham Against The Cuts

2012 autumn statement occupation 03Demonstrations took place around the UK yesterday as Osborne gave further details of how austerity is going to increase the budget deficit over the next 5 years, whilst screwing low paid, unemployed and disabled people by cutting real terms benefits and removing the link between benefits and inflation.

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