How to be a brilliant English teacher by Trevor Wright

In this review of How to be a Brilliant English Teacher by Trevor Wright, Linda Harris describes an invaluable text for all English teachers who wish to hone their practice. It is very accessible, written in a light, at times entertaining, style and does what it claims: it differentiates between good and brilliant teaching. It tackles a range of issues from planning and evaluating to teaching Shakespeare, poetry, drama and longer texts. Wright deals with the big, important issues in English teaching but also covers the little things, providing sensible and practical advice such as who should read which parts of the text and why

Writing programme in a Scottish secondary school - Auchinleck writing case study

This article is an attempt to showcase the good practice in the English Department, and more recently the entire school, namely Auchinleck Academy in East Ayrshire. It provides one possible way of assisting secondary school departments to adopt the philosophy of "Curriculum for Excellence". The paper delineates how teachers of various subjects can underpin their curricula with good pedagogy whilst providing interdisciplinary links and transferable learning for pupils. The school's senior management team developed school policy in order to extend the good practice in the English Department across the whole school; steps that were taken, in part, as a response to pupils' poor results in Writing in National Assessments. It was thought that a concerted approach to this area of concern was required from staff throughout the school. There was also a desire to create a more consistent experience of learning for pupils whilst extending existing sound practice. This approach involved all subject staff in taking a fundamental responsibility for pupil progress in writing. In a school population in which deprivation was substantial, it was also important to address issues of pupils' low-esteem and motivation, part of which included incorporating opportunities for more autonomous learning. This article may offer approaches and strategies worth consideration by other departments and schools aiming to improve pupils' attainment in writing, or alternatively those wishing to take their first steps towards creating cross-curricular links in the spirit of "Curriculum for Excellence"

Reconnecting Our Youth, a Scan of Policy Opportunities to Improve Economic Success for Vulnerable Youth

In March 2012, Grad Nation campaign released its report on the progress of the nation's public schools in improving graduation rates and movement toward achieving the goal of a 4-year cohort graduation rate of 90 percent by 2020. It revealed that from 2001 to 2009, the graduation rate increased from 72 percent to 75 percent, an average of less than .5 percentage points a year. During that same period of time, nearly a half million young people dropped out of school annually. High school reform and graduation accountability efforts are critical to stemming the disconnection of youth from our public education system. However, until these innovations and reforms are imbedded at scale in our districts, we must pay commensurate attention to the needs of the millions of youth who are dropping out and falling outside of the education and labor market mainstreams

The role of whole-school contexts in shaping the experiences and outcomes associated with professional development

Review of the article 'The role of whole-school contexts in shaping the experiences and outcomes associated with professional development'. The study examined the in-service programme in relation to different school contexts (size, type, disadvantaged, status); collegiate ethos and leadership and middle-management structures in the school. A description and discussion of the evaluation is followed by an overview of the PCSP and the new primary curriculum

Investing in Boys and Young Men of Color: The Promise of Opportunity

This issue brief presents findings from a scan of issues facing boys and men of color in education, health, and pathways to employment. Drawing on discussions, surveys, and interviews with experts and practitioners, the paper identifies 8 pressing concerns and gives accompanying recommendations. Areas that emerge as having great potential for impact are: reforming harsh school discipline, early interventions for dropout prevention, trauma-based mental health interventions, and career training programs

Feel the Heat! The Unrelenting Challenge of Young Black Male Unemployment

This report reflects on the current labor market situation of young black men and on policies and practices that can be leveraged to improve their labor market status

The Understudy

This story is a first person true account of love and loss between two sisters. The sisters are separated by seven years and other siblings, yet the bond formed in childhood is strengthened through the trials and tribulations of life. When the older sibling learns that she has terminal cancer she wants her sister by her side. From the perspective of the younger sister, the story weaves from past to present, back and forth, as each substantial scene unfolds. Through her eyes, the younger sibling sheds light on the early years and the reader learns what it was like growing up in the modest home where the relationship between the sisters was forged. As they move through the course of the illness, the experience of the most intimate of moments is shared with the readers. At the heart of the story the reader is offered snippets of journal entries inspired by the ill sister as communication with her friends and loved ones. The journal entries and her responses provide insight into her character from others points of view. When she is ultimately claimed by death, the writer begins the task of ensuring her sister\u27s wishes are honored while contemplating how this unwelcomed change has forced her to move from understudy to main character

On Human Migration and the Moral Obligations of Business

This work addresses to what extent businesses in the United States and the European Union have a moral obligation to participate in social integration processes in areas where they operate with the use of migrant laborers. It begins with the presupposition that a common framework as to what constitutes ethical behavior in business is needed and beneficial. It argues that the very industry that creates a need for migrant labor ought to also be involved in merging this labor successfully into the existing community and specifies that a discourse on business ethics and migration is gravely needed. This must be one that considers how businesses can become more engaged in resolving the social issues that arise both for the migrants and for the local community in which the businesses operate. The purpose would be to fill a social and humanitarian need that government alone cannot. More importantly, it will be to exercise beneficence and display responsible and sincere corporate citizenship. It is claimed that businesses that fail to encourage and participate in integration processes display a moral flaw. Cosmopolitan business ethics are proposed as a way to look at ethical business conduct and it is claimed that businesses that act as cosmopolitan citizens are morally praiseworthy