John Simkin

This website has been set up to provide parents with a comprehensive and up-to-date guide to educating dyslexic children at home. The site includes plenty of practical advice, useful not just for the parents of dyslexic children but for any parent whose children, schooled or otherwise, need help with the basics of the three Rs. The site has extensive guidance on teaching reading, important and surprising research information, full referencing and a compendious resource section. http://www.dyslexics.org.uk

I knew I was taking risks when I decided to write about the Ku Klux Klan. This really upset them when my page outranked the official Ku Klux Klan website. They were not aware that the constant references to me on their Web Logs only increased my website ranking. I even survived the decision to write about the corrupt activities of J. Edgar Hoover. Retired FBI agents organized a mass-mailing campaign against me. This included a smear campaign that they had evidence that it was me, rather, than Hoover who dressed up in women’s clothes. However, with Hoover dead, they had little power to do me any lasting damage. I also survived my attacks on the Iraq War and Tony Blair and his role in the death of David Kelly. In fact, this was not a risky operation as it is well known that Blair and MI5 spend little time surfing the web. However, I clearly went too far when I decided to investigate the Assassination of John F. Kennedy. Luckily, for me, now they kill off the website rather than the man himself. Over the last 24 hours I have been involved in detailed negotiations with my internet provider. As a result of these talks I would like to issue a statement. “I wish to deny that I have discovered any evidence that the CIA were involved in the death of John F. Kennedy. After looking at all the evidence I am now convinced that Kennedy was killed by a lone gunman, Lee Harvey Oswald.”

The plan at the moment is to start it at the beginning of February. I would suggest that we should start a new debate every two weeks.

There is no doubt that universities are currently under-funded. I would have thought that the fairest answer to this problem is for university education to be paid for through increases in income tax. You will know (well I hope you do) that the Labour Party has always been concerned about means tested benefits. The principles of the welfare state was laid out in Tom Paine’s Rights of Man. The idea is that benefits are universal and these are paid for by progressive taxation. As Paine argued, this will result in the redistribution of wealth. This process was started with David Lloyd George’s People’s Budget in 1909. To pay for these new old age pensions Lloyd George had to raise government revenues by an additional £16 million a year. Whereas people on lower incomes were to pay 9d. in the pound, those on annual incomes of over £3,000 had to pay 1s. 2d. in the pound. Lloyd George also introduced a new supertax of 6d. in the pound for those earning £5,000 a year. Other measures included an increase in death duties on the estates of the rich and heavy taxes on profits gained from the ownership and sale of property. All the research shows that a large proportion of the population (especially older members of society) are reluctant to claim means tested benefits. This was a big issue in the 1930s and is becoming one today. Currently over 50% of senior citizens are on means tested benefits and over the next couple of years this figure is predicted to reach 75%. Attempts to remove the redistribution of income factor from the welfare state was started by Thatcher in the 1980s. You enthusiastically carried the baton for this policy. This is why the gap between the rich and the poor is greater now than at anytime since the introduction of the welfare state in 1909. You argue that means tested benefits are the best way of targeting those that most need our help in society. That is of course the same argument that was made in the 1930s. People were more politically aware in the 1930s and it was opposed for the very reason they were being targeted. It was the consequences of the means test in the 1930s that inspired those Labour and Liberal politicians to introduce the modern welfare state after the Second World War. The Conservative Party fought the initial introduction of the welfare state but it was so popular that they were forced to back down on this issue. It was only with the arrival of Thatcher that the Conservatives had the courage to begin dismantling the welfare state. Unfortunately, this policy has been continued by your government. The reason for the increase in means tested benefits is your unwillingness to increase the higher rates of income tax. Not that you have a good record for keeping taxes low. You still tax the population more than previous governments. However, because of your dislike of equality by outcome, you prefer increases in indirect taxes because they are regressive rather than progressive. I therefore support those politicians who are arguing that the extra money needed for university education should come from increases in progressive taxation. I have no problem with the sons and daughters of the wealthy receiving a free education as their parents will have paid their fair share of the cost of that service.

