There is a conundrum that I am sure all design and technology (D&T) teachers

How many of us can leave our houses without our mobile phone? Or can pay for food in the supermarket without our debit card? Or can even get to the supermarket or beyond without our cars and sat navs?!

Even the most mundane things that we use every day, such as elastic bands, post-it notes and concrete, have all been designed, engineered and perfected using technology. It is only when things go wrong that people often notice how something has been designed.

Technology continues to progress at an astounding rate. Just 25 years ago, the average mobile phone was the size of a brick, cost a small fortune and actually was, in its first incarnation, a carphone - because you needed a car to take the weight of a battery! Today, there are more phones in the UK than people, most with the internet, inbuilt cameras of higher quality than was first fathomable, and almost unlimited apps – all in our pockets.

It is vital therefore that we nurture the next generation of design and technology talent to ensure that we can continue this innovation that ranges from the latest flashy gadget, to the safest aeroplane, to the simplest pen; it covers such a wide range of fields and industries - even down to the domestic - that it would be ignorant to let teaching and supporting technology in schools slip through our fingers.

I am not alone in thinking this; Sir James Dyson, industrial designer and inventor said “The teaching of quality design and technology in our schools is a vital requirement for the country’s future in the 21^st century.”  It is not by accident that the world looks to Britain for design inspiration, nor is it by accident that most of the Formula 1 technology is based in Britain. It is crucial that we continue to help lead the way for innovation as we move forward.

As a teacher of D&T for the past 30 years, I was glad therefore to hear that design and technology is a focus at the Education Show this year on the central STEM (science, technology, engineering and maths) feature. Alongside the Big Bang and its exploration of the possibilities of D&T with young people directly, I hope that this can be a clear signal of just how much we stand to lose in coming generations if we turn our backs on what is now an integral part of the world.

If you agree with this blog and are nodding your head with what I have said (as I hope you are), you can visit the D&T Campaign website today and sign the petition to keep D&T in the National Curriculum. http://www.believeindandt.org.uk/ 

Graham Thomas, Head of Product Design, Salesian School Chertsey

The Government’s expert advisor on behaviour, Charlie Taylor, recently released a checklist, which if followed correctly, claims to improve pupil behaviour in schools. While we have not implemented his specific checklist per se at All Saints, we do employ very similar strategies to those outlined in it. I would encourage any school to use a checklist, and imagine that most already have an informal one in place.

Undoubtedly, checklists are a good idea primarily because they provide a fairly simple and straightforward template for schools to follow. Another positive input is that they offer strategies, which may appear obvious to some but often are not obvious to everyone.

Increasingly school leaders are being encouraged to run their school like well-oiled businesses; school business managers can adapt checklists to their own needs which is hugely beneficial. We teach a Year group, either Year 10 or 11, over lunch each day, thus reducing the numbers and subsequent pastoral problems at busy lunchtimes. In turn, students get an early school finish which they appreciate!

Taylor also touched on the idea of changing the length of the school day, which would undoubtedly benefit some students, but not necessarily all; some students find it quite difficult (and often futile) to concentrate for a longer period of time. Also, depending on how these change the structure of the working day, schools that implement it run the risk of alienating staff. Many staff already extend the day informally with revision classes etc; this change could be seen as an imposition. Staff would also need to be paid for their additional time. Therefore, we have to consider that there might be a more effective use of buildings resources?

Ultimately, what the checklist has done is provide a useful collection of tips and practices, many of which are probably already in use, but have never been compiled into a coherent package before.  It would be extremely useful to get consistency across staff if this text was used as a core guidance document, as informal checklists can often lead to inconsistency.

