What do you Really Think about Teachers?The Teacher Status Project has just delivered its final report. The study, which began in 2002, was commissioned by the DfES to examine how teachers viewed their role, and how other members of the public regard the teaching profession. More information about the study is available from the project w…
Child Obesity / Healthy EatingThe issue of child obesity has reared its head again, with the story of an eight year old boy who may be taken into care due to his excessive weight. If this were to happen, it would be a first in a case of this kind.Anyone with an interest in this topic has plenty of recent literature to explore. L…
It is Hard to be a Responsible CaregiverSpend some time with small children and you realize (or remember) how hard it is to be a good parent or grandparent. I recently helped drive my daughter and her children back home to California. It was a very long trip. Besides having one sick child, we also had my 7 month-old granddaughter to enter…
Faith SchoolsDavid Cameron has hit the headlines this morning for opting to send his daughter to a faith school. Students who are interested in the subject of the perceived merits / disadvantages of a faith-based education may like to look at a recent DFES-funded piece of research; Faith Primary Schools : Better…
Journals Guide is Back, Back, Back...Rejoice! Copies of the Guide to Journals are finally available in the library!We’ve had a number of delays in producing the Guide this year due to several publishers moving their titles between online services in the last 12 months, so if you’re still using last year’s edition then we strongly recom…
Valentine for ChildrenIt would be nice if on this Valentine's Day, the legislative groups in all the states would decide to give a special Valentine to young children. Fully funding and supporting early childhood programs would be the best gift children could receive. Giving children the opportunity to have a successfu…
UK is Bottom of the LeagueA story about children in the UK is one of the major headlines this morning; unfortunately, it reveals a rather depressing statistic. According to a survey by Unicef - the United Nations children's organisation - Britain is at the bottom of a league table for child well-being in 21 developed nations…
Citizenship in the CurriculumA lot of discussion has recently focussed on the purpose and content of citizenship lessons within the curriculum. And the debate hasn't just been limited to educational publications - the Celebrity Big Brother controversy caused the issue to spill over into television reports and the pages of daily…
Ofsted in BirminghamLast October eleven Ofsted inspectors visited Birmingham to review the children's and young people's services in the city. Their report, which has been published this week, identified a number of strengths and weaknesses in the current provision of services. A summary of the main findings is availab…
New Semester, New ServiceWelcome! The Childhood and Education blog is designed to keep staff and students at BCFTCS up to date with the latest news and resources in this area. If you're not sure what blogging is or why it's useful, try looking at this guide from the BBC - hopefully everything will become clear...Information…
Head Start ReminderI had the opportunity to present a workshop at the California Head Start Association conference in Newport Beach this past week. It is always delightful to meet with Head Start folks. It reminds me how much I miss working with that population. Even with the government jerking funding around in th…