I was never convinced that the formation of the EU was a sign of a move towards internationalism. In fact, I believe it made the situation worse. The EU was for many years no more than an economic extension of Nato. It divided Europe rather than uniting it. Since the collapse of communism the EU could well be used as a vehicle to unite Europe. However, what impact will this have on nations outside Europe. Also, there are signs that it is the very attempt to create a united Europe that is encouraging a revival of nationalism. That is very much the case in Britain. Although there is some confusion about who the enemy is: Europe or the United States. The right-wing tend to think it is Europe, the left-wing, the United States. It is always seemed to me that the best vehicle for internationalism is the United Nations. This was one of the reasons why I was so opposed to the invasion of Iraq. Like many people I was very worried by what impact the war would have on the United Nations. The Iraq War also highlights the role played by dominant nations in encouraging nationalism for its own benefits. The United Nations is indeed a flawed organization but it is all we have.

The Council of International Schools (CIS) is a not-for-profit association of schools and post-secondary institutions working collaboratively for the continuous improvement of international education. The Resource and Information Service supports schools in gaining access to a current, worldwide knowledge base through promoting research and disseminating information. The London Recruitment Fair takes place at the Thistle Hotel, Marble Arch (5th to 8th February, 2004). http://www.cois.org/

Bullying Online: This website provides help and advice for parents who are tackling bullying. The site explain, step by step, how to tackle the problem and what happens if you take legal action. Bullying Online has been approved as a National Curriculum content provider and the site is recommended by the DfES, Victim Support, 65 UK councils and more than 20 police forces. http://www.bullying.co.uk/

Have you got the URL for this?

I have posted two articles about this at: http://educationforum.ipbhost.com/index.php?showtopic=170 http://educationforum.ipbhost.com/index.php?showtopic=169

This article originally appeared on the History Forum. The responses can be read at: http://www.schoolhistory.co.uk/forum/index...?showtopic=1118 Research has been recently carried out at the United States National Learning Lab in Maine to assess the most effective way that young people can learn. The researchers employed a variety of different teaching methods and then tested the students to find out how much they had learnt. From this the researchers were able to calculate what they called the Average Retention Rate. The results were as follows: Teacher talking to a class (5%) Student reading a book (10%) Student watching an audio visual presentation (20%) Student watching a teacher demonstration (30%) Students taking part in a discussion group (50%) Students involved in an activity that is related to what the teacher wants them to learn (75%) Students teaching others (90%). These research findings do not surprise me. I once carried out some research on a group whom I had taught over a period of six years (11 to 17). The information they had retained from their history lessons reflected the findings of US National Learning Lab, in that the most effective learning was related to the amount of active participation from the student. However, it seems to me that the majority of teachers spend much of their time using teaching methods which, according to US National Learning Lab, are fairly ineffective. I suspect the main reasons for employing traditional instructional methods are as follows: (1) this was the way that the teachers were taught when they were pupils at school; (2) this was the way that teachers were trained to teach; (3) this is the accepted way of teaching amongst colleagues - i.e. peer group pressure; (4) teachers enjoy being performers; (5) the teacher feels more in control of the situation when traditional instructional methods are used. Tradition is the great enemy of innovation. One of the advantages of using the Internet in the classroom is that it encourages teachers to think again about teaching methods. One of the fears that I have is that teachers producing materials online will attempt to duplicate the methods they use in the classroom. The idea that students should play an active role in their learning is not a new idea. In the 1960s educationalists like Jerome Bruner argued that people learn best when they learn in an active rather than a passive manner. He used the example of how we learn language. It is claimed that this is the most difficult thing we have to do in our life, yet we learn it so young and so quickly – so easily in fact, that some experts in this field have argued that language is, to a certain extent, an inherited skill. Bruner argues that the reason we learn language so quickly is due to the method we use. As we are introduced to words, we use them. We test them out. Words immediately became practical. We can quickly see why it helps us to know these words. This method is very different from the way most subjects are taught at school. The student is usually a passive receptacle trying to take in information that they will need for some test or examination in the future. To complete this task effectively depends on students employing what sociologists have called deferred gratification. This is something that most young people are not very good at. They want their pleasures now, not in the distant future. In his book, The Process of Education (1960), Bruner argues that it is possible to teach any topic or subject using the same methods that we use when learning language. This involves structuring the material so that the student can test out and use the information in a practical way. Bruner’s ideas on learning helps to explain why the Learning Lab researchers found that the highest Retention Rate occurred when students were given the opportunity to teach other students. As teachers we have all had the experience of having to teach something we do not know too much about. How quickly we learn when we know that the next day we will be faced by students asking us questions about the material. It is fairly straightforward to set up situations where students teach other students. For example, the class could be divided into two. Each group is given a different topic to teach. When the material has been prepared the children are paired up with someone from the other group. Another strategy is to get the students to prepare teaching materials for another class to use. I saw this approach being used successfully by one of our members, Richard Jones-Nerzic, at the International School of Toulouse. A student in a traditional teaching environment can be very passive or docile but when he or she has to take on the role of teacher and instructor, the student is empowered. The “student as teacher” can prove to be an extremely positive and liberating experience for both the student/teacher and the class that makes up the audience. Anybody who has read the novel A Kestrel for a Knave (by Barry Hines) or seen the film Kes (directed by Ken Loach) will remember the scene where Billy Casper teaches the rest of the class about kestrels. Billy Casper undergoes a transformation in this scene because probably for the first time in his life he has been given the opportunity to share his knowledge and expertise. How can we as teachers create similar situation to the “Billy Casper effect” in the classroom? I would like to finish off by looking at one practical example of how it could be done. The example concerns the subject of the Home Front. During the war the British government was constantly monitoring the success of its various policies concerning the Home Front. The government was also aware of the possibility that it might be necessary to introduce legislation to deal with any emerging problems. http://www.spartacus.schoolnet.co.uk/2WWhomeAC.htm The students have to imagine they are living in Britain in December 1941. The students are asked to write a report on one aspect of government policy (evacuation, rationing, refugees, etc.). The web page provides work on a total of 36 different topics, so it should be possible for each student to have a different topic. Every student has to report back to the class about the topic he or she has investigated. (1) Each student has to provide a report on what has been happening in their assigned area since the outbreak of the war. (2) The student then has to make proposals about the changes they would like to see in government policy. (These proposals are then discussed and voted on by the rest of the class.)

