Education Secretary Michael Gove has announced a radical shake-up of the ICT curriculum, along with a focus on training for teachers to make sure they have the skills and knowledge needed to use technology confidently. So is it a long overdue change, or an unrealistic headline spinner? Are ICT lessons really ‘boring’ – and is the government simply ‘washing its hands of ICT’, as some have suggested? Read more, and share your views on the blog.

The government is opening a consultation on withdrawing the existing National Curriculum Programme of Study for ICT from September this year.

Open source curriculum

ICT will remain compulsory at all key stages of the curriculum, and the existing Programme of Study will remain available for reference, but schools will no longer be forced to follow it.

Speaking at the BETT education trade fair, which focuses on educational technology, he announced plans to embrace and capitalise on technological developments for learning, teaching and assessment.

“Technology is already bringing about a profound transformation in education, in ways that we can see before our very eyes and in others that we haven’t even dreamt of yet,” he said (taken from his speech as reported by the Guardian. “It’s clear that technology is going to bring profound changes to how and what we teach. But it’s equally clear that we have not yet managed to make the most of it.”

Read more…

Following on from our feature on St. George’s School in Switzerland, we speak to Hazel Hogg, who lives with her husband and her daughters Morven (11), Rowan (8) and Alexa (3) in France – practically on the border with Switzerland, where they enjoy stunning views of the Alps and Lake Geneva.  Her children attend the International School of Geneva. Here Hazel talks about living overseas, and tells us more about choosing this school for her children. Read more.

Could you explain how you came to be living in France, and why you chose an international school for your children?

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We’ve opened our Saudi Arabia Talent Pool, and this week we’ve put together a special feature on working in the country. “In some years we have one or two days when it may rain, but this is not certain,” explains Bruce Gamwell, Director of the British International School of Jeddah. Read on to learn more about the school from Bruce and other teachers, and find out about current Saudi vacancies.

“Make of it what you can and Jeddah will return your efforts and not disappoint you.

The sun always smiles in Jeddah.”                              

“Make sure you have plenty of fancy dress costumes!”

“You never have to iron again!”                     

“Make sure you are good at journey directions especially if your partner is not, alternatively buy a GPS on arrival!”

“Visiting old Jeddah is magical and an experience you should not miss and try to repeat.

Read more…

Ofsted has launched a new online questionnaire, Parent View, which allows parents and carers to give their views on their child’s school at any time of the year. But the NUT has questioned the purpose of the new system, and claimed it’s “open to abuse”.

Ofsted says Parent View, which covers over 22,000 schools across England, will help parents make important choices about their child’s education and provide information about schools to help inform priorities for inspection.

The questionnaire covers a range of topics, from quality of teaching and bullying to levels of homework and behaviour. The final question asks if parents would recommend the school to other parents.

Ofsted says it does not allow ‘free text’ comments, but invites responses to a series of closed questions.

 ‘Valuable insight’

Launching Parent View, Ofsted Chair Baroness Sally Morgan said:

“Parents know how valuable the insight of other mums and dads can be when making choices about schools. Parent View will provide a comprehensive national platform for gathering this information. Parent View will also give parents and carers in England the opportunity to make their voice heard when it comes to the performance of their child’s school. What parents tell us through these questionnaires will be considered when making decisions about when a school should be inspected.

“Whilst parents’ views alone cannot trigger an inspection, they will provide a vital piece of the jigsaw. I hope everyone with an interest in education will welcome this innovation and that parents around the country will use Parent View to make their views count.”

System ‘open to abuse’

But Christine Blower, General Secretary of the National Union of Teachers, said that communication between parents and teachers is most effectively achieved through direct communication in a “proper and logical way, instead of going online at the end of a busy day”.

“It’s not clear why parents, who may have quite legitimate questions to which they seek answers, would choose the route of a questionnaire to express their concerns, or otherwise, about a school,” she said.

“Apart from the obvious question as to what useful purpose the questionnaire will serve, this is a system which is open to abuse. Schools could easily be targeted by parents unfairly, or even in anger, which could result in a false impression being given of the school.”

She said that the system will add another layer of accountability against which schools will be measured: “ It really is time that the government insisted everyone listened to what they themselves say should happen and start trusting teachers, and not put their faith in subjective measurements such as this.”

Parents will be asked to give their view on the following 12 questions, from ‘strongly agree’ through to ‘strongly disagree’:

• My child is happy at this school
• My child feels safe at this school
• My child makes good progress at this school
• My child is well looked after at this school
• My child is taught well at this school
• My child receives appropriate homework for their age
• This school ensures the pupils are well behaved
• This school deals effectively with bullying
• This school is well led and managed
• This school responds well to any concern I raise
• I receive valuable information from the school about my child’s progress
• I would recommend this school to another parent

What’s your view of Parent View? Is the system open to abuse, and an “unnecessary level of accountability”? Or will it be a really useful aid to flagging up potential issues, and helping parents make important choices about their child’s education?

Living and working in the Netherlands

We caught up with Dr Steve Lewis, Director of the European School in Bergen, which is situated in the province of North Holland, to find out about opportunities for teachers from the UK to work in the Netherlands. Read more.

Could you start by telling us a little bit about your school?