Kevin Wilson, Headteacher, All Saints School & Technology College, Dagenham, London

Michael Gove, in a speech at BETT 2012 to the UK education community, ICT industry partners and to education ministers from around the world, announced a proposal for substantial changes to ICT in maintained schools in England from September 2012. http://www.education.gov.uk/inthenews/speeches/a00201868/michael-gove-speech-at-the-bett-show-2012

At the heart of his announcement is the proposal that the ICT National Curriculum programmes of study and associated attainment targets will be removed from September, 2012. However, ICT will remain as compulsory subject within the National Curriculum at all key stages.

Mr Gove’s stated that the problem with current ICT curriculum is that it is, “demotivating and dull, unsatisfactory at best.” There is not enough room for challenge and extension. By freeing up the curriculum, teachers’ freedom over what and how to teach will “revolutionise ICT as we know it”, with a wish to “return to the excitement of the BBC Micro in the 1980s.” In fact the examples Mr Gove cited as good and exciting practice are things that already happen in a number of Havering primary and secondary schools, indeed his desire to see Scratch programming at Year 7 is already being exceeded in Havering where we have Scratch being used by pupils in Year 2 and above, who are making use of the ‘Switched On ICT’ scheme for creativity and progression developed by Rising Stars Publishers in association with the Havering School Improvement Services. We believe that this scheme is exceptionally well placed to meet the challenge and expectation outlined by Mr Gove.

What could this mean for your school?

• ICT must remain as a compulsory part of the curriculum at all key stages for all pupils.
• You can continue to use the ICT Programmes of Study from September 2012, but Mr Gove warns against “children bored out of their minds being taught how to use Word and Excel”.
• Your teachers will have freedoms to introduce new and exciting units, helping pupils develop a wide variety of ICT capabilities.
• ICT must continue to be a tool used across the curriculum.

Therefore, it is time to look around the Education Show to see what resources are available to address the needs of your ICT provision for the future. It looks as if you will have lots of choice, both in school and at the Show itself. Plan wisely and spend carefully to ensure the most effective impact on pupil outcomes.

This is not a new call to action, by any means. People have long recognised the importance of STEM-related skills (science, technology, English and Maths) but it seems that engineering – an area in which Britain once led the world – is suffering from a severe skills-shortage.  The CIHE said that fewer than one in ten engineering professionals were women, which is the lowest proportion in the European Union. Another statistic, this quoted by Sir James Dyson, recognised as one of the biggest innovators in UK technology, is a real eye-opener; “In the UK, there are 37,000 engineering vacancies every year, but only 22,000 graduates,” he said in an interview with TechRadar recently. He continued; “Many British companies have potential but a lack of skilled people can hold up invention and export.”

So this isn’t just about UK Plc – making the UK a leading player in engineering and innovation. This is also about jobs. In a shrinking job market it makes perfect sense to look to a sector that has more roles than applicants (surely there can’t be many sectors that can say this at the moment). And the CIHE isn’t the only body working towards highlighting engineering as an exciting career choice; Tomorrow’s Engineer has similar aims and the Big Bang Fair, which is co-locating with the Education Show in 2012, is a huge, award-winning celebration of science, engineering, technology and maths for young people. So we know the problem, we have fine minds looking for a solution and exciting events aimed at getting the next generation on board – we still have some way to go but it looks to me like we’ve found the right path!

It has been another year of significant changes for everyone across the education sector. Over 1000 Academies already and 24 Free Schools opened in September alone. However, a

Coupled with this, the resounding message from the government to schools is not to wait for government announcements and policies to invest. Schools are now free to make their own decisions on what is best for their specific needs.

This freedom means that events such as the Education Show are more important than ever to schools, enabling them to see and evaluate all the options available before considering investment. A visit to The Education Show is an investment in itself – invest the time, save money and solve your problems! The exhibitors are well known for their willingness to spend time with visitors to answer their questions and advise them on the best options available. We are lucky to work in a sector where the majority of suppliers are so passionate about wanting the best for schools to ensure they thrive.