This originally appeared on the History Forum. You can read the responses here: http://www.schoolhistory.co.uk/forum/index...?showtopic=1876 I am going to divide the seminar into two sections. First I want to look at what a simulation is and why history teachers should use them in the classroom. Secondly, I intend to look at some of the historical simulations that are currently available on the Internet. In their book Simulation in the Classroom (Penguin, 1972), John Taylor and Rex Walford argued that an educational simulation has three main components: (1) Students take roles which are representative of the real world and involve them making decisions in response to their assessment of the situation that they have been placed in. (2) Students experience simulated consequences which relate to their decisions and their general performance in the simulation. (3) Students monitor the results of their actions and are encouraged to reflect upon the relationship between their own decisions and the resulting consequences of their actions. An essential part of a simulation involves the student playing a role of a character in the past. One of the major objectives of the creator of the simulation is to help the student understand the situation of that person. In other words, helping the student develop a sense of empathy. In his book, The Process of Education (1960), Jerome Bruner argues that simulations encourage active learning. However, Bruner prefers some simulations to others. He argues that the “value of any piece of learning over and above the enjoyment it gives is that it should be relevant to us in the future”. That is something I always take seriously when I am constructing a simulation. Other arguments in favour of simulations include: (i) They are usually problem-based and are therefore helpful in the development of long-term learning. (ii) The normally involve the use of social skills which are directly relevant to the world outside the classroom. (iii) Simulations deal with situations that change and therefore demand flexibility in thinking. I now want to take a look at some of the simulations available on the internet. One of the best sources is the BBC history website. Hunt the Ancestor The student plays the role of a an archaeologists. In the simulation the student has to save a prehistoric burial site from destruction by quarrying. When the burial site is found the archaeologist has to find the remains and to work out about the lives of these people. The archaeologist is given a budget of £72,000 and this is used to take aerial photographs, visiting the local records office, etc. Another good source of simulations is Russel Tarr’s Active History website. Russel teaches history at Wolverhampton Grammar School and runs one of the best history websites on the net. Life in the Trenches In this simulation students play the role of a British soldier who joins the army in 1914 to fight the Germans. The simulation takes the student through the process of joining the army. They are constant links to a First World War encyclopaedia that provides the student with the opportunity of carrying out further research into the situation. The student is also asked factual questions that they have to answer before continuing with the simulation. The simulation involves the students making difficult decisions. For example, “You turn your head up towards the sky to get some fresh air, and you spot a large kite flying in the distance which clearly has writing on it. Do you: “Stand up on the fire-step and read the message on the kite?” “Ignore the kite and carry on working?” In this way the student discovers that the kite with a message was a tactic used by the Germans to get the Allied soldier to lift their head above the parapet. The students survival in the simulation depends on them learning what it was like to live in the trenches during the First World War. Adolf Hitler Russel has also produced a controversial simulation on Hitler. This involves the student interviewing Hitler. When I publicized this simulation in my weekly newsletter, Teaching History Online, I got some abusive email. Russel has also suffered from this claiming that this simulation somehow encourages fascism. As Russel points out at the beginning of the simulation: “Several people have suggested that by tackling this controversial topic in an accessible way I am guilty of promoting Neo-Nazism. My reply is this: dismissing Hitler as "pure evil" ignores the fact that millions of ordinary, supposedly 'decent' people supported him. Sweeping this fact under the carpet is much more irresponsible and dangerous than tackling it head on. Empathising with the German people who supported Hitler does not mean sympathising with them, but it does prevent us complacently dismissing the evils of Nazism as a "German problem" and thereby leaves us much better equipped to tackle similar tragic situations if and when they arise again.” Finally I want to look at some simulations on my own website. I have been involved in creating history simulations since I first started teaching in 1977. When we established Tressell Publications in 1979 we were committed to producing commercial simulations. In fact, the second book we published, included a simulation on the First World War that I had created during my PGCE course. We then went onto publishing computer simulations such as Into the Unknown, Attack on the Somme and Wagons West. When I started Spartacus in 1987 I also published computer simulations such as Wall Street, Russian Revolution and Presidential Elections. When I get the time I plan to pace these computer simulations on the web. However, I have been able to create several historical simulations over the last couple of years that are freely available on the web. One involves the issue of child labour at the beginning of the 19th century. Child Labour Each student is given the name of an individual that was involved in the debate that was taking place at this time. This included factory owners, factory reformers, child workers, parents, journalists, religious leaders and doctors. The student is then given an instruction sheet with details of the Textile Industry Encyclopaedia Website and what they needed to do. This includes writing an account of their character and a speech on the subject of child labour. Each character had an entry in the Spartacus Encyclopaedia. This provided them with biography and sources that enables the student to discover his or her views on the issue. The website also includes information under headings such as factory pollution, parish apprentices, factory food, punishments, working hours, accidents and physical deformities. There are also entries in the encyclopaedia on the machines the children used and the type of work they did in the factory. It is interesting the way they react when they discover who their character is. Initially, they are much happier about playing the role of a factory owner. They quickly develop the idea that they are in some way responsible for the wealth that the character has obtained. Those who are given the role of a child worker are less happy at first but the more they investigate their situation, the more involved they become in the need to find ways of overcoming the problems that they faced. The exercise helps to explain the complexity of child labour in the 19th century. The students discover that some factory owners, such as John Fielden and John Wood, were actually leaders of the pressure group trying to bring an end to child labour. At the same time, social reforming journalists like Edward Baines were totally opposed to any attempt by Parliament to regulate the use of labour. Even doctors did not agree that it would damage a child's health to be standing for twelve hours a day in a factory where windows were kept closed and the air was thick with the dust from the cotton. What the children discover from their in-depth studies is why the individuals felt the way that they did. In the debate that follows, this is revealed to the rest of the class. A second example concerns the Cuban Missile Crisis. The simulation comes at the end of a detailed study of the relationship between Cuba and the United States in the 20th century. This involves a study of the three main characters in these events, John F. Kennedy, Fidel Castro and Nikita Khrushchev. During the Cuban Missile Crisis Kennedy established the Executive Committee of the National Security Council to advise him what to do. The students have to imagine they are members of this committee. They are given six possible strategies for dealing with the crisis. They have to work out the possible consequences of these strategies before advising Kennedy what to do. A third example concerns Russia in 1914. The students are given information about the character they are playing. This includes their beliefs and objectives. The students are then placed in four discussion groups: Group A (supporters of Nicholas II and the autocracy); Group B (liberals and moderate socialists); Group C (Mensheviks and Socialist Revolutionaries) and Group D (Bolsheviks). Each group has to decide how to respond to different events that took place between 1914 and 1917. The students are warned that there could be spies in their groups. During the simulation they have the freedom to move to another group. In fact, if they keep to their beliefs and objectives some will actually do this. For example, Trotsky is likely to move from Group C to Group D during the simulation. If they do not go of their own accord the teacher plays God and tells certain characters to move. Playing the simulation students should get an idea of why the Bolsheviks gained power in 1917. At the end of the simulation the students go to the Russian Revolution encyclopaedia on the website and discover what happened to their character during 1917. They then write a brief summary of what happened, comparing their decisions with those of their character. The final task is for the students to write about what happened to their character after the Russian Revolution. A session could then be organized where the students tell the rest of the class about their fate. I am currently working on a simulation on life in a medieval village that will last for six months in real time. The activity begins with a look at Richard FitzGilbert, a Norman knight who took part in the Battle of Hastings. After the battle he became the Earl of Clare and one of England’s largest landowners. For the next few weeks the students follow the history of the Clare family between 1066 and 1330. This involves looking at issues such as castle building, feudalism, Domesday Book, religion, Thomas Becket, the Magna Carta, Origins of Parliament, the Clares in Ireland, the Clares in Wales and the Battle of Bannockburn, where the last of the Clare male line is killed. The Clare Estates (only the king owned more land than the Clares) are then divided up between Gilbert, 10th Earl of Clare’s three sisters. The simulation looks at just one village under the control of the Clare family. The village is Yalding in Kent. I chose Yalding because a lot of its manor records have survived. It also has the same church and stone bridge that existed in the 14th century. It is still farmed and its common land still exists and they still hold the village fair there today as they did in the 14th century. The land is fertile but the village still suffers from the flooding that plagued the medieval residents of Yalding. The simulation starts in 1336. Each student is given a character who lived in Yalding at that time. They are all given a house in the village and details of their family, animals, land, farming equipment, etc. Some are serfs and some are free. Each student is a head of a family with children. In 1375 they will become the son or daughter of the present character. Every week the students will receive via the website an update of their changing circumstances. For example, increasing revenues means they can buy more animals or if they are serfs, their freedom. During the simulation the students experience events such as harvesting, meetings of the Manor Court, a Village Fair, the Hundred Years War, the Black Death, Statute of Labourers Act, the Poll Tax, a visit from John Ball, and finally the events of 1381. I have used the simulation for many years in the classroom. This was a paper version and I hope and expect it will be improved when it goes online. All the material in the simulation is differentiated. So also are the characters. Therefore it is possible for the teacher to allocate the students roles that are applicable to the abilities of the individual. Schools who use the simulation are recommended to arrange a visit to Yalding. Several features are the same as in the 14th century. The students get a particular thrill when they visit the churchyard and they see the names of the relatives they have been playing on the tombstones. Unusual names like Singyard and Brickenden have survived in the village for over 700 years. The simulation has detailed teacher notes and a commentary on the answers of the tasks set. I will be putting these on line over the next couple of weeks.

Not only were they posed, they were rarely taken by Brady. He sent Alexander Gardner, James Gardner, Timothy O'Sullivan, William Pywell, George Barnard, and eighteen other men to travel throughout the country taking photographs of the war. Each one had his own travelling darkroom so that that collodion plates could be processed on the spot. Brady spent most of the time organizing his cameramen from his office in Washington. However, Brady did take photographs at Bull Run. One observer claimed that Brady at Bull Run showed "more pluck than many of the officers and soldiers who were in the fight." He photographed the retreat and another witness pointed out that Brady "has fixed the cowards beyond the possibility of a doubt." During the American Civil War Brady spent over $100,000 in obtaining 10,000 prints. He expected the government to buy the photographs when the war ended. When the government refused to do this he was forced to sell his New York City studio and go into bankruptcy. Congress granted Brady $25,000 in 1875 but he remained deeply in debt. Depressed by his financial situation, Matthew Brady became an alcoholic and died the charity ward of Presbyterian Hospital in New York on 15th January, 1896. http://www.spartacus.schoolnet.co.uk/USAPbrady.htm Newspaper results at the time show the impact these photographs had on the public. (1) The New York Times on an exhibition of photographs taken by Matthew Brady, Alexander Gardner , James Gardner, George Barnard and Timothy O'Sullivan (21st July, 1862) Brady's artists have accompanied the army on nearly all its marches, planting their sun batteries by the side of our Generals' more deathful ones, and taking towns, cities and forts with much less noise and vastly more expedition. The result is a series of pictures christened Incidents of War, and nearly as interesting as the war itself: for they constitute the history of it, and appeal directly to the great throbbing hearts of the north. (2) After seeing the photographs taken by Alexander Gardner at of the battle at Antietam, the writer, Oliver Wendell Holmes recorded his views on the nature of war. Let him who wishes to know what war is look at this series of illustrations. It is so nearly like visiting the battlefield to look over these views that all the emotions excited by the actual sight of the stained and sordid scene, stewed with rags and wrecks, come back to us, and we buried them in the recesses of our cabinet as we would have buried the mutilated remains of the dead they too vividly represented. The sight of these pictures is a commentary on civilization such as the savage might well triumph to show its missionaries. (3) The New York Times on the photographs of Matthew Brady (20th October, 1862) Mr. Brady has done something to bring home to us the terrible reality and earnestness of war. If he has not brought bodies and laid them on our dooryard and along the streets, he has done something very like it. It seems somewhat singular that the same sun that looked down on the faces of the slain, blistering them, blotting out from the bodies all the semblance to humanity, and hastening corruption, should have thus caught their features upon canvas, and given them perpetuity for ever.

