Informed Scotland April 2017 – Gender, equity, anxiety & achievement
.
There was plenty to capture the attention in learning & skills this month, even with the Easter holidays and elections creating a few ‘distractions’.
Gender and equity was once again a hot topic right across the landscape.
Research reports initiated by the David Hume Institute on why boys do less well in education than girls, and British Council on Gender equality and empowerment of women & girls were presented and debated at events at the Royal Society of Edinburgh and the Scottish Parliament respectively.
And a fascinating Equality Challenge Unit report was published on the different experiences of female and male STEMM academics (STEMM being science, technology, engineering, maths + medicine).
Numerous interesting reports and studies provoked much thought and discussion.
There was a Scottish Government Research Strategy for Scottish Education, described by some as ‘about time’. Two reports from IPPR – The inbetweeners on graduate internships and Autonomy in the right place on school governance reform. The first OECD study of students’ wellbeing, with insights into the relationship between school-related anxiety and achievement. Plus a Skills Commission report on Lifelong learning for an ageing workforce, and a review of the impact of the Scottish Credit & Qualifications Framework.
We always enjoy spotting enterprising or creative learning & skills activities.
This month we noticed the Scottish Association of Teachers of PE launched a Higher Physical Education Revision WIKI, created by PE teachers across the country. Fife College distributed 8,000 study packs to students at local secondary schools to support their exam preparation. And a ‘Higher Grounds Coffee Bar’ opened at Auchenharvie Academy, North Ayrshire, supported by Ayrshire College, The Prince’s Trust Scotland and DYW Ayrshire, with pupils able to develop their customer service skills while working towards a City & Guilds Barista Skills certificate!
This is the tip of the information iceberg: become an Informed Scotland subscriber so you can keep on top of all the developments. Email [email protected] to request a sample copy.
Check out our new Leadership Special commissioned by SCEL, and the latest guest blog post, Celebrating achievement in adult learning by Jackie Borge.