As schools also have the choice to move away from local authority services we are seeing a number of creative ways of getting resources for the school with minimal investment. One school we came across had become a ‘show school’ for a photocopying company receiving free upgrades. Others are working in school clusters, to give them better buying power in such areas as catering. The model is changing and The Education Show is the place where such agreements can be discussed and secured.

The new freedoms, and changes in kinds of schools, curriculum and assessment, all point to the fact that information and continuing professional development (CPD) are an increasingly big issue and to this end the Education Show’s extensive and accredited CPD programme, delivered by the highest calibre speakers, increasingly positions the show as a ‘must visit’ event – in fact there will be a major free Leadership Forum at The Education Show in 2012, when representatives from the DfE, PfS, major legal firms and school leaders will all offer advice about and solutions to many of the issues caused by change. Don’t forget to bring along Chairs of Governors and school business managers as well.

Be sure to check the CPD seminar and conference programme at www.education-show.com, as it develops over the coming months.

It seems that the recent economic difficulties and the promise of a less prescriptive curriculum prompted many school leaders to use the show as a tool to keep costs down and make sensible, targeted purchasing decisions. “We’re really looking at what we need now and what we’ll need next year and the show is the ideal place to find out what’s on the market,” said one headteacher. Discounts on everything from complete school literacy solutions to pens enabled budgets to go further and proved too good an opportunity for many to miss, with purchases still taking place as the show closed on the Saturday.

Next year’s show takes place from 15 to 17 March at the NEC. By that time it will be a few months after the expected curricular changes, all the time it takes for the education sector’s suppliers to produce resources designed to complement the curriculum, make life easier for teachers and enrich education for the learners. As one exhibitor said, “this show is about what’s needed on the chalk-face of education and it’s fantastic to see the passion and enthusiasm behind the ideas and resources here.”

We couldn’t have put it better ourselves.

NIACE is calling for a focus on the pleasure of numeracy, citing enjoyment as a major factor. Again, I can’t help but agree. We all know that when we enjoy something, we do better at it and nowhere is this more true than in a school setting. Making numbers fun and changing the way we feel about maths should do much to address this issue but we need to be patient because any change in education takes time. It will be as the younger generations become adults that we’ll see whether or not our methods are right.

If you don’t know much about the Achievement for All programme, it aims to improve the access, aspiration and achievement of children with Special Educational Needs and these new workshops cover it all.

A lot of work has been put into the programme to ensure it meets the needs of all visitors. The workshops were developed so you can explore areas like assessment, learning, pedagogy and parental engagement.

By attending Workshops Live Achievement for All you will have the opportunity to reflect on the success of over 450 schools engaged in a project which has put SEN at the heart of teaching and learning!

We can only hold a certain number of visitors per session so check out the programme and reserve your space! I’m not sure yet what session I will be putting my name down for yet, but this programme is definite must attend for me.

The school has seen the percentage of pupils getting a higher than average score in writing tests rocket from 9 per cent to 63 per cent following the introduction of blogging. Even more compelling is the fact that the biggest impact has been on boys, with many producing 5,000 word stories on impulse. Pupils are now enthusiastic about writing, blogging in their own time about what they have been taught in class, which has encouraged school leaders to formally place blogging into the school’s curriculum.

The news adds fuel to the claim that technology can help to engage pupils in a way that textbook learning often fails to. With the Government keen to ensure that reading and writing standards are raised, this news could herald the start of new teaching methodology to answer this age-old problem.

Children within schools should have a good grasp on the core subjects and should certainly know who Winston Churchill is! Key historical events and knowing how we got to where we are today is a vital part of modern life.

But things have changed since I was at school, gone are the days of a blackboard and chalk. There are so many new resources available to teach these core subjects and plenty of ways for subjects to be brought to life and taught in an exciting and ‘trendy’ way.

This year we have brought back Innovation Zone to the Education Show and are pleased to welcome over 80 brand new exhibitors to the line up. So if you want to see genuinely new, exciting resources and ideas then the Education Show is the place to be!