Every week I will post a weekly newsletter. Please post any comments about the newsletter in this thread. Newsletter 1 Introduction The Educational Forum was launched on the 15th December. We were aware that this was in many ways the worst possible time to start a new online venture. It came right at the end of term and teachers were about to start their Christmas holidays (many under strict instructions from their partners not to spend any holiday time on their computers). However, we were very keen to have the forum up and running before the 8th January when we were due to have a meeting about the project. Membership Since the 15th December we have obtained 192 members. So far 95 members have made postings (a total of 614 at the time of writing). This is far higher percentage than most forums and suggests a high-level of activity. Members come from all over the world and so far we have been able to establish sections in French, Spanish, Dutch, German, Swedish and Greek. Any volunteers to establish sections in other languages. If so email me (details below). Biographies If you have not done so yet, I would be very grateful if you could add your biography on the forum: http://educationforum.ipbhost.com/index.php?showtopic=189 To do this click “ADD REPLY” (bottom of the page). A box will come up where you can post your message. When you have done that scroll down and click “Add Reply”. Websites Please add details of any websites you may be involved in developing. Please post these details in the appropriate Resource section. If you are a member of the Association of Teacher Websites or the European Virtual School, please add those details in the appropriate section. My Controls To add your URL to the signature you need to go to the My Controls section (see button top, right of the screen). To add your photograph you will need to have one on your computer. Once you enter My Controls section look on the left-hand side of the screen. Click ‘Edit Avatar Settings’ (under Personal Profile). Go to the bottom of the page where it says ‘Upload a new image from your computer’. Click ‘Browse’. (A box will appear at the top that will show what is on your computer. You now have to find your photograph (best to leave it on your Desktop – if not, find the folder where you have stored it). Click the image and then click ‘Open’. Now click ‘Update Avatar’. You picture will now appear every time you make a posting. If you have any trouble adding your signature or photograph, send me your forum password and I will do it for you. Debates At the moment, the following debates are very interesting. I would welcome your contributions to these and other debates taking place on the forum. ICT in different countries http://educationforum.ipbhost.com/index.php?showtopic=42 Teaching the Holocaust http://educationforum.ipbhost.com/index.php?showtopic=96 Nationalism and History Teaching http://educationforum.ipbhost.com/index.php?showtopic=44 Science Coursework http://educationforum.ipbhost.com/index.php?showtopic=117 Gifted Pupils’ Scheme http://educationforum.ipbhost.com/index.php?showtopic=77 Teachers and Politics http://educationforum.ipbhost.com/index.php?showtopic=66

I agree entirely. It also has the potential to radicalise the way we teach. However, this is not guaranteed. The history of innovation shows that the early pioneers play an important role in shaping the way it develops. So far, too much of what sells itself as education on the net is just a reflection of what goes on in the traditional classroom. If we are not careful, this will become entrenched and it will make it more difficult for the real innovators to change what goes on in our educational institutions. The key to this is that those involved in e-learning ask the right questions. I fear that the question that most people are asking is: “how do I use this new technology to deliver what I do in the classroom at the moment”. Instead we should be asking: “what do I really want to be encouraging my students to be learning”. The follow up question is “how can I use the technology to make this possible”. So far several things have exciting me about e-learning. One of these concerns the development of online simulations. (I will write about this in more detail later). Another one is the way that students can become producers as well as consumers of educational resources (another topic I will return to later). The third development is the use of forum software to encourage students to debate important issues. Recently I was involved with teachers in France, England and Bermuda in creating a debate about child labour in the 19th century and in the forms that it takes today. Although I never met the students face to face, it was clear from the postings that were taking place, substantial learning was taking place. Our planned International Student Debate will follow a similar pattern. I am convinced that everybody who witnesses these future debate will be impressed by the learning that takes place. It might not necessary improve their national exam grades (although I suspect it might) but it will play an important role in their development as world citizens. http://educationforum.ipbhost.com/index.php?showtopic=116