Celebrating our 50^th anniversary in 2013, the European School Bergen (ESB) has provided a European education for the children of the employees of the Joint Research Centre for Energy in Petten, Noord Holland, which develops high-level knowledge and technology for sustainable energy systems.

The ESB is part of a system of 14 European Schools with around 15,000 students in Belgium, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Germany, Italy and Spain which offers a genuine European education with an emphasis on languages, culminating in the European Baccalaureate – a qualification highly recognised throughout the EU and beyond.

Please tell us more about teaching and learning at your school.

The school in Bergen is in a unique position to offer a European education to the children of the international community and local Dutch community because of the proportionately low number of students from the Research Centre, and we have the space, potential, and aim to expand from our present 600 students in the 4-19 age ranges. Our growth so far has been limited only by our relative distance from the Amsterdam/Haarlem area, although we have many students and teachers who make the 30-45 minute commute from there.

The students are placed in one of three language sections – either French, Dutch or English – and they follow a harmonised curriculum which is the same as in all other European Schools. From an early age the students choose one of these three languages as a second language, and then later in the secondary school they go on to study history and geography in this second language. So all students will be fluent in at least two languages, and in the secondary school they’ll go on to choose a third, and possibly a fourth and fifth language. Sciences are also well catered for in the school, and are emphasised because of our connections to the centre in Petten, which is the reason for our existence.

There is also a strong artistic and musical tradition in the school, and because we are a small school with plenty of space, there is a relaxed, happy family atmosphere in which the primary and secondary schools share common areas on occasions, making the transition from primary to secondary smooth. Individualised learning is stressed, and teachers have to do a lot of differentiated teaching, especially in languages. Another major feature of the system is the use of native speakers as language and subject teachers, and as a result the national composition of the staff is as diverse as that of the students.

We are also specialists in distance learning, catering for entitled mother tongue students for whom we cannot find teachers locally. Currently in school, and by distance learning, we offer mother tongue tuition in English, Dutch, French, German, Finnish, Swedish, Portuguese, Spanish, Italian, Slovenian, Bulgarian, Czech, Hungarian and Lithuanian. In principle we have to be able to offer any European mother tongue to students who are entitled to mother tongue tuition – for example as a child of an EU employee, or if the parents take out what’s known as a ‘Category 2’ contract, which is more expensive than the normal school fees for a Category 3 student. Our fees are highly competitive as a result.

What kind of results do the school’s students achieve?

Given our diverse school population we achieve results which are comparable to all the other European Schools, and nearly all of our students go on to higher education in various European countries. Their Baccalaureate gives them great flexibility in their choice of country, and our students are highly regarded by universities and employees because of their linguistic skills, which complement their other all-round educational achievements. Visitors are astonished at the complexity and polyglot nature of the school, and at the same time its informality, cultural integration and friendliness.

Could you tell us a little about the school’s location?

Bergen is in an area of natural beauty in the province of North Holland, near the dunes, woodland, sandy beaches and the larger town of Alkmaar – which has good links by road and rail to Amsterdam, Schiphol Airport, Den Haag and beyond. It is an attractive, chic and stylish town, and popular tourist destination with an international flair. It was developed in the early 20^th century as an artistic ‘colony’ and still draws many artists and art events. It is also famous for its contribution to the architectural heritage of the country.

What opportunities exist for people in the UK to work at your schools?

UK teachers can apply for jobs to our school in particular, and the European Schools in general, by responding to adverts that we tend to publish in February each year.British teachers are in fact employed by the Department for Education in London during their nine-year contracts in the European Schools; they must demonstrate linguistic skills at the interviews, which are held in London. The rewards are high and there is strong competition for teaching posts.

There are also opportunities for local contracts where there is a need, and the recruitment procedure is arranged by the school using local newspapers and networks. However in practice it would be rare for someone to come from abroad for such a post because there is no expatriate package, as there is for those on nine-year contracts.

What support do you offer new teachers?

New teachers are given individualised support because their needs are so different, given that they come from so many different places, but the normal approach would be to appoint a mentor. The school is also small enough for many others to become involved, and the bursar provides information about the local authorities, registration and tax.

What opportunities are there for Brits to work more widely in the Netherlands?

In the Netherlands in general there are some other opportunities in the international schools, mainly in Amsterdam and The Hague.  International education is developing in other cities as well (Maastricht, Hilversum, Arnhem and Eindhoven). UK teachers can also work in the Dutch system if their qualifications are accredited, although in practice this is difficult without being a fluent Dutch speaker.

What is the Netherlands like as a place to live and work?

The Netherlands is a great country to live in with lots of possibilities for culture and travel. It is a safe environment in which to live and work, but it can also be expensive for people coming from outside London. Anyone looking for a move abroad, yet wanting to stay close to home, with all the comforts, products, TV etc that they are used to would find almost everything they need here. From Schiphol you can also fly to all the regional airports in the UK, which makes visiting friends and family very easy. Other than traffic jams, a lack of mountains and a relatively high cost of living there are no real disadvantages. Public transport is excellent, reliable and relatively cheap, and there are historically interesting, beautiful sights everywhere.

If you have the chance to come to the Netherlands to work… take it!

Why not sign up to our Netherlands Talent Pool? Just click here and then click the ‘Join our Talent Pool’ button on the right.