Education - Information
Reviews and ratings of quality, hand-picked, websites
Advisory Centre for Education (ACE)
• www.ace-ed.org.uk
Headers: Advice, News, Publications, Training Projects, Links
This is an independent advice centre for parents. They offer information and advice on state education (5-16). Free telephone advice on topics such as bullying and special educational needs.
BBC Education
• news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/education/default.stm
Headers: Issues, League tables
All the latest education news plus league table news. You can enter the name of a school to find out how it stands in the tables. In addition, they offer a guide to educational systems across the UK
BBC Learning for Adults
• www.bbc.co.uk
Tips for adults thinking of returning to education from qualifications to coping with learning.
British Council
• www.britishcouncil.org
Headers: Learning, Arts, Science, Society
The British Council is the UK's principal overseas educational and cultural relations agency. Its aim is to promote UK educational institutions in a variety of countries overseas. Institutions can obtain membership application forms online. The site contains a lot of general information on UK involvement on overseas student recruitment.
Coursework.info
• www.coursework.info
Headers: UK Essays & Coursework
Coursework.info has 130,000 coursework documents, written by students, covering all subjects at GCSE, I.B., A Level and University level. Access to the documents is sold as a subscription, and subscribers get access to ALL documents.
Rates are £4.99 per month, £19.99 every 6 months, or £29.99 per year.
Department for Education and Skills
• www.dfes.gov.uk/index.htm
Headers: News Centre, Popular Questions, Publications, FoI Publications Scheme, Research, Consultations, Our Strategy to 2006, Speeches, Statistics, Inside the Department, Cymraeg/Welsh, Links
The official government site for education. Find out what the government are up to by reading all the latest speeches on education.
Education Otherwise
• www.education-otherwise.org
Headers: Legal information, About home education, Young people and Home Education, Publications, Miscellaneous trivia, Join us
Loads of (free) information here for parents who want to home educate their children, from the legal position to resources on educational matters. If you decide to join them (£20 per year) you will benefit from support, a handbook, newsletter, local get-togethers and much more.
Braincollege
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Global university directory
Global directory listing of all the universities and colleges of the world on all six continents plus articles on scholarships, varsity life, education, career and MBA degree. Over 9,000 institutions, updated regularly.
Good Schools Guide
• www.goodschoolsguide.co.uk
Best-selling parents' guide to the top UK schools. New and expanded 8th Edition has just been released and is available via book and/or online formats.
Home Education Advisory Service (HEAS)
• www.heas.org.uk
Headers:
HEAS is a UK home education charity. To take advantage of all the services they offer, such as a quarterly bulletin and an advice line, you have to join (£12 per year) and publications cost extra. There is no free advice available on the site.
Niace
• www.niace.org.uk
Headers: Latest News, Conferences, Publications, Campaigns & Promotions, Projects/Research, Influencing public policy, Information Services
This is a non-governmental organisation for adult learning in England and Wales. They have lots of information and news plus details of courses from lace making to IT skills.
Ofsted
• www.ofsted.gov.uk
Headers: Reports, Publications, Ofsted news, How we work, Parents, Childcare providers, Schools, Colleges and post-16, Local education authorities, School Inspectors, Inspection Providers
As well as being the government body that oversees school and college inspections, Ofsted offers a great deal of advice and information for anyone with an interest in education in the UK.
The Association for Science Education
• www.ase.org.uk
Headers: The ASE, Membership, Bookshop, Conferences, Journals, INSET Services, ASE Global, ASE Regions, Resources
Resource for science teachers and science technicians. Join online. You can also use the site to sign up for their monthly newsletter.
The Time Educational Supplement
• www.tes.co.uk
Headers: Home, Breaking news, New teachers, Staffroom, Classroom resources, Your career, TES jobs, Governers, Noticeboard, Bookshop
THE newspaper for teachers. You can subscribe online or read selected article for free.
WEA – Workers Education Association
• www.wea.org.uk/index.htm
Headers: Courses, Publications
The WEA provide a large searchable database of adult courses all over the country. The WEA is a charity founded in 1903 and is committed to providing continuing education in all regions of the UK
What is The Trachtenberg Method?
How to impress at maths!
The Trachtenberg System of Basic Mathematics is a method of doing high-speed multiplication, division, addition, subtraction and square roots without a calculator...
Read Article
Fish Oil and Attention Span
www.1stvitality.co.uk has kindly supplied some nutritional information regarding the link between diets rich in fish oil and improved attention spans in children.
So THAT'S why fish swim in schools .
A study into the effects of fish oil and vitamins on children found that the behaviour and attention span of pupils at a Yorkshire school improved by 35 per cent.
A study involving 24 schools across the UK was launched in July to test pupils aged six to 11.
At Crossley Hall Primary School, Bradford, teachers and parents completed a questionnaire to assess the children's behaviour before and after they were given Omega 3 Fish Oil.
The results seem to show a vast improvement in attentiveness and concentration. Children were more conscientious, better at paying attention, more alert and focused, and were listening more carefully. The findings come in a report written by Dr Amanda Kirby, founder of the Dyscovery Centre in Cardiff, and conducted with the University of Wales in Newport.
Dr Kirby said: "I am surprised by these results. They are very interesting as this is such a significant difference. "The key thing here is that these children in mainstream classes have shown such a significant improvement in attention and behaviour, which will mean they are learning better and therefore learning more, which has long-term implications."
Some nutritionists believe modern children do not get enough Omega 3 and that this causes attention problems and learning difficulties because it is vital to brain function. The body cannot manufacture Omega 3 fatty acids and so they have to be consumed.
The Government recommends we eat two portions of oily fish each week, but 68 per cent of families admit to eating no fish and it is thought that most children are lacking in Omega 3.
Fish Oil for Kids - The Omega wave
Fish oils are supposed to boost our brainpower. But do the facts really stack up? We went in search of the evidence.
Elliot is nine years old. A year ago, he was falling behind in his schoolwork, particularly reading - which he found a struggle. He had little interest in studying and would crash on the sofa to watch TV when he got home from school.
But over the past year, a dramatic change has taken place in Elliot. He has soared through the Harry Potter books and now heads to the library after the school bell has sounded.
Elliot has been taking part in a scientific study on more than 100 children from 12 Durham schools. The children were required to take a course of capsules with their meals for the duration of six months.
"His reading jumped 18 months (over the trial period). He's just a lot more interested in everything. He's even developed an interest in classical music," says Sheila, Elliot's mother.
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