ctuonline.info

When I heard a friend of mine was about to buy her 7 year old daughter a mobile phone I was horrified, what possible need could a 7 year old have for a mobile phone? Her daughter has already offered to do household chores in exchange for credit to use on ringtones and texting.

The reason I could think of for letting a child have a mobile would be for contacting me when they needed to be picked up from a friends or a social occasion and at 7 years old this would never be the case…try 14 upwards! and even then a close eye would be kept on the use of it!

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Recently a friend of mine decided to quit her job as an extremely well paid PA with a jet setter life-style to train as a nursery nurse, at the time she announced it to myself and a few other friends we were all gobsmacked, the decision she said was based on the huge amount of pressure she was under with her job and also that she had a 3 year old daughter whom she rarely saw.

Since leaving her job she is in fact happily working at a nursery school, although her salary has significantly decreased she insists she couldn’t be happier.  Her daughter attends the nursery where she works so she sees her every day.  Just shows money can’t buy you happiness!

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The minute the school bell rings for the summer holidays all thoughts of reading books are out of the window for most children, this can be a bad thing when it comes to returning to school after the summer as some of the literacy skills they have learnt are lost and children may find it difficult to adjust on returning to school.

Have a look at these tips to help your children enjoy reading over the summer:

1. Read to your children and let them see you reading.

2. Eye spy is a fun learning game children enjoy.

3. Turn subtitles on during a family film.

4. When out and about with your children encourage them to read signs and lead the way to where you’re heading

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According to a major study led by Nevada University, in the United States

“Keeping just 20 books in the home can boost children’s chances of doing well at school”

It is claimed that children with regular access to books do better in school than those whose book shelves at home are empty, and apparently stay in school around three years longer.

The first findings suggested that science and history books had the greatest benefit.

Should we be hurrying out to buy in books to help our children succeed educationally?

Could filling our homes with novels and reference books be the difference between leaving school and heading to university?, Which in turn could mean £200,000 more in lifetime earnings!

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Jamie Oliver has changed school dinners and he now has his sights set on improving education.  The well known TV chef is himself dyslexic and left school with very few qualifications he is now on the road to setting up his own school with the  intention of helping teenagers who have struggled to thrive.

It will apparently take place during the summer, a forthcoming series filmed for channel 4.  Fresh One productions are already advertising online for willing participants.

Ultimately they are after applicants who may have been dyslexic, subjected to bullying or were teenage mothers.

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Universities despite rising fees and continuing to complain about no money or assets are wrongfully claiming millions from the tax payer. Documents have recently been leaked from the government detailing the situation. Where one university claim nearly thirty seven million pounds from students dropping out of courses, said university has been ordered to pay this money immediately.

Further investigation found that one London University claimed nearly eighty six million pounds, enough to fund a university for one year. Seems universities have a lot more money than they say and they continuous claims and strikes are being questioned. These universities should ordered immediately to payback this money.

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Top universities are shunning potential candidates from poorer backgrounds. This news comes from the agency responsible for helping potential students access to widened higher education. It seems only twenty per cent of students make it through where as 40% are at a huge disadvantage to get into very selective universities. Tuition fees seem to be a big problem for these universities but the understanding that are bright students from poorer backgrounds needs to come through as they have every right for good education aswell.

However to spin things a little students from poorer backgrounds are failing to realise their potential and are being cause to underachieve as doors seem to close for them due to money troubles.

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Well teachers are getting spending cuts therefore students are seeing a big rise in fees. Students will be facing a rise of up to a thousand pounds in tuition fees. This means that universities will be charging the full cost of a degree to students. Estimated average fees could nearly be seven thousand pounds for a year whereas a science undergrad could potentially see a fourteen thousand pounds bill.

This is a ridiculous development for this country especially for science courses. With an increase in demand for doctors and nurses the UK is officially shooting itself in the foot. The current economic crisis will see a number of people not being able to afford this rise in education fees.

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US President Barack Obama has recently bitched at the entertainment and gadget industry for killing education in a number of ways. An education is key to the success of an individual and the people surrounding and the world they live in. Barack Obama believes that the current iPod generation is killing education around the world and numbing the mind of our young people in the world.

Education is more important than entertainment and this is currently not being promoted. Entertainment has such a large focus in the world that our younger generations are not being encouraged to grow themselves in any way.

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We hear to too often now where teachers are continuing strike over pay and other issues but teachers in Scotland are prepared to strike over education budget cuts. Are they wrong to do this? Absolutely not education is paramount to everyone’s lives and cutting spending in such an area can have disastrous effects. This would mean less educated people in the country and affect the economy but even that is small in comparison to every individual’s right to have the opportunity to learn.

Apparently funding has been increased recently but teachers in Scotland believe that the increase was never enough to maintain good education standards.

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