True. Several also had to publish books using male names. (I once attended a school assembly where the deputy head described George Eliot as a “he”). The important point was that writing in the 19th century was a cheaper and easier method of being creative, and could be kept secret from disapproving members of the family. In practical terms painting is much more difficult to do. During the 19th century women writers overcame the problem of getting their work published and in doing so changed the social image of a writer. Unfortunately, the social image of a painter remained masculine. See Germaine Greer’s The Obstacle Race and Whitney Chadwick’s Women Art and Society for a more detailed account of this process. Teachers obviously play a significant role in creating the social image of an artist. The main way they do this is by selecting individuals to study. How much time, for example, do students spend studying women artists in schools?

Two from each country. I am expecting you to supply a large number of students for the debate.

A good source of information on women composers can be found on the Music By Women website: http://www.wrpm.net Women covered include: Hildegard of Bingen (1098-1179) Caccini, Francesca (1587-1640) Cozzolani, Chiara Margarita (1602-1678) Strozzi, Barbara (1619-1664 c.) Leonarda, Isabella (1620-1704) Vizzana, Lucretia (1623) de la Guerre, Elisabeth Claude Jacquet (1666-1729) Grimani, Maria Margherita (1713 c. -1718) Amalie, Anna (1723 c. -1787) Von Martinez, Marianne (1744-1812) Sirmen, Maddelena Laura Lombardini (1745-1818) Szymanowska, Maria Agata (1789-1831) Farrenc, Louise (1804-1875) Mendelssohn, Fanny (1805-1847) Lang, Josephine (1815-1880) Schumann, Clara (1819-1896) Chaminade, Cecile (1857-1944) Smyth, Ethel (1858-1944) Beach, Amy (1867-1944) Mahler, Alma (1879-1964) Clarke, Rebecca (1886-1979) Seeger, Ruth Crawford (1901-1953) Lutyens, Elizabeth (1906-1983) Maconchy, Elizabeth (1907-1994) Bacewicz, Grazyna (1909-1969) Keal, Minna (1909-1999) Gubaidulina, Sofia (1931-) Rainier, Priaulx (1903-1986) Williams, Grace (1906-1977) Trimble, Joan (1915-2000) Gideon, Miriam (1906-1966) Boulanger, Nadia (1887-1979) Tailleferre, Germaine (1892-1983) Boulanger, Lili (1893-1918)

The following websites have ideas for teaching The Catcher in the Rye. http://www.midtesol.org/articles/catcher.htm http://ps044.k12.sd.us/Forms%20of%20Fictio..._in_the_rye.htm http://www.nths.newtrier.k12.il.us/academi...er/catcher.html http://www.cmi.k12.il.us/Urbana/uhs/englis...ger/catcher.htm http://www.teachnet-lab.org/MBHS/scragg/ca...tchernovel.html

This online journal provides an essential up-to-date source of information on the state of the British economy. The contributors are all experienced writers in the areas of Economics and Business Studies and choose their own approach to each topic. The blend of analysis and vital factual information will vary from section to section, but the overall aim is to provide a critical understanding of a wide range of contemporary developments. It is organised under 14 regular sections: 1: Government economic policy; 2: Structure of industry; 3: The public sector ; 4: The monetary system; 5: Public finance; 6: Industrial relations and employment; 7: The UK balance of payments; 8: The UK and the European Union; 9: The UK and the world economy; 10: Human resources in business; 11: Production and operation; 12: Marketing; 13: Accounting and finance; 14: Special article; Questions and answers. http://www.statsed.co.uk/bes

One of the main theories for a lack of female classical composers is that it is dependent on the public sphere. Whereas writing can be learned and practised in private, classical music composition requires a degree of professional training and traditionally involved formal employment (in court or church). These areas were closed to women until recently. It is significant that female composers emerged during the folk boom of the 1950s and 1960s. Singer composers could appear in folk clubs on the same terms as men. The public for this kind of music, left of centre people who favoured sexual equality, were quite willing to be entertained by these singers. It was not long before some of these artists such as Joni Mitchell and Janis Ian entered the mainstream. I suspect that when it comes to this kind of music composition, women are just as likely to be successful as men. I suspect there are still very few women classical composers (in fact it is a subject I know nothing about). It is said that there needs to be successful role models in existence for girls to be attracted to a particular profession. If there are any important women classical composers around, I would argue they should definitely be studied in the classroom. However, that probably reflects the fact that I teach sociology and history rather than music.

This has the potential to be a great website. So far local record offices have been slow to react to the Internet. It is hoped they will eventually follow the example of the Public Record Office’s Learning Curve website. Understandably you have chosen some popular school subjects (Victorian Crime, the Workhouse, Second World War, etc.). However, I would like to see you tackling some other more problematic areas. For example, the first thing I did when I created a website for my students was to produce a study of the women’s movement in East Grinstead at the beginning of the 20th century. Local newspapers had some fascinating information about the activities of the different suffrage groups. There was also some great letters on the subject in the local paper. I am sure local newspapers in Shropshire also reported these events. I know that I was surprised to discover that East Grinstead was the scene of riots over this issue and several local women were imprisoned for their beliefs, including Kitty Marion, who held the record for the largest numbers of hunger strikes in Britain. The students found it very interesting that we have a road named after the leader of the Anti-Suffrage Union in East Grinstead but no recognition for those men and women who campaigned for universal suffrage.

See Andrew Moore's website: http://www.universalteacher.org.uk/shakespeare/tempest.htm Andrew is a member of the forum and I am sure he will tell you more about this.

Of course, that is the idea of it. This site is freely available of the net and can be seen by anyone in the world. I disagree that one subject is more difficult than another. I think it all depends how it is presented. I am confident that I can do that successfully. Are you volunteering to run the second debate on religious symbols in state education?

The main idea behind the forum is to bring teachers together to discuss the subject of education. The problem is that language provides limitations to this debate. Therefore we thought it would be a good idea to provide facilities to enable people to communicate in other languages. We would not like the idea of creating sections that divide people speaking the same language. I agree that the forum has the potential to become a great resource. I believe it is the first time that an attempt to bring together teachers from all over the world. How successful the venture becomes depends on the willingness of the members to shape its development. The great thing about forums is they enable grassroots initiatives to take place. Forums like this are truly democratic organizations.

It is good that we now have students from the Netherlands, England, Germany, China, Sweden, Spain, Australia and Singapore. It is not clear yet about the nationality of the students from the International School of Toulouse. I think it is important to have representatives from other countries. I would especially like students from the United States, former communist countries in Eastern Europe and those in the underdeveloped world. Anybody out there who can supply these students? We have had some great ideas for topics to be debated. What I would suggest is that one member takes responsibility for each debate. Logically, this should be the person who suggested the topic. I am willing to run the first topic. I would like to do it on Education and Nationalism. This would touch on recent debates we have had on the holocaust and nationalistic history teaching. However, I would seek to broaden this out to consider what and how we teach subjects such as literature, science and art. I propose that an agreed member posts the first contribution to start the debate going. Once this happens they should not again get involved in the student debate. They should definitely not make any attempt to summarize the debate at the end of the allocated time. If we find the students going off the topic etc., I think it is best if the member responsible for that student contacts them privately. The students should also be briefed at the beginning about the rules of academic debate and should be told it is unacceptable to make abusive comments about the contributions of other students. I would also suggest that the starter of the student debate also posts the same material into a new thread in the Debates in Education section. We can then have two parallel debates: one for students and one for full members. I think this will itself be an important part of the educational process. At the end of the two debates I would like the participating members to get together to discuss ways we could use the material in the classroom. In this way we will be creating a practical resource for schools.