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Review of: Art and Citizenship Course at the Tate Britain for teachers and Citizenship facilitators (Friday 9 March 2007)

Available from: http://www.tate.org.uk

Reviewed by: Sharon Walters

Review: The course was led by Imogen Cornwall-Jones, an Art Historian, who focussed on how the Tate Britain collection could be used in Citizenship workshops. Although the course did not encourage teachers to inspire students to create their own art works, it helped participants to identify citizenship issues within art works to spark discussion and debate.
Participants later informally planned two lessons based on two pieces which was a great way to see how the collection could actively be used.
I particularly found a handