Finger-length ratio can point to potential top doctors, new research says
A new Italian study points towards a handy way to identify who might become a top doctor. The method: Compare the lengths of a person's second finger and fourth finger. It's that simple.
The monograph is called The Second-To-Fourth Digit Ratio Correlates with the Rate of Academic Performance in Medical School Students and appears in the May-June issue of the journal Molecular Medical Reports.
Researchers who spend time studying this finger ratio – the individuals who have found meaning by looking to both sides when someone shows them a middle finger – call it "2D:4D". That's shorthand for the phrase "second-to-fourth digit length ratio".
The big dog, the Einstein of the field, is Professor John Manning of the University of Liverpool, whose work has included how to spot footballing stars of the future, by looking at finger length.
The authors of the new study, mostly medical researchers from the University of Catania in Sicily, and Kore University in Enna, Italy, write that: "2D:4D has been shown to predict the success of men who play sports and of financial traders." But, they claim, their paper is the first to reveal what 2D:4D says about high flyers in a highly competitive university system such as the state-run Italian medical schools.
After measuring the fingers of 48 male medical students using callipers accurate to 0.2 millimetres, they concluded that students with a slightly lower 2D:4D ratio of the right hand (although, confusingly, it is not quite clear whether this means the fingers are more similar or different in length) are more likely to be successful. The researchers noted in particular how those who passed their medical school admissions test had a significantly lower 2D:4D ratio of the right than those who failed. Interestingly, however, finger ratios could not predict how those students performed in their exams.
Their findings contrast with a series of reports done by a different group at the University of Catania, which I described here a few months ago. Those other researchers, mainly physicists, published a study called The Peter Principle Revisited: A Computational Study. It demonstrates mathematically that organisations would become more efficient by promoting people at random. This earned them an Ig Nobel prize last year, in the field of management. In a subsequent paper they demonstrate, also mathematically, that democracies would work better if they selected politicians at random.
It's possible that identifying future stars by examining their fingers is even better than choosing people at random. But until and unless somebody does the research, no one can say for sure.
• Marc Abrahams is editor of the bimonthly Annals of Improbable Research and organiser of the Ig Nobel prize
One charity's strategy for getting poorer students into top universities is clearly working
The launch of Nick Clegg's social mobility strategy earlier this month seemed doomed from the start. After pledging to end a culture where career progression is less dependent on "who your father's friend are", the revelation that Clegg's father got him an internship at a bank fuelled a row about MPs whose daddies gave them a leg-up in their career. This was swiftly followed by David Cameron's Oxbridge admissions gaffe, where he claimed – inaccurately it transpired – that he had seen figures suggesting that just one black student made it into Oxford last year.
While seemingly blighted by blunders, the government's social mobility strategy is an attempt to narrow the differences in attainment of different social groups. And one of the biggest dilemmas for government is: how do you get more bright students from poorer homes into the most competitive universities without lowering entry standards?
It is catch-22 for ministers committed to improving social mobility, but opposed to social engineering. The rush towards the maximum £9,000 tuition fee has prompted renewed concern about the failure of selective universities to broaden their intake. It is also a pressing issue for universities themselves since, as a condition of charging higher fees, they must show that they are using some of that cash to improve access from so-called non-traditional students.
The evidence from recent years shows that, while there has been progress in getting a wider range of young people into higher education, there has been precious little movement towards "fairer access" (that is, ensuring a broader intake at top universities). Recently published research from the Sutton Trust – a charity that aims to promote social mobility through education – shows private-school students are 55 times more likely to win a place at Oxbridge and 22 times more likely to go to a top-ranked university than students at state schools who qualify for free school meals.
And while the universities minister, David Willetts, says universities can now admit students on the basis of potential, there is a suspicion that fairer access means a bias against the middle classes. The general consensus seems to be: start young.
In a forthcoming report to the prime minister, Simon Hughes, the government's newly appointed advocate for access to education, is set to recommend greater use of mentors and "higher education advocates" to work in schools with little experience of sending students to leading universities.
However, amid all this scratching of heads over fairer access, one charity is providing an answer. Villiers Park Educational Trust, already one of England's leading specialist charities working with gifted and talented pupils, has changed its strategy to focus on able but disadvantaged pupils through a new initiative known as the scholars programme.
The goal is to get able students from less advantaged backgrounds to gain places at leading universities, but the charity's chief executive, Richard Gould, is adamant that this should be achieved without skewing admissions arrangements. "After 14 years of schooling, it is only right that students should get the universities' standard offer at A-level," he says.
Launched in 2009, the Villiers Park scholars programme currently has 240 students from years 10 to 13, drawn from relatively disadvantaged areas of Swindon in Wiltshire and Hastings and Bexhill in East Sussex.
To qualify for the programme, students must score high marks in either non-verbal reasoning tests or GCSEs, and must be in receipt of free school meals, the education maintenance allowance (EMA) or be the first generation of their family intending to enter sixth form or university.
Once accepted on to the programme, Villiers Park scholars receive a range of support including regular one-to-ones with a learning mentor, masterclasses, workshops to prepare for university admissions, and residential courses. The charity also works with the scholars' schools and colleges to develop everyday classroom provision.
Tim O'Brien, executive director for young learners at Sussex Coast College in Hastings, which encourages its students to apply for the programme, says it has "boosted students' confidence and helped them realise they have the potential to go to a top university or to apply for competitive courses like veterinary science".
Year 13 student Aisha Merrick is one such example. She says she was unsure about her future before she joined the programme. Now she has five conditional offers to read business studies. "I had no idea what I wanted to do and was not sure about going to university". But, she says, the mentoring was "brilliant" and really helped to boost her confidence.
It was the residential courses, held at the Villiers Park centre in the Cambridgeshire village of Foxton, that really changed her mind about applying to university. There are two types of courses: general study skills (such as research, presentation and problem-solving) and subject-specific courses where students work at degree level with very able students from across the UK. "Back at college we didn't talk much about going to university, but coming and meeting different people made me think about it," says Merrick.
Laurence Flint needs three As at A-level to study architecture at Nottingham. Being involved in the programme has opened up new possibilities for him, he says. "The best part was meeting people from other parts of the country. They were all very set on what they were going to do and some were from grammar and private schools. It gave me confidence that I could do it, too."
Dean Slidel has a similar story to tell. Like Merrick and Flint, he receives EMA and – if he gets to university – will be in the first generation of his family to do so. He is studying maths, law and art at A-level, and needs two As and a B to get into the University of Westminster to study architecture. The subject masterclasses have been invaluable, he says. "It takes you into new areas and gets you thinking."
But it is not just about changing the lives of the individuals involved, says Sir Dexter Hutt, executive leader of the Hastings Federation of Schools, which also has students on the programme. "The magic has been the impact not just on the scholars, but on their families, too. It influences both parents' aspirations and siblings' plans for the future."
O'Brien agrees, saying that "involving families and teachers is all about raising aspirations, particularly in a town like Hastings with high levels of social deprivation."
It is clearly an approach that works, says Gould. To date, more than 17,000 students have been helped by Villiers Park across all its programmes. More than 50% of those were young people from less advantaged homes, and more than 80% went on to leading universities. To avoid charges of elitism, Villiers Park defines "leading universities" as any course ranked in the top 20% in the country. For some subjects that might be a handful of universities, for others it will be more.
The dilemma now is how to expand the model. The programme costs about £1,700 a year for each scholar. As a charity, Villiers Park provides this free. But cash is running out. A fundraising campaign is planned, but the charity is now appealing to universities to use some of their additional fee income to support scholars programmes in their own areas. It also hopes schools will use the government's pupil premium – set at £430 per pupil on free schools meals or in care – to fund students on the scheme.
That puts the ball squarely in the court of the government, universities, schools and perhaps wealthy philanthropists wanting to support social mobility. As Gould puts it: "We have a strong belief that this could become a leading national initiative to address fair access, but we will need financial support to move it on."
• Mike Baker is a trustee of the Villiers Park Educational Trust
A student's class of degree has a major effect on their life chances, yet the difference in academic achievement between a 2:1 and a 2:2 can be almost nothing, says Professor Nigel Seaton
Degree classification has a long history in our universities. It is widely accepted by students, parents and employers as the measure of academic achievement. However, this system has fundamental and damaging weaknesses.
First, degree classification is unfair to some students. The life chances available to a student with a 2:1 and a student with a 2:2 are very different indeed. Many blue-chip companies will only interview graduates with a first or a 2:1. A top-class degree also makes it much easier to get a scholarship for postgraduate research.
Yet the difference in academic achievement, and, therefore, their potential as an employee, between a student with a 2:1 and one with a 2:2 might be almost nothing – 60.1% compared with 59.9%. In such a case, the difference in life chances reflects no difference at all in academic achievement.
Universities recognise the effect of fine academic judgments on the degree class a student receives, and the moral responsibility that goes with it. This feeling of responsibility gives rise to schemes to give some students a degree class that is higher than it otherwise would be.
Some universities, for example, identify a "border region" of marks just below a class boundary in which a board of examiners is permitted to move a student up to the next degree class. A student with 58% might be awarded a 2:1, despite getting less than 60% (the usual boundary between a 2:1 and a 2:2).
This might be done because the student has scored very high marks in parts of their degree – indicating exceptional ability – even if they have slipped down in a couple of modules.
Almost the opposite line of thinking is sometimes used to increase the class of a student with a very "even" performance; in this case consistency rather than occasional brilliance might be rewarded.
That this tactic is morally, rather than academically, motivated is made very clear by the fact that there is no corresponding border region just above the class boundary; students are never demoted to a lower class after the board of examiners has reflected on their performance.
Other tactics exist to "do the right thing" for individual students by moving them from one class to another, but none does anything to address the fundamental unfairness of the process.
Another critical weakness of the current degree classification system is that the richness of the student's experience – subjects taken and marks achieved – is submerged, leaving only the class of the degree.
A potential employer might not get to find out that the engineering student scored top marks in an optional course in Spanish or excelled in a particular aspect of the course. All they see is a 2:1 or a 2:2. So, in effect, the act of degree classification trivialises the student's achievement.
A full account of the student's academic record does exist. This is the graduation "transcript", which is issued to all graduating students: it detailas what subjects or modules were taken, and how well the student did in those specific areas.
A proposed standard version of the transcript for all UK universities, called the Higher Education Achievement Report (Hear), is currently being piloted in some universities. If the pilot is deemed successful, the Hear will then be issued to students on graduation.
This is being done on the recommendation of the Burgess Group, a national steering group looking at better ways to recognise student achievement, which envisaged that the Hear might eventually make degree classification obsolete.
As things stand, this will not happen. The degree class is still seen as the definitive mark of achievement by both students and employers. It's difficult to see how gradually changing attitudes among everyone – not just students and employers – by explanation and persuasion can possibly work.
We need to be more radical. We should stop classifying degrees, now, and allow the transcript to do its job.
• Professor Nigel Seaton is senior deputy vice-chancellor, University of Surrey
The infokit has been developed by JISC and JISC infoNet in conjunction with a number of universities who have worked to identify the issues and challenges they current face within their research teams in managing the research lifecycle from bidding for a grant through to publication.
Josh Brown digital infrastructure programme manager at JISC explains: “The current situation for UK universities is a very mixed picture depending upon the type of higher education institution, but what they all have in common is the need to deliver information and data on research happening within their organisations to funders and increasingly to businesses who are looking to work with them to commercialise commissioned work.”
At the moment there is no common standard across the UK research community to manage their information. Many institutions have created their own bespoke systems to meet their needs and this infoKit highlights many of the emerging trends. For example the universities featured show there is particular value of adopting common standards such as CERIF or shared services such as the JISC and HEFCE-funded Research Management and Administrative System (RMAS), which is modular enabling universities to create a cradle-to-grave research information system.
Steve Bailey senior advisor at JISC infoNet who has developed the infoKit says: “What we have learnt through the case studies and our research is that by investing in general good practice which fits you and your institution it is likely to become easier to comply with REF as you will have the bedrock of systems and processes in place to meet the internal and external requirements for your institution. It is also clear that there is a strong business case for the cost savings and avoidance of duplication with universities to adopt a research information process.
“The infoKit provides a very real look at the challenges and lessons learnt that researchers and their intuitions are going through in terms of their information management. Previous research has have found that by adopting a research information management approach universities can save approximately 20/30 per cent on complying with returns for the research excellence framework and when each submission costs over £1000 per researcher that is a significant saving.”
The infoKit will be updated and evolve as JISC gains additional insight from its projects and the requirements of the REF become clearer.
*source Research Councils
Read a blog post written by Josh Brown about the new infoKit
Listen to a podcast with Josh Brown and Steve Bailey (Duration 9:44)
JISC EMBEDDED OBJECT
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CILIP's next Corporate Plan is currently under development and will be available from late 2011. The 2010 Corporate Plan is still in effect.
Previous years' documents can be obtained on request from: governance@cilip.org.uk
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The Corporate Plan is produced periodically by Council and provides a framework for CILIP's goals for the months or years ahead.
The Corporate Plan for 2010 can be accessed below.
Previous years' documents can be obtained on request from: governance@cilip.org.uk
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CILIP milestones since the organisation was created in 2002
6 April - Launch of CILIP's campaign, Vote local, vote libraries, encouraging members to engage in the political debate around the 5 May local elections in England.
1 April - Shortlists for the 2011 CILIP Carnegie & Kate Greenaway Children's Book Awards announced. Annie Mauger and children's author Patrick Ness hand over a set of shortlisted books and an open letter about the importance of school and public libraries for Secretary of State for Education, Michael Gove.
31 March - CILIP CEO Annie Mauger writes to the National College asking that Teaching Schools have professionally staffed school libraries.
24 March - CILIP produces a reaction to the 2011 Budget.
17 March - The Tech Set, co-published by Facet Publishing and Neal-Schuman Publishers, is awarded the Best Book in Library Literature by the American Library Association.
15 March - CILIP members, Lauren Smith and Ned Potter, make the Library Journal's international 'movers and shakers' list 2011.
14 March - The Department of Communities and Local Government places the statutory duties for local authorities to provide 'comprehensive and efficient' library services under review. CILIP President, Brian Hall, urges people to submit their views to the consultation.
3 March - CILIP CEO Annie Mauger provides a foreword to a new report into the reading habits of British school pupils.
1 March - Libraries Minister, Ed Vaizey, confirms the vital role of professional library staff.
21 February - CILIP CEO Annie Mauger writes an open letter to London Mayor, Boris Johnson, reminding him that public libraries are a statutory service.
15 February - As Downing Street made a raft of high profile announcements in support of the Big Society, CILIP asked "what role for public libraries?"
9 February - CILIP publishes School Libraries: A Right, a new statement about the role and value of school libraries.
7 February - CILIP publishes a clear set of actions for the Secretary of State for Culture, Jeremy Hunt, to fulfil his statutory duty to superintend and promote the public library service in England.
5 February - Save Our Libraries Day. Campaigning takes place across the country and achieves blanket media coverage.
25 January - CILIP announces its support for Save Our Libraries Day, a day of action on the 5th February to provide national focus for local campaigning in support of public library services.
25 January - Westminster Hall debate takes place about the future of public libraries.
18 January - CILIP responds to Government consultation paper: ‘Liberating the NHS: An Information Revolution’.
17 January - New web page launched listing CILIP's key media coverage.
16 December - CILIP responds to government enquiry into services for young people.
15 December - CILIP CEO Annie Mauger writes to all English MPs to explain the implications of public library service cuts.
06 December - Scholastic Book Clubs Ltd named new official book supplier for the Carnegie & Kate Greenaway shadowing scheme.
28 October - CILIP/IFLA Aspire Award launched at an event to celebrate the professional life of CILIP's Chief Executive, Bob McKee.
21 October - Annie Mauger responds to the government's Comprehensive Spending Review
19 October - CILIP signs up to joint statement in support of public libraries.
14 October - The first CILIP Medal, recognising a unique contribution to the library and information profession awarded to Edward Dudley.
05 October - CILIP stresses that an information revolution in the health sector must be managed by information professionals in its response to the Government White Paper, Equity and Excellence: Liberating the NHS
01 October - Annie Mauger (pronounced 'major') takes up the post of CILIP Chief Executive.
27 September - CILIP champions the important contribution of prison libraries to offender learning in its response to the Government consultation paper Review of Offender Learning: Call for Evidence
06 September - CILIP supports the Society of Authors, the Authors’ Licensing & Collecting Society and the Royal Society of Literature in their campaign to protect the Public Lending Right.
13 August - CILIP's Chief Executive, Bob McKee, passes away while attending the IFLA Conference in Sweden. Read Bob's biography.
10 August - CILIP and LIANZA (the Library & Information Association of New Zealand Aotearoa) sign an agreement to recognise each other's professional qualifications.
29 July - Defining our professional future report goes live, providing direction about the future of CILIP, and the knowledge and information profession.
27 July - CILIP warns the coalition government that abolishing the Museums Libraries and Archives Council and the Advisory Council on Libraries leaves libraries dangerously exposed.
20 July - CILIP's School Libraries Group launch the publication of their survey at the House of Commons, School libraries in the UK: a worthwhile past, a difficult present – and a transformed future?
06 July - Broadcaster Mark Lawson presents the CILIP Libraries Change Award to Edinburgh Library and Scottish Prison Service Partnership
01 July - Green success. CILIP wins greatest improvement in environmental performance and highly commended for innovation in sustainability communications and behaviour change at Camden Council's EECO green awards
24 June - Winners of the CILIP Carnegie & Kate Greenaway Medals announced at BAFTA. Neil Gaiman, winner of the CILIP Carnegie Medal strongly defends libraries and gets extensive media coverage.
15 May - CILIP accredits first university programmes in Europe at Cologne University of Applied Sciences
16 April - CILIP's conversation with the knowledge and information community begins. The conversation forms part of Defining our professional future, a programme to produce a new vision and roadmap for the organisation.
22 March - CILIP welcomes the government's Public Library Modernisation Review and calls on the government to show leadership by delivering their recommendations with appropriate funding.
18 March - CILIP's Library & Information Manifesto launched and sent to all parliamentary candidates standing at the 2010 Westminster election.
16 March - CILIP launches guidelines on user privacy in libraries.
15 February - New member benefit announced; full text access to over 145 publications through Proquest Library Science.
12 February - CILIP President, Biddy Fisher, writes an open letter to Prime Minister Gordon Brown, calling on the government to make school libraries statutory.
10 December 2009 - Dr Hazel Hall, Executive Secretary of the LIS Research Coalition, awarded IWR Information Professional of the Year.
08 December 2009 - Encompass launched, CILIP's positive action trainee scheme
02 December 2009 - CILIP's Chief Executive, Bob McKee, calls the Department of Culture, Media and Sport's consultation paper on public libraries 'a disappointment'.
15 October 2009 - Defining our professional future announced at CILIP's AGM. The programme includes a conversation with the knowledge and information community about the future of the profession and CILIP.
12 October 2009 - CILIP announces it will create a Library and Information Manifesto and asks the community to contribute their views.
07 October 2009 - CILIP publishes guidelines for local Councillors in England - What Makes a Good Library Service?
01 October 2009 - CILIP welcomes Wirral Council's halt to closing eleven of its libraries.
07 September 2009 - New members service launched - two free career advice sessions a year from The Careers Group, University of London.
07 September 2009 - Newly formed LIS Research Coalition, joint-founded by CILIP, announces that Dr Hazel Hall will provide strategic direction.
15 July 2009 - CILIP Libraries Change Lives Awards ceremony takes place at its largest venue yet - a 450-seat auditorium at Umbrella 2009 Conference.
16 April 2009 - New Facet Publishing website launched with an improved user experience, richer content and fresh design.
06 April 2009 - CILIP supports Andy Burnham's decision to intervene over Wirral Council's proposed library closures.
02 March 2009 - Enhanced CILIP Carnegie & Kate Greenaway shadowing website launched - allowing greater interaction through blogs, videos and personalised homepages.
26 February 2009 - CILIP criticises Andy Burnham's decision not to intervene over Wirral Council's proposed public library closures.
17 February 2009 - CILIP endorses Guidance on the Management of Controversial Material in Public Libraries.
28 May 2008 – The Conway Report outlines the reasons for cuts in quality faced by public libraries in England.
29 April 2008 – CILIP’s Council gives the go-ahead for a Positive Action Trainee Scheme, which is part of CILIP’s Encompass programme.
26 March 2008 – The School Libraries Summit agrees to create new web-based resources to help school librarians advocate the value of their services.
19 March 2008 – CILIP’s Policy Forum meets for the first time. It brings together all parts of CILIP to generate professional policy.
29 October 2007 - Bob McKee, CILIP's Chief Executive, starts his blog.
21 June 2007 - Philip Pullman's Northern Lights and Shirley Hughes' Dogger are voted the public's favourite CILIP Carnegie & Kate Greenaway winning books of all time.
18 April 2007 – CILIP presents the 15th CILIP Libraries Change Lives Awards, which has become one of the highest accolades in the library and information calendar. For the first time, videos of the finalists are created - raising the profile of the projects and Award.
16 March 2007 – The results of CILIP’s Life@work survey are published providing insight into the working lives of CILIP members and others working in LIS.
15 March 2007 – CILIP launches a year of special activity to mark the 70th anniversary of the Carnegie Medal and the 50th anniversary of the Kate Greenaway Medal.
7 December 2006 – CILIP Council agrees radical reform of CILIP Governance.
28 November 2006 – CILIP launches a Seal of Recognition to recognise high standards in training and development activities in the library and information community.
25 November 2006 – CILIP publishes a list of members achieving Certification, Chartership and Fellowship for the first time in the Guardian as part of a sponsored editorial.
25 October 2006 – CILIP Communities is launched providing a step change in member-to-member communication and enabling CILIP to take advantage of web 2.0 technologies.
9 October 2006 – CILIP goes live with CARE, its new membership database – enabling improved records managements and administration of memberships.
15 September 2006 – CILIP holds its first Graduate Open Day, attracting over 100 students and young professionals to learn about careers in libraries and information.
24 July 2006 - CILIP and Lifelong Learning UK (LLUK) set out a joint agenda on workforce development issues in a Memorandum of Understanding.
3 July 2006 – CILIP sends Quality People Equals Quality Service information packs to 4,000 Human Resource Professionals. The pack is designed to help them recruit the best people to information roles by communicating the benefits of employing qualified Library and Information professionals.
14 June 2006 – CILIP persuades Minister for Neighbourhood Phil Woolas to consider public libraries in future policy initiatives to combat social exclusion and promote neighbourhood renewal.
30 June 2006 – Over 3,000 school and public library reading groups are registered for the CILIP Carnegie and Kate Greenaway Awards shadowing scheme, involving 60,000 young people in reading for pleasure. The CILIP Carnegie and Kate Greenaway Award website receives 1.5 million page views in one month.
2 June 2006 – CILIP's Gazette magazine launches with a new format, new look and new content
30 March 2006 – CILIP’s lobbying work in partnership with other library and information bodies succeeds in securing an amendment to the Dissemination of Terrorist Publications Act – marking a significant victory for the library and information lobby.
31 October 2005 – CILIP welcomes its 1,000th Affiliate member.
28 October 2005 – CILIP publishes legal advice on how library services need to respond to requests for access to confidential information by the Police and security services investigating serious crime or terrorism.
11 May 2005 – University of Wales Bangor agrees to CILIP's offer of assistance on library service restructuring proposals
26 April 2005 – CILIP starts an RSS (Really Simple Syndication) feed from the CILIP website enabling web users to keep up with new information added to the site.
13 April 2005 – The CILIP Framework of Qualifications is expanded to include a qualification for library and information assistants (ACLIP) and a scheme of voluntary revalidation of Chartership and Fellowship.
13 April 2005 – The CILIP Framework of Qualifications is expanded to include a qualification for library and information assistants (ACLIP) and a scheme of voluntary revalidation of Chartership and Fellowship.
8 April 2005 – CILIP and SCONUL (the Society of College, National and University Libraries) agree a joint declaration on working together for the library and information profession.
9 February 2005 – CILIP Council pledges to support the Sri Lankan Library Association in the country’s recovery from the Boxing Day Tsunami.
4 January 2005 – CILIP launches a free online guide to freedom information to coincide with the introduction of FOI legislation.
30 January 2005 – CILIP introduces Wi-Fi hotspots to its Ridgmount Street building enabling members get online while visiting the building for meetings, courses and events.
14 December 2004 – CILIP Council agrees an expert definition of Information Literacy and the Health Executive Advisory Group published its Future proofing the Profession report.
24 November 2004 – New online services for CILIP members are launched - including free access to online professional journals.
18 November 2004 – CILIP members vote overwhelmingly for a flat rate subscription for employed Associates, Chartered members and Chartered Fellows.
19 August 2004 – CILIP launches a new website
30 January 2004 – TV star Joanna Lumley presents Achieve Awards to six outstanding library learners as part of a partnership between CILIP and learndirect.
10 December 2003 – CILIP’s new special interest groups the Diversity Group and the Library and Information Research Group are represented on Council for the first time.
2 December 2003 – CILIP launches the Early Years Library Network with support from the Esmée Fairbairn Foundation.
25 October 2003 – CILIP takes over the management of the LIBEX job exchange and offers members the opportunity to access information about work placements overseas.
26 September 2003 – CILIP secures a special deal giving members substantial discounts on Microsoft Office software for home use.
25 April 2003 – CILIP launches a new eBulletin service for members, delivering current awareness emails free to members who sign up.
12 February 2003 - CILIP Council agrees to adopt the Library and Information Research Group as a Special Interest Group.
6 December 2002 – the first CILIP / Online Personal Development Award is presented to Jas Sembhi, senior information officer at leading London law firm D J Freeman at the glittering Information Industry Awards.
12 November 2002 – CILIP published the CILIP in the Knowledge Economy report, which sets out a strategy for CILIP to meet the challenge of the changing information landscape.
1 November 2002 – The CILIP Gala Awards ceremony brings together the award presentations for the Public Relations & Publicity Awards, the CILIP Robinson Award, The Jason Farradane Award, the Tony Kent Strix Award and the Reference Awards at a Gala event at the Landmark Hotel in London.
24 October 2002 – CILIP opens a new Information Centre for members, kitted out by Instant Library.
16 October 2002 – CILIP publishes Start with the Child – a radical new vision exploring the future of libraries for children and young people.
26 September 2002 – The Reading Agency is launched with substantial financial support from CILIP.
3 July 2002 – Patricia Hewitt (then Secretary of State for Trade and Industry) addresses a special reception at the House of Commons organised by CILIP to celebrate excellence in the knowledge economy.
20 June 2002 – CILIP’s first promotional campaign, Frontiers: science in libraries, organised as part of the Government’s Science Year, achieves national television and radio coverage for its dream lab experiment on reading and dreaming. 10,000 people take part.
1 April 2002 – CILIP is launched at a celebration party for CILIP activists and guests at Shakespeare’s Under Globe in London.
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Plaid Cymru have launched their party manifesto, which includes a promise to support the strategic development framework for Welsh libraries and a continued promise to fund the modernisation of local libraries.
The Plaid Cymru Manifesto reads: “We believe that libraries must inspire people to enjoy reading, improve their knowledge, develop their skills and participate in their respective communities. We will support the implementation of the strategic development framework for Welsh libraries and we will continue to fund the modernisation of local libraries.”
CILIP Cymru Wales recently wrote a letter to all Assembly Members and Welsh Members of Parliament to raise concerns about the future of libraries in Wales.
“We welcome this pledge of support from Plaid Cymru,” said Lloyd Ellis, Chairman of CILIP Cymru Wales, “and we look forward to continuing our work with all parties in Wales to ensure libraries continue to develop and provide vital services to their communities. Libraries make a crucial contribution to building a strong and prosperous Wales.”
Karen Gibbins, Vice Chair of CILIP Cymru Wales added, “It is encouraging to note that Plaid Cymru realise there are benefits to a strategic approach to library services in Wales and that they pledge continued support for the work that has already begun.”
CILIP is encouraging members to get involved in the 5 May election. Find out how you can engage in local political debate in England and show your support for Scottish libraries by signing the petition at www.lovescottishlibraries.org
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Press contact:
Mark Taylor, Head of Corporate Marketing and Media Relations, CILIP
Tel: 020 7255 0654
Mobile: 07792 635 305
Email: mark.taylor@cilip.org.uk
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Fellowship is the highest level of professional qualification awarded by the Chartered Institute that recognises a high level of personal commitment and achievement.
It allows you to add the letters FCLIP after your name. This stands for Chartered Fellow of CILIP (CILIP Byelaws, Section 3, Professional Qualifications, No.15).
Fellows may continue to Revalidate their award.
Read the Qualifications Blog and follow Qualifications on Twitter
You can contact the Qualifications and Professional Development team on 020 7255 0610 or quals@cilip.org.uk
"The reason why I applied for Fellowship was that I wanted to realise my full potential. To be a successful information professional today we must learn to be an attractive proposition so that potential employers or clients just cannot resist."
Feedback from Chartered Fellow
Honorary Fellowships are awarded by CILIP Council. You can find the citations here and also see how to make nominations.
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Join CILIP and get support throughout your career, including help finding a job, free career coaching, expert employment-related advice and career development oppportunities
Whether you are new to the profession or looking to change job, CILIP can help you find a job.
We can support you throughout your career with information about negotiating for pay, practical advice on employment issues and free access to an Employment Law Helpline.
CILIP qualifications provide opportunities for everyone employed in the library and information sector with a route to professional status.
The three levels of qualifications are Certification, Chartership and Fellowship.
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The recruitment section of the CILIP monthly membership magazine, Update, carries more job advertisements than all other publications in the UK serving the library and information sector combined.
To ensure they reach the widest possible audience, all job advertisements booked into Update are also included on CILIP's library and information service jobs website Lisjobnet.com. This additional exposure is free to advertisers.
The CILIP Information and Advice Team can assist employers and human resource departments in the recruitment process by advising on salary levels.
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Millions of historical records have become more accessible to the public today (4 April 2011). Connected Histories provides a single point of access to a wide range of distributed digital resources relating to early modern and nineteenth-century British history.
Connected Histories brings digital humanities research to a new level by providing integrated access to several key resources, moving beyond simple keyword searching to allow structured searching of millions of pages of text by names, places, and dates.
In the process, at the click of a mouse, researchers can find rich bodies of evidence for virtually any topic in British history; whether royal weddings, parliamentary reform movements, famous criminals, or the lives of plebeian Londoners.
The Connected Histories website is fully searchable and provides access to millions of pages of text, hundreds of thousands of words and tens of thousands maps and images. It incorporates the following digital sources:
• British History Online
• British Newspapers 1600-1900
• Charles Booth Online Archive
• Clergy of the Church of England Database 1540–1835
• London Lives, 1690–1800
• Old Bailey Proceedings Online, 1674–1913
• Origins Network
• Parliamentary Papers
• Printed Ephemera from the Bodleian Library
• Strype’s Survey of London
The resource will grow substantially over time as new sources are added. The first update, due in September, will include 65,000 British Library books from the Historic Books Platform, 19th century pamphlets from JSTOR, and abstracts of wills from The National Archives.
Connected Histories was funded by JISC, and created by academics from the Universities of Hertfordshire, London, and Sheffield. Technical work was carried out at the Humanities Research Institute at the University of Sheffield and the website was developed by the Institute of Historical Research, University of London.
The project used natural language processing to identify names, places and dates in unstructured texts, and combined these with structured databases to create a single resource searchable by names, places and dates, as well as by keywords and phrases. Users can save results in their own workspace and document connections between sources.
Professor Robert Shoemaker, from the Department of History at the University of Sheffield and co-director of the project, said: “Connected Histories represents the next big step in digital humanities research. By enabling integrated searching of diverse electronic resources it will allow everyone conducting historical research to work more efficiently and productively.”
Co-director, Professor Tim Hitchcock, from the University of Hertfordshire, added: “Connected Histories creates a one-stop-shop for historical information. It will allow us to search newspapers and trial reports, parliamentary papers and images across fifteen different scholarly websites, at the click of a mouse. In the process it will change how we do research."
Dr Jane Winters, Head of Publications, Institute of Historical Research, said: “Connected Histories marks an enormous step forward for historians of Britain, and will transform the ways in which they engage with the wealth of digital material now available. It is also a model of cross-sectoral collaboration to further the UK research agenda.”
Alastair Dunning JISC programme manager, said: “Connected Histories provides a new type of tool for scholars, not just allowing them to find people, names and places from disparate digital resources, but create intelligent links between them. For JISC such projects are vital, permitting users to make sense of the rich and copious troves of primary sources available on the web.”
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Information about LACA: the Libraries and Archives Copyright Alliance. LACA is convened and supported by CILIP.
LACA: the Libraries and Archives Copyright Alliance, is convened and supported by CILIP: the Chartered Institute of Library and Information Professionals.
It brings together the UK's major professional organisations and experts representing librarians and archivists to advocate a fair and balanced copyright regime and to lobby about the copyright issues affecting the ability of library, archive and information services to deliver access to knowledge in the digital age. A list of LACA members appears below.
LACA lobbies in the UK and Europe about copyright and related rights on behalf of its member organisations and UK users of copyright works through library, archive and information services. On European issues CILIP is also active within EBLIDA: the European Bureau of Library, Information and Documentation Associations.
Additionally CILIP/LACA collaborate closely with IFLA: the International Federation of Library Associations and Institutions, and provide substantial support for IFLA's lobby at WIPO: the World Intellectual Property Organisation in Geneva, to encourage the development of international instruments which will promote access to knowledge.
Chair: Tim Padfield, Information Policy Consultant, The National Archives.
CILIP staff contact: Guy Daines, Yvonne Morris
Address:
LACA: the Libraries and Archives Copyright Alliance
CILIP
7 Ridgmount Street
London WC1E 7AE
United Kingdom
Tel: +44 (0) 20 7255 0500
Fax: +44 (0) 20 7255 0501
Email: policy@cilip.org.uk
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And a new association will be launched this year, as student demand grows for knowledge about Israel
From tackling campus extremism to dealing with donating dictators, UK universities have been forced to focus on polarised views of the Middle East in recent months.
But there have also been increasing efforts by institutions and others to promote a more nuanced and academic understanding of what is happening in the region.
The latest of these is the announcement of an expansion in Israel studies at the School of African and Oriental Studies (Soas) in London, and a new European Association of Israel Studies (EAIS) to be launched in September.
Colin Shindler, professor of Israeli studies at Soas and future chair of the association, says the decision to expand Israel studies is a response to growing demand from students to know more about the political, cultural, social and economic background to events in the Middle East and is an attempt to offer an academic alternative to what he terms "the megaphone war".
"The Middle East conflict is always a hot subject that people want to understand because it's so convoluted," he says. "People want rational responses. They are fed-up with slogans and one-sided approaches."
The new posts at Soas will be funded with £485,000 over four years from the Pears Foundation, a British family foundation rooted in Jewish values. The foundation, which also funds fellowships in Israel studies at Oxford and Manchester universities and plans more in future, is also backing the EAIS.
Charles Keidan, director of the foundation, stresses that the aim is to meet demand for better scholarship in the area rather than to promote a cause.
"We have been very conscious not to be involved in this as any form of Israel advocacy," he says. "This is advocacy for Israel studies, not for Israel."
He says the foundation is particularly aware of the delicate role of philanthropists, given recent controversies about donations connected to the Middle East – notably the London School of Economics's recent embarrassment over its £1.5m donation from Saif Gaddafi, son of the Libyan dictator.
"We hope we can be an example in terms of philanthropy and how a relationship can be constructed with a university," he says. "If we can do this with Israel studies of all areas, we can show the way to less contentious areas."
Certainly the area is a sensitive one. Rafaella Del Sarto, Pears fellow in Israel and Mediterranean studies at Oxford University, says recent interest in Israel studies as an academic undertaking derives from a desire to counter growing politicisation of academia, particularly in the field of Middle Eastern studies and international relations. "Both pro-Israel and pro-Arab or Palestinian advocacy groups have been happy to recruit Middle East scholars or academics researching and teaching on Israel for their respective 'cause'," she says. "Yet scholarship should be distinct from advocacy and polemics."
Clive Jones, chair of Middle East studies and international politics at Leeds University, and a member of the steering committee of the EAIS, says the association is determined to avoid any involvement from external bodies out to promote their particular point of view.
"It's not supposed to be some tub-thumping bastion of Zionism," he says. "It's supposed to be a serious academic endeavour to examine the state of Israel from a number of disciplinary perspectives – culturally, sociologically, politically – and how those impact on Israel's position in the region and globally."
For Shindler, it is ironic that Soas, which has a reputation for being anti-Israel, has become a leading institution for Israel studies in Europe.
"Soas as an intellectual body doesn't take sides in any conflict, but wants to encourage good intellectual endeavour," he says.
A former chemistry teacher, he has taught the Israel-Palestine conflict to students from all religious and cultural backgrounds there for more than 10 years and was appointed the UK's first professor of Israeli studies in 2009. Student numbers have more than doubled since he started, and he has sometimes had trouble finding classrooms big enough to hold them all.
"I teach Jews, Muslims, Israelis and Palestinians and it works very well," he says. "I don't impose my views on them. I tell them they have to justify their views in their essays and examinations. What it comes down to is teaching complexity to show that the conflict isn't one-sided, but highly complex, and that's what people go away with."
While students often arrive repeating slogans and cliches they have heard about the conflict, he says, they soon realise that these are simplistic and begin to understand that it is less black and white than they thought.
The decision to set up the EAIS came from the realisation that academics teaching the subject across Europe were reporting the same approaches and experiences, and also needed a chance to network, collaborate on research and to support younger academics interested in entering the field.
Shindler says he has already identified groups of Israel scholars in France, Italy, Germany, Denmark and across Eastern Europe, including Uzbekistan, Belarus and Lithuania, and he expects to discover more. Many of them, he hopes, will attend the association's inaugural conference on 18 September.
An Association for Israel Studies has existed in the US since the 1980s, and while Shindler will have a role on the board, as well as having links with the Middle East Studies Association in the UK, he stresses that the European association will be very much a distinct organisation.
Recent efforts to establish a more academic approach to studies of the region in the UK have not been confined to Israel. Two years ago, Exeter University established the first centre for Palestine studies in a western university, and is planning to support more doctoral and post-doctoral students in Palestinian studies.
Keidan says that, like any effort towards better academic understanding of what is happening in the Middle East, this is to be supported. And he says recent events in the Middle East and north Africa are only likely to increase the desire for knowledge about the region.
For Shindler, the increasing interest being shown by students in different aspects of Israel, from its politics to its art and films, is part of a drive to understand the country and people outside the context of the Israel/Palestine conflict. Too often, he says, academic study of the country of Israel gets submerged in UK universities into Middle Eastern or Jewish studies.
He suggests that people are interested in Israel because it does not fit into any conventional boxes. The conflict has become so central to discussions, and views on it are so strong and polarised, that students find it difficult to know what to think.
"There is a natural idealism from younger people to want to repair the world," he says. "They want to change it, and before they can change it, they have to understand it."
Comprehensives see surge in private school pupils applying to do A-levels in their sixth forms
A growing number of teenagers from private schools are applying to attend top comprehensives for their A-levels, it has emerged.
Headteachers from leading state schools have told Education Guardian that in the last couple of years, the number of teenagers from private schools who are applying for a place in their sixth forms has, in some cases, quadrupled.
They argue that this is partly because families have less money to spend on school fees, but also because more parents are realising that many state schools provide as good an education as their nearby private schools do.
Some believe that it may also be because parents think the switch to the state sector will give their children a better chance of a place at a top university. Some universities, such as Bristol, now take into account when making offers whether an applicant has had the benefits of a private school, with its smaller class sizes, or has attended a comprehensive.
The Guardian has spoken to 11 headteachers, all of whose state schools are in The Good Schools Guide.
Norman Hoare, head of St George's school, a comprehensive in Hertfordshire, says the number of teenagers from private schools applying for a place in the sixth form has quadrupled over the last few years. Its sixth form has only 10 places for students who do not already study at the school. This year it has had 80 applications for those places, half of which were from pupils at private schools.
"There is at long last a realisation [on the part of parents] that there are some very good state schools," Hoare says. "Ofsted – the school inspectorate – has done a good job of identifying the good schools and blowing our trumpets."
Hoare says parents may be making the switch to the state sector to give their teenager a better chance of getting a place at a top university, but that "they had not declared this to be a reason for changing schools".
Alasdair Coates, head of St Christopher's Church of England high school, a comprehensive in Lancashire, says the number of private school pupils applying to his sixth form has doubled in the last year. Out of 39 places available to pupils not already at the school, 13 applications have been made from private school pupils this year.
Sexey's school, a comprehensive in Somerset, has found the number of private school pupils applying to its sixth form has more than doubled in the last two or three years. This year about 20 private school pupils started in the sixth form, compared to six a couple of years ago. "The standard of education that pupils get is at least comparable with that of the independent schools in the area, and it's obviously substantially cheaper," Raymond McGovern, the headteacher, says. "I think people are realising this more and more."
This year, half a dozen private school pupils applied to the sixth form of The Latymer school, a selective grammar in north London, compared to none or very few in previous years. "It is more of a sacrifice for parents to send their children to independent schools in the current climate," Mark Garbett, the head, says. And at Slough grammar school, the proportion of applications to its sixth form from private school pupils rose 3% this year.
However, Rudolf Eliott Lockhart, head of research and intelligence at the Independent Schools Council, which represents 1,260 schools, says there is no evidence of a drop in interest in independent schools' sixth forms. A survey conducted in January by the Headmasters' and Headmistresses' Conference, an association of 250 private schools, "points to the same conclusion", he says.
"Parents choose independent sixth forms because year on year their pupils achieve outstanding results at A-level and equivalent, and we have seen nothing to suggest the picture is changing this year."
The Good Schools Guide says half the parents who phone its advice service now inquire about state schools, compared to just 10% five years ago. It receives about 50 calls a week.
Janette Wallis, senior editor of the guide, says the "new middle-class dream was finessing a top education via a high-achieving state school, topped up with tutoring.
"Most parents asking about independent schools are now also asking for recommendations of state schools ... that is a recent development. First choice for many affluent parents is a top comprehensive or grammar school, but they will have an independent school up their sleeve as a safety net."
All 11 headteachers Education Guardian has spoken to say competition for places at their schools is getting more fierce, despite a drop in the number of pupils of secondary school age across the country. All but one of the schools has already become, or is looking into becoming an academy.
Private schools are queueing up to convert to free school status; the subsequent lack of fees may please parents, but critics fear neighbouring state schools will be devastated
The school register taken, infants in royal blue sweatshirts rise from their desks and begin to walk around their classroom in silence as they meditate. Down the corridor, senior pupils remain seated in their classes, repeating a mantra with eyes closed as they practise a more sophisticated transcendental meditation before lessons begin.
It's this meditation, and a curriculum inspired by the teachings of former Beatles guru Maharishi Mahesh Yogi, which makes the Maharishi school in Lancashire unorthodox. Just 70 pupils aged four to 16 currently attend the school, but the headteacher, Derek Cassells, is keen for more to share the experience.
"We would like as many people as possible to benefit from our system of education, children from all backgrounds. We want to expand and not have people miss out because they can't meet the fees."
His vision for expansion may soon become possible thanks to the government's free schools policy, which allows parents, teachers and other community groups to set up their own new schools.
The £5,000-£7,000-a-year Maharishi school, near Skelmersdale in Lancashire, is one of six private schools in line to become free schools from September. More than a dozen more aim to make the switch next year.
Their bids are controversial, not least because if they are successful, parents who had opted to pay school fees for their children's education will suddenly find themselves gifted it by the government.
Parents of children at Moorlands, a £5,000-a-year preparatory school in Luton, bought flowers for staff when they heard fees were being abolished, says the principal, Andrew Cook, proudly. "We don't want to change one aspect of what we do; 18 is our maximum class size. We believe our particular traditional brand of education works with children from all social backgrounds."
But according to the National Union of Teachers (NUT), staff at other schools in Luton are dejected by the news, after the Building Schools for the Future (BSF) scheme was axed last year. Under the £55bn scheme, introduced by the Labour government, every secondary school in England was to be either rebuilt or refurbished, but now many have to make do with delapidated classrooms and outdated IT equipment.
According to the NUT general secretary, Kevin Courtney, it is a pattern that is being replicated across the country. He says it is "incredible" that the Department for Education (DfE) can find money to subsidise the well-off when existing state schools have had budgets slashed, funding for school repairs axed and some face making staff redundant. "There's been no debate about whether people want a national state school system or all these independent schools coming in. It's an untried experiment and could devastate state schools."
And he fears worse is to come. Because funding for places follows the pupil, if children flock to free schools, it could leave neighbouring schools with surplus places and budget shortfalls.
The idea of turning private schools into state-funded institutions isn't a new one. Under the Labour government, six private schools became state academies.
But Labour insists the coalition government's plans are completely different, because they involve far more private schools, and are being rushed through, and threaten to cause more harm than good. Under Labour, newly formed academies were accountable to local authorities. Free schools are, essentially, state-funded independent schools; they can set their own curriculum, control their own admissions and even recruit unqualified teachers if they wish.
The shadow education secretary, Andy Burnham, says: "It seems [Michael] Gove has been waving cheques at anyone who wants to open a free school and this is money that could have gone to schools which badly need it. He is prioritising his pet project. It tears at the fabric of state education. I'm very worried about the future of state schools."
The government, meanwhile, insists the demand for free schools is there and that parents want more choice for their children.
Brigid Tulle, headteacher of Batley grammar in West Yorkshire, an independent school that is also bidding for free school status, agrees. She says that the vast number of applications she gets for bursaries is proof that parents want something different to what is currently on offer in state schools.
But she admits that falling rolls and pressures facing cash-strapped parents in meeting the cost of fees (currently £6,000-£8,800 a year) are driving the bid to become a free school. "Over the last 15 years or so, the school has only really managed to maintain a certain fee-paying population. We have 350 pupils and want to get back to around 700. Free schools provide an opportunity to expand back to capacity."
But, as in Luton, the plans have angered local state schools. Jackie Eames, headteacher of nearby Batley Girls high school, is furious after £19m was lost when the BSF was axed. The school also faces the threat of losing 500 of its 1,180 places as part of a reorganisation of secondary schools in the area. "It feels wrong to take from the poor to give to the relatively rich," she says.
"I've been here nine years and it's been a huge success story. Now it's in danger of being destroyed for political vanity."
Joanne Hardcastle, who has a child at the school, is also angry. "I'm worried my daughter, who's in year 7, might not be able to finish her education at Batley Girls."
But some free school bidders are hard-headed about the potential effect on other schools. David Mann is chairman of a free school planned for Rotherham, Three Valleys academy, which is backed by the private education chain the Nationwide Independent College of Higher Education. He says: "Lots of schools in the town are not very good. We are aiming to raise the bar. Unions are obsessed with schools and teachers' jobs, not parents' requirements."
Mann faces a challenge from local education authorities concerning his new 850-place secondary school, which will draw pupils from existing state schools. Barnsley, Rotherham and Doncaster council are fighting the plans and say a new school would inevitably lead to job losses at other schools.
"I don't want that trouble. We just want to build a new school. Manvers [where the school will be built] is a new town development of 1,000 houses. They've got everything there except a school," Mann says.
On quite a different scale is the Priors school in Warwickshire, which aims to be the first free school by opening on 1 September, a few days before the others. It will abolish fees of £3,600- £4,500 and hopes to expand from 30 pupils to at least 45.
Also in the first wave is St Michael's Catholic secondary in Truro, Cornwall. It is abolishing its £3,600-a-year fees to become a free school this year.
Waiting in the wings are over a dozen more private schools, preparing for when applications open in May for the second wave of free schools, starting September 2012.
They include a bid by the founder of Stillbrook Montessori, Bournemouth, which originally hoped to launch a free primary school this year, but withdrew to submit more ambitious plans for a four-to-18 school opening in 2012.
Also in line are Exeter Tutorial college; Rock Hall school in Alnwick, Northumbria; Oxford Montessori; Wisdom school in north London; Lincolnshire Montessori; and a string of Steiner schools.
A DfE spokesman says any private school can bid for free school status and each is considered on a case-by-case basis, but Burnham thinks the government has overlooked the wider implications of its flagship scheme. "The test for a free school is not just if the school gets good results. You need to look at what happens to the ring of schools around it."
In a campaign against homophobia in education, Stonewall has enlisted the actor Sir Ian McKellen to do a nationwide tour of schools
"Do you know any gay people?" asks Sir Ian McKellen asks. Silence. Heads shake. "Well, you do now. I'm gay." It's my turn to speak up. "You know two now. I used to go to this school – and I'm gay," I offer. "You know three now," a sixth-former chips in. The other pupils don't look too surprised, and he seems admirably comfortable in his sexuality. Silence. Then: "Erm. Well. You know four now." Heads shoot around to see a uniformed boy, leaning close to McKellen. Mouths fall slightly open – including mine – but nobody speaks. Then McKellen says, in that mellifluous voice of his, "Well. How about that? It turns out we all know quite a few more gay people than we thought we did."
This is the third month of McKellen's nationwide "role model" tour of secondary schools on behalf of Stonewall, the gay equality charity that he co-founded, and which I work for, and the two of us have come to Hundred of Hoo comprehensive in Kent, which I left over a decade ago.
It has become a familiar scene for him. "My school visits are often rewarded by people coming out," he says. "And I don't just mean pupils – I've heard staff coming out to their heads on my visits, too."
McKellen obviously has a powerful effect on the schools he visits; how does this make him feel? "A bit overwhelmed – and privileged," he says.
Gandalf has worked his magic in 54 secondary schools over the last two years. His dream? An education system free of the homophobia that has plagued it for years – and a curriculum that fully includes lesbian, gay and bisexual people.
Hundred of Hoo has recently come out of special measures and is no stranger to underachievement. McKellen and Stonewall see visits to schools like this as crucial to ensure that not one ounce of potential is lost for today's gay pupils – especially for those who under-perform because their confidence has been battered by bullying.
Homophobia was rife when I was a pupil. "Freak", "queer" and "disgusting" were familiar words, aimed at anyone, like me, who was perceived to be gay. Consequently, nobody dared to come out. This created an un-virtuous circle; teachers could see no reason to address gay issues in lessons when there appeared to be no gay pupils. It wasn't until I left that I discovered three of my best school friends were also gay. We had been too scared even to admit it to each other.
The notorious "section 28" law, introduced in 1988 when Margaret Thatcher was prime minister, was to blame for much of this. This made it illegal to "promote" homosexuality in schools. So homophobia festered unchallenged for 15 years until its repeal in 2003. But the hangover remains. Recent YouGov research for Stonewall found that nine in 10 secondary school teachers say their pupils experience homophobic bullying, but nine in 10 have never received any training on how to tackle it. Ninety five per cent of teachers hear the phrases "you're so gay" or "that's so gay". Homophobia is so commonplace that "gay" has entered the school vernacular as a synonym for anything inadequate.
But I hardly recognised this school upon my return. Gay issues are very much on the agenda – and pupils are refreshingly honest about their prejudices. "We Googled you yesterday Ganda … I mean Sir Ian!" says a 12-year-old girl. "We were well surprised when we found out you were gay, because you're nothing like Alan Carr!" McKellen replies that gay people come in all shapes, sizes and personalities, just like straight people. He knows Alan and he is just like that off-screen, too. The most important thing is that he can be himself.
The class listens eagerly as the actor tells them he didn't come out publicly until 1988, at the age of 49, because section 28 was being debated in parliament. "Did you worry it might destroy your career?" a pupil asks. Yes, but that was a risk he was willing to take, McKellen says, as he explains why gay visibility was so important at that time.
How has he found the pupil reactions? "Until I visited secondary schools recently, I hadn't realised how much anti-gay bullying goes on," he says. "By talking frankly about my own life as a gay man and listening to the concerns of staff, students, parents and governors, I hope the visits may make a difference and also give confidence to gay students about their lives in the future."
Homophobic language
It's time for the all-school assembly, the grand finale of Gandalf's visit. "I'm not useless," McKellen asserts in my old school hall, "but when you use that word as an insulting adjective, that's what you're saying about me. So please, watch your language. Because if you don't, you mightn't watch your actions…" He goes on to tell how Ian Baynham was recently killed in a homophobic hate attack by teenagers. "The girl who stamped on his head might have used 'gay' to mean anything rubbish and useless. And that probably convinced her that gay people were rubbish and useless – and don't deserve to live."
This has a profound effect on two year 10 friends, who tell me: "We didn't realise calling things 'gay' could offend someone. It was touching when he talked about never being able to tell his mum he was gay. One of our best friends is gay and he gets abused for it. We hope it will stop now."
McKellen also visits lessons to promote Stonewall's curriculum guidance called "Oh no! Not the gay thing!", which advises teachers how to integrate gay issues into classes. In science lessons it can be a relief for gay pupils to learn about same-sex attraction as a natural fact in other species. And same-sex relationships can make pupils think carefully about grammar in modern languages.
Stonewall's new campaign in schools also includes Lance Corporal James Wharton, who, at 24, is the new poster boy for modern gay equality: he was the first openly gay soldier to appear on the cover of Soldier, the Armed Forces' magazine. Wharton will be touring schools with Stonewall over the next three months. There are also plans for a school intervention from a celebrated high-achieving lesbian or bisexual woman role model – who knows, she may be coming to a classroom near you soon.
The English bac and schools' response to it will create more anxiety and pressure for pupils and parents
When I was 18, I went to America for a gap year. It was the dark ages in terms of modern technology and I spent 10 months without speaking to my parents, corresponding intermittently by post. True, I had left school, but this followed teenage years punctuated by equally rare moments of parental involvement. The occasional school meeting maybe, but nothing like the intense engagement parents today have with their children's lives.
I pity today's parents. They seem to feel judged more than ever by their children's achievements. Sites like Mumsnet suggest this starts from birth, when subtle pressure over the "right" sleeping and feeding routines kicks in, followed by fretfulness over how many numbers or words their toddlers know, which primary reading scheme levels they are on, the range of extra-curricular activities they do, school, and even university choice. I can't think of a time when parents seemed so anxious and unconfident in their own instincts or their children's abilities.
Does the government understand this? Public statements invariably focus on supporting and informing parents, but these seem to mask a subliminal desire to pile on the pressure, in the secret knowledge that this will help smooth the path for more extreme reform.
Why else would ministers laud the educational success of other countries, then introduce the diametric opposite here? We must be like Finland, yet we devise ever more impenetrable league tables, when Finland has none, and phonics tests at an age when Finnish children have barely started formal education.
Singapore is held up as a beacon. Yet life skills lie at the heart of its broad curriculum, while our children are now judged on a handful of exam passes in a limited range of subjects. This is laughingly called a "baccalaureate" even though it has nothing in common with other international qualifications bearing the same name, most of which offer varied pathways and stimulate personal growth and civic engagement.
The English baccalaureate (Ebacc) and the response to it threaten to become the most deadly new development parents must wrestle with. Like so many proposals, it is superficially attractive, carrying in its wake the promise that schools will no longer play the league tables using GCSE-equivalent qualifications and that all children can be swept into high-status universities and academic degrees.
In fact, it is already encouraging a different sort of game; schools all over the country are changing GCSE options in the middle of key stage 4, which means forcing pupils into twilight sessions in subjects they hadn't chosen to study and downgrading subjects they may want to. One parent emailed me in despair to say his daughter was being forced to take English baccalaureate subjects as her year 9 options against her wishes. "We feel this is bullying on behalf of the school, using my daughter for their selfish ends to boost their statistics," he wrote.
Professional organisations and even grammar school heads are now predicting where this might end, with the diminution of RE, creative arts and music, a reduced offer at A-level and possible redundancies. Some schools, like the Archbishop Sentamu academy in Hull, are refusing to make precipitous changes and are developing a "suite" of different baccalaureates, backed by an excellent new campaign, the Better Bac, which is trying to define what a more inclusive baccalaureate might look like.
But others, like the government's flagship West London Free School, have headteachers who cheerfully boast that their curriculum may not be appropriate for all children. An honest appraisal, but unlikely to reassure parents choosing schools for 10-year-olds who may not have a clue about where their interests or aptitudes lie. And what about the children – should they have a say in what they might want to learn? Seemingly not.
It could all be different. We could offer a measure of school accountability that embraces the full range of what schools do well, and demands a breadth of high-quality options so that no parent or pupil feels bullied or disadvantaged. Changes in education over the last 30 years mean that most schools are good enough and most children, if they are well supported, can flourish. We should be worrying less, not more, but that needs to be led from the top, and the signs aren't good at the moment.
Catholic and Muslim pupils are getting to know each other through a government scheme to link schools in diverse communities
There is an air of nervous excitement inside the brightly lit main hall of Luton's Carnival Arts Centre. Thirty children, all year 5 pupils at William Austin junior school in Luton, sit in neat rows, wearing the regulation black tie with white, yellow and blue stripes. Apart from one boy, who is black, they are all Asian.
In an adjoining room are 30 more schoolchildren, all wearing red ties with silver stripes. These children are pupils at St Joseph's, a Catholic junior school located close to William Austin, but where the vast majority of the pupils are white.
This morning the children are meeting as part of a pioneering initiative aimed at linking up schools with diverse communities. The children have been building up to this moment since last September, sending letters and photographs to one another about themselves and their hobbies. Today, they will meet face-to-face for the first time.
According to Penny Lasham, a teacher from nearby Hillborough school, who is operation manager for the project, a neutral venue was vital "to avoid any territorial issues".
The project, funded by the Department for Education, first began in Bradford five years ago, but is new to Luton schools. And it is no accident that the initiative – known as the Schools Linking Network – is happening here.
Luton has become media shorthand for the failures of multiculturalism, having been both home to the Muslim extremists who jeered at British soldiers returning from Iraq and the birthplace for the extreme right English Defence League, which recently marched through the town. St Joseph's, a faith school that is 49% white British, and William Austin, which is only 2.4% white British, are one of 10 pairs of contrasting schools that have been linked up.
As their teachers look on, students from St Joseph's file in to the main hall and take their seats behind the boys and girls from William Austin. Lasham welcomes the children before asking them to form a circle. The children naturally huddle with friends, two large semi-circles loosely joined together. "Right, now we are going to swap you around," she says. There are audible gasps of surprise.
Lasham then asks the children to put up their hands if they had pizza for dinner and join others who had the same meal. The questions continue: "who was nervous about coming this morning?" "who likes football?" "who was born outside Britain, who was born in Britain?" With each question the group is re-ordered.
The children's next task is to find someone they do not know and ask each other questions about their similarities and differences. What is striking is that they pick up on eye colour, shoe colour and favourite football teams rather than headscarves or skin colour.
Hassan from William Austin admits he was a bit nervous at the start of the day because he has "never really met any Christians". He is surprised to learn the children from St Joseph's are more similar to him than he imagined. "I thought they'd be totally different – like a different kind of person, but actually they like the same football teams and the same food."
Jenna, who attends St Joseph's, says she has enjoyed having the opportunity to ask questions about other religions: "I've always wanted to ask a Muslim how often they go to mosque because I know I go to church every Sunday. I've looked in books but I never get the right answer, but today I could ask someone who was Muslim." There are some Muslims living near her home, she says, "but they are not very sociable".
Trying to bind neighbourhoods and schools together is central to the Schools Linking Network initiative, but Lasham dismisses the idea that Luton is a divided town as "rubbish". For her, the project is about helping Luton's schoolchildren grow up into confident young adults who feel comfortable in their own skin. "I want to teach my students that it doesn't matter where you are from. You are here now and you choose to live here so let's celebrate being part of this country."
But is there a danger that if children are attending a school that is overwhelmingly Muslim it may be harder to foster a collective British identity?
Not at all, says William Austin's head, Dominic Hughes, who is careful not to suggest that his pupils' worldview is reduced by attending a school that is in effect monocultural. "Any child who lives in a community can be sucked into a bubble, but I don't think the life experiences of, say, a Pakistani child at my school are any more restrictive than the life experiences of someone who has an Irish Catholic background."
The teachers and team behind the Schools Linking Network are nervous about any idea that attaches blame, and yet the very fact that Luton felt it needed this project suggests that the town has a real, and not only perceived, challenge on its hands.
The children spend the rest of the morning learning how to play drums, make carnival head dresses and dance in time to percussive carnival sounds.
When they return to school after lunch, the plan is to reflect on how the day has gone. There is already talk of further meetings, perhaps getting together at the Luton carnival or having a shared sports day.
With just £1,000 of funding, the Schools Linking Network is a relatively small scheme, but has life-altering potential, summed up by Hassan's thoughts on his new friend from St Joseph's. "The only difference is, we were born in different countries. He was born in Ireland. And I was born in England.'
Research, postgraduate training, medium-term economic growth and social impacts are all issues the white paper on HE must address, says Professor Paul Wellings
Tuition fees have become an all-consuming debate and there is a risk that it is taking place at the expense of almost all other aspects of higher education. To counteract this, those of us working in higher education need to come forward with a vision that sets out the national importance of universities.
UK undergraduates make up only a small part of the academic community. Any emerging policy framework needs to be wider in scope. It should secure the position of postgraduate students; enhance the UK's capacity to recruit international students; and support researchers of all disciplines.
The government has tentatively stepped towards this vision. Recent changes to the student visa system, which many feared would make it more difficult for universities to attract overseas students, were not as harsh as expected. It was an acknowledgment of the long-term value of international students as an income stream for universities, and the need to signal that UK universities are "open for business".
But the government is still aiming for a reduction of 25% in overseas students. And, while George Osborne's recent budget recognised the economic need to invest in innovation – with £100m pledged for leading research centres – there is still no system of support for postgraduates – the researchers of tomorrow.
The long-promised white paper that will set out the government's full plans for higher education has been delayed until May, at the earliest. The delay is an opportunity to consider the complexity of outputs of universities and push for a more balanced view of their activities.
The first challenge for the white paper will be to get the balance right on regulation. The government's almost complete replacement of the teaching grant with fees, paid by subsidised loans, was an attempt to establish a market, putting students in the driving seat.
But the Treasury seems to have underestimated the average levels the sector will need to set fees at. We are now seeing attempts to regulate by the back door, with the business secretary, Vince Cable, warning that universities that fail to fill places as a result of their higher fees might find those places re-allocated to other institutions. We need policies that avoid this heavy-handed approach – regulating on value rather than cost.
The second challenge is to examine how any proposed policies maintain a sustainable sector with the capacity to transform the UK's economy. They should also recognise that international activities are at the core of universities' work. Higher education institutions are a substantial export service sector generating significant revenue. And the work of postgraduate students is at the core of many science, technology, engineering and manufacturing departments and creates national capacity to explore emerging research themes. Much of this research is based on international collaboration.
Here's a radical thought: why not strip out all the sections relating to undergraduate fees and access? The white paper must be a confident statement on the importance of UK higher education at a time of great international change and global competition. We need to make sure that the chapters dealing with research; postgraduate training; medium-term economic growth; and social impacts are not afterthoughts.
The UK already has a strong higher education sector that many countries would like to replicate. Some of the changes being proposed by the coalition government have the capacity to strengthen research and teaching. We should use the delay in the white paper to press for a policy framework that enhances the role of universities over the next 20 years. Constructed in the right way, this could be a major legacy of the coalition government.
• Professor Paul Wellings is the chairman of the 1994 Group and vice-chancellor of Lancaster University
A new course is creating a generation of women youth workers who can guide Muslim teenagers through today's challenges
Shukri Hassan was 10 years old when she arrived in London from Somalia. Her father had died, and her mother stayed at home to look after her siblings: Shukri arrived in her new country, speaking no English, in the care of an older sister, who was 20.
London was a strange, complicated and very different world for her. And then – on top of having to learn English, master new subjects, make new friends and survive without her mum – she became a teenager, and had to cope with all that entails. "What I desperately needed," she says, "was a place where I could go and hang out, and talk to Muslim girls who were maybe a few years older than me, who understood something of what I was going through, and who could help me make sense of it all."
But there were few youth groups for young Muslims. Where they did exist, they catered mostly for boys – and sessions for girls tended to be run by much older women, who didn't have the same life experiences as her. "What I really needed was someone who'd had the experience I'd had, who'd been born here or moved here as a child – someone who was juggling both cultures in the way I felt I was."
Difficult issues
Today, Hassan is 26, and she's a youth worker at the Froud Community Centre in Manor Park in east London, providing today's female Muslim teenagers with exactly the sort of support that wasn't there for her. "And the thing is that it's a lot harder for them than it was in my day," she says. "There are so many issues for young people today – sex, abortion, drugs, alcohol. All issues it's very, very hard for Muslim teenagers to sort out, girls especially. So I think youth workers like me are more needed than they've ever been."
Hassan has worked at the Froud Centre for the last three years, but over the last year, her work has been enhanced by a level 2 certificate (equivalent to GCSE) in youth and community work. To get that, she took part in a course designed specifically for Muslim women, believed by its organisers, the east London social action charity Aston-Mansfield, to be the first of its kind in the UK.
The six-month course, which is partly funded by Barclays Capital and aimed at Muslim women over the age of 21, involves three hours' tuition a week, delivered at the YMCA George Williams College in Canning Town, east London, and a minimum of 80 hours at a placement in a youth setting, which students have to find for themselves. "By the end of the third course next year, we hope to have provided around 50 new youth workers, all Muslim women," says the course tutor, Firzana Khan. "Almost all of them will go into or remain in youth work – and for some, the qualification will lead them to go on to a degree, and to perhaps eventually train other youth workers."
Khan estimates that around a quarter of Newham's residents are Muslim, yet Islamic youth workers are seriously under-represented – women especially. "It's to do with social and cultural pressures, and it's a real tragedy that there aren't more Muslim women youth workers, because it means there aren't enough role models for Muslim teenage girls, and that's what we're hoping our course can change. Many teenagers in Newham have mothers who grew up in Asia, in very different cultures, and with very different aspirations. We want to help today's Muslim youngsters through a set of choices that's very different from the set of choices their parents had."
Sharifah Aliyah, 24, who did the youth and community work course last year, currently works for Redbridge Council in their highways and engineering service, but is committed to carrying on her voluntary youth work at a community centre, where she helps to run sessions during weekday evenings and on Saturday mornings. "The young people have music, they can play table-tennis, they can use the computer, there's a quiet area where they can work," she says. "And often, they just want to talk. And that's important, because they've got a lot to deal with, and it's very different for them from the way it was for their parents – just as growing up here was very different for me from the way growing up in Bangladesh was for my parents."
Radically different
By the time both Aliyah's and Hassan's mothers were their ages, they were married with children. "Many Muslim girls today are living such radically different lives from their mothers: even 10 or 15 years ago, Muslim women tended to get married very young, to have children, and to see their lives as centred on the domestic scene," says Hassan.
"When you do the sort of work we do, and you've had a different experience, you're showing young people that there are other ways forward. I get youngsters who say, how did you do it? And it's not just the girls either – it's important that the boys see that women can have different roles from the ones their mothers maybe have."
The course offers opportunities to discuss differences between one Muslim group and another – but on the whole, says Khan, Muslim people identify with their faith first and foremost, so the issues that arise in youth work tend to be across the board.
It's not only in east London where female Muslim youth workers are thin on the ground. "We've had interest from Bradford, from other parts of London, and from other parts of the UK," says Khan. "The course could be rolled out in many other areas – and the hope is that it will be pan-London, with other centres offering it in other areas of the city, by 2012.
"The feedback we're getting from the youth workers we've trained, and from the teenagers they're working with, is that they're much-needed," says Khan. "And while we're seeing lots of cuts in youth services, we're really hoping that we can convince people that our trainees are filling a vital role, and that more of them are urgently needed."
Free schools, broke schools and expensive subscriptions
The interview with Toby Young (How to lose friends, part 2, 5 April) not only reinforced my assessment of him as a thoroughly obnoxious individual, but, rather more worryingly, suggested that he had friends in the first place, or that there are parents in west London who think he is a fit and proper person to be at the helm of their so-called free school. I pity the poor students, who I suspect have no choice in where they are educated.
Gordon Vassell,
Hull
• Your article contains significant inaccuracies. Toby Young's free school will not have a formal partnership with The London Oratory school. As the headmaster told parents four weeks ago, a partner must be an existing school rather than a new school. And where did he get the idea that design and technology, which is absent from the West London Free School curriculum, would be provided by London Oratory school for "a period or two"?
Margaret Gooch,
Portsmouth
• Like all other schools, Toby Young's free school's chances of standing or falling will be down to the quality of the head or the teaching staff. Romantic notions of the traditional grammar school curriculum will not cut it.
marshy15 via EducationGuardian.co.uk
• How very bizarre it is that young children are expected to study pure academia including Latin, English etc because it is "traditional", as opposed to subjects such as DT.
Yet, as soon as you leave secondary school, you find it is subjects such as DT that have given you the basis for skills that are actually useful in employment.
Seatrotter via EducationGuardian.co.uk
Last week, Andrew Mourant reported on the row between lecturers and their professional body, the Institute for Learning, over the rise in annual fees.
Thank you for featuring the appalling business of the Institute for Learning's attempt to force its members to pay the annual subscription.
As a very part-time tutor for the Workers Educational Association (WEA), I was forced to join an organisation that has nothing to offer me; I ignore the endless bumph that is sent.
I earn a few hundred pounds a year after tax from the WEA. I don't teach to supplement my pension, but in the hope of staving off dementia. An annual sub of £68 is out of proportion to what I earn and to what IfL is worth. I would rather give up teaching than pay it.
Bernard Tucker,
Alresford, Hampshire
• We were dismayed by the selective reporting in Andrew Mourant's article about IfL membership.
It is disingenuous to say that the "fees suddenly went up from £30 to £68 annually". Transitional funding from the government is being used to extend the first membership period under self-funding to 18 months, and individuals who pay their own fee can claim tax relief, so that basic-rate taxpayers in effect pay £54.40 for 18 months ie less than 70p a week. Those below the tax threshold, and those who are unemployed or retired, pay a concessionary fee of £45, which in this 18-month period equates to £30 a year. IfL's elected non-executive board worked very hard to set the fee as low as possible, one of the lowest professional-body fees in the country.
Most teachers and trainers say that they want a professional body, and we believe that with the strength gained from full membership, IfL will flourish as the supporter of their status and professionalism.
Lord Tim Boswell of Aynho
Barry Sheerman MP (Patrons of IfL)
Last week Fran Abrams reported on a school struggling to cope with deficits due to a budget freeze and cuts to capital grants.
Your article (The writing is on the wall, 5 April) only gives a superficial account as to why this school [Dayncourt comprehensive in Radcliffe-on-Trent] is in such a financial mess. It has gone from being one of the best comprehensives in Nottinghamshire to what it is today. Numbers of nearly 1,000 pupils have slumped. Why?
Its decline started when it became a sports academy. Parents with academic ambitions for their children removed them. The sixth form became non-existent. Teachers left. A further decline occurred when pupils from a poor area in Nottingham were bussed in for three years while their school was rebuilt.
I don't need to tell you that all this happened under Labour administration, and while you might not agree with coalition policies entirely, it is the mess left behind that must be cleared up.
George Jamieson,
Radcliffe-on-Trent
Vocational training can lead to degree-standard qualifications, but young people and employers often ignore the benefits of apprenticeships. Could skills competitions be the answer? Janet Murray reports from a recent debate
GCSE and A-level results always attract column inches, as do university surveys and league tables, but vocational learning has never managed to attract the same level of interest. While arguably well-intentioned, the previous Labour government's preoccupation with getting more young people to university may be partly to blame. For some, vocational routes such as apprenticeships are still seen as "second best" to academic qualifications.
But the tide may be turning. The government is planning to open University Technical Colleges, where pupils can attend from the age of 14 to do work-based learning alongside core academic studies such as English, maths and science.
It has also pledged to create more than 100,000 additional apprenticeships over the next five years and introduce nationally recognised standards (known as the Apprenticeship Standards for England) for all new apprentices.
A recent debate on vocational skills, hosted by the Guardian in association with WorldSkills London 2011, discussed some of the key issues around vocational skills and apprenticeships in the UK and abroad. The discussion was held under Chatham House rules, which allow comments to be reported without attribution to encourage full and frank debate. The points raised included: the challenge of convincing employers, parents and young people to value apprenticeships and vocational learning; the importance of competitions in raising the profile of skills; the need to raise awareness of NVQ level 4 and level 5 (equivalent to degree level) awards; and the role of WorldSkills London 2011 in promoting vocational careers and qualifications.
While the mainstream media is keen to report on so-called academic qualifications, there is often little interest in vocational courses. "When you say things like BTec their [journalists'] eyes glaze over," said one participant. "They don't understand what these lists of qualifications are, so they think it's not something children do. It is part of the big social divide in this country, one that has held us back hugely."
"There are too many 'hidden secrets' in our colleges and in our training system and we have to do something about it," said another contributor.
A foundation for life
One of the biggest barriers is the stereotype that vocational courses are for those who aren't very bright or have failed at school. One participant, a former apprentice, said that his mother (a senior teacher) was disappointed when he announced he wanted to learn a trade after his A-levels. But an apprenticeship is only the beginning, said one participant. "It's actually the gateway, a foundation for the rest of your life. If you tell people that a third of the board at BT started as apprentices or that Terry Morgan, who chairs Crossrail, started off as a Land Rover apprentice, they start to see things differently."
The roundtable heard that many people are unaware of the career prospects and earning potential of apprentices, which can far outstrip that of graduates. According to a Department for Education and Skills study carried out in 2007, those with a level-2 apprenticeship (equivalent to GCSE) earn in excess of £73,000 more over their lifetime compared with those who have other level-2 qualifications or below.
Young people and their parents are often unaware that vocational courses go beyond level 3 and 4 (A-level equivalent) because that is primarily what is on offer in colleges. In fact, there are opportunities to progress to levels 4, 5 and 6 (degree equivalent and beyond) and participants shared the view that promoting these qualifications could help boost the image of vocational careers.
To encourage young people to consider vocational learning, it is necessary to reach out to parents and teachers, it was said. And to do that, they really need to see skilled people in action. "Instead of having their mum and dad or an employer telling them not to be a welder because they will get dirty, we need them to see [someone doing the work] and say 'hey, that's really cool'," said one participant.
The WorldSkills London 2011 competition, from 5-8 October, is an opportunity to do just that. The event, which is expected to attract up to 150,000 visitors, brings together young people from across the globe to compete in their chosen specialism, from plumbing and plastering to jewellery making and web design.
In the run-up to the competition, there will be opportunities to try out various skills at different locations in the UK, giving young people the chance to find out about vocational careers.
The concept of competition should be at the heart of vocational learning – and not just for one-off events – said one participant. "Skills competitions should not be an end in themselves, but part of the process. We need young people to be hooked on skills competitions, so colleges can use this to excite them about learning and raise aspirations."
But as another pointed out, only a relatively small number of colleges in England are regularly involved in competitions. This could be due to the UK's ambivalence about competition, which is embedded at an early age, the roundtable heard. One participant felt this was taking its toll. "There is no competitiveness in youngsters now; it has been knocked out of them."
As well as capturing the interest of teachers, young people and their families, the WorldSkills London 2011 competition also offers an opportunity to generate interest among employers, a group that are notoriously difficult to engage, particularly those in small and medium-sized businesses, many of whom worry they will not see a return on their investment in training. "So often the attitude is: 'I don't know anything about it, but I feel sure it's not right for me,'" said one participant.
Social responsibility
But this is changing, said another: "There is real momentum gathering now around getting employers to understand that apprenticeships are not about youth unemployment or corporate social responsibility. It is about hard-nosed business decisions, about skilling your workforce to build a competitive advantage for your business."
This is replicated in bluechip companies, where there has also been a big cultural shift, it was said: "It used to be that the guy who looked after apprentices was the guy who had been there for 20 years and who was going nowhere. That has changed. Now it's part of learning and development and you'll find the graduate and apprenticeship manager have equal status."
This shift in culture has been reflected in takeup. BT is said to be considering expanding its apprenticeship scheme after attracting almost 24,000 applicants for 221 positions last year. And both IBM and Nexus (the transport company that owns the Tyne and Wear Metro) have recently launched apprenticeship schemes.
But there is a lot to learn from the competition, from countries such as South Korea, Singapore and Finland, which have an excellent record on skills, the roundtable heard. Korea gets more than 10,000 students involved in its regional skills competitions. Medal winners are treated like the stars of TV talent shows.
Singapore has worked hard to challenge the idea that young people have to go to university to get on in life. "Now young people go and get a skill or a trade that ultimately might lead to university, because learning leads to learning," said one participant.
Another spoke about Finland, which tops the Programme for International Student Assessment (Pisa) rankings, which measures the performance of 15-year-olds in reading and maths. It recently developed a programme where young people were given a free backpack with information about vocational careers, which came with a train ticket to Helsinki to see skills demonstrations in action. The result was a 70% increase in vocational training. As one participant put it: "It's all about going out there and telling the story; the dream, the struggle and the prize. Promote the prize and the struggle becomes less significant."
A lesson on space travel on the Guardian Teacher Network this week marks the 50th anniversary of Yuri Gagarin going into outer space
Space travel is one topic usually guaranteed to capture children's attention, especially as astronaut often tops their list of cool careers. Today marks the 50th anniversary of the journey of Yuri Gagarin, who made history as the first person to go into outer space. It is an ideal opportunity to talk to children about the science behind space travel and – for the very brave – get them making and testing their own rockets.
On the Guardian Teacher Network, our new resources site, you can now find a one-hour PowerPoint lesson that can be used both in the classroom and at home, to get children thinking about the impact of space travel.
As well as exploring the influence of Gagarin's flight on future space missions, the lesson also poses some ethical questions. Many animals were shot into space before Gagarin, few of which returned, and the lesson will encourage debate on the rights and wrongs of using animals in the quest for safe space travel.
Although this is a science lesson, there are links to design and technology and the lesson gives full instructions on how children can make, test and adapt their own celebratory model rocket.
As well as providing the answer to children's burning questions (how do astronauts go to the loo in space, for example) the lesson explains the nature of space and microgravity – in which there is no such direction as down. The PowerPoint gives children the information and vocabulary to devise their own challenging science questions, such as 'can a spider spin in space?'.
Find the lesson plan at: http://bit.ly/fTRSNt Plus there are Guardian Teacher Network lessons on the Earth, Sun and Moon: http://bit.ly/guAkTQ and animations of the planet and solar systems: http://bit.ly/fvCgFj.
• Graham Peacock is an author and senior lecturer in primary education at Sheffield Hallam University, specialising in science
The Guardian Teacher Network offers free access to 70,000 pages of lesson plans and interactive materials. This content is being added to every day by teachers and specialists; 20,000 teachers have signed up already. To see (and share) for yourself, go to teachers.guardian.co.uk
Stilton is associated with Christmas in the UK, but researchers hope to give all Britain's blue cheeses broader appeal
With just a crumb of stilton giving off a powerful whiff, not everyone could stomach the prospect of six months working in a laboratory filled with blue cheese. But Kostas Gkatzionis, a researcher at the University of Northampton who is midway through a project doing just that, says it's not as smelly as it sounds.
"Researching food in the academic environment is completely different to the way people imagine," explains Gkatzionis, who spent part of his career working on food microbiology and flavour chemistry for the dairy industry before returning to academia. "We often don't come into contact with any blue cheeses at all – we work with their DNA, so the only sign of the cheese can be just some of its DNA in a small amount of aqueous solution on a bench."
As universities struggle with austerity measures, cheese might not sound like the biggest problem for Britain's brightest brains to grapple with, but with the market for blue cheese in the UK alone worth £33m a year, Gkatzionis says his work could have a big impact. "British blue cheeses are very important to the economy of the Midlands, and the British food market in general, but varieties like roquefort from France, Danish blue from Denmark and gorgonzola from Italy dominate even in Britain," he explains.
"But British blue cheeses have attracted very little scientific attention compared to varieties in other countries. So it's important to support blue cheese-makers here with research and development to make them more competitive, take them outside the British borders and increase their share in the global market."
To that end, Gkatzionis is researching how the cheeses' microorganisms work. His focus is on the activity of "secondary flora" – microorganisms that are not added or controlled by dairies or farmers, but simply appear during production. These flora have a significant impact on the flavour of the final product, but can also give the cheese a bitter smell and damage the formation of blue veins.
"Until now, the general understanding has always been that blue cheese aroma is promoted by a starter mould put in by the farmer or dairy, which in the case of blue cheese is Penicillium roqueforti," Gkatzionis explains. "Producers focus on the starter mould and its role forming blue veins in the core of the cheese and creating the aroma. But our research shows secondary flora is as important in developing the flavour." Gkatzionis noticed that the crust of the cheese gave off aroma compounds in higher quantities than the blue veins in the cheese, despite the absence of that starter mould P. roqueforti in the crust. He then realised that yeasts have a big impact on blue-cheese flavour. "Different yeast species populate different sections of the cheese," Gkatzionis points out. "Some are likely to be found next to the blue veins, while others are only in sections where the mould is not present." The academic now intends to investigate that phenomenon to see if there is a natural compound produced by the mould-less parts of the cheese that be used in other varieties to prevent them going mouldy.
The project – which is being run in conjunction with the University of Nottingham as well as Northampton – is supported by Food and Drink iNet, a regional body that co-ordinates local businesses and universities working in the grocery sector. It includes input from local cheese businesses such as Stichelton Dairy, whose cheese is sold around the world via Neal's Yard Dairy, which Gkatzionis hopes will increase its potential impact. "We will make our results available to blue-cheese producers and hope that by better understanding blue cheese flavour development they will be able to control the production of quality cheese better," he says.
"If the production work helps Britain's blue cheese become more popular around the world, it would also make the industry less vulnerable in times of recession and decreased internal demand," he adds. "In the UK, for example, blue cheese is strongly associated with Christmas, but increased exporting could balance the demand for products throughout the year."
Whilst Gkatzionis's lab work involved more grappling with test tubes than bits of rind, his research did involve some experimental trips to the supermarket cheese aisle. "It is really important to understand the characteristics of a food product, such as the flavour, texture, colour, appearance, even the packaging that is used, before we conduct any research on it," he says. "Whatever we find has to be able to be linked back to the original product and must be able to be used for its further development and improvement."
Anyone listening to Gkatzionis could be excused for thinking he was a long-term, evangelical blue cheese fan. "It's impossible for anyone not to find a blue cheese they like," he says, before adding: "Anyone who thinks they do not like blue cheese just hasn't found a variety that suits their taste yet."
But in fact the Greek-born academic wasn't always such a fan. "Coming from Greece, a market where blue cheeses are not well known, I knew very little about them at first," he admits. "I used to think that blue cheeses stank. Because of my background, I was originally looking to study the flavour production of microorganisms in feta cheese for my PhD, but my supervisor told me about the complexity of the microbiology of stilton, and I realised blue cheeses were ideal for studying the interactions of microorganisms and their flavour production. Now," Gkatzionis proudly adds, "I can distinguish blue cheeses just by taste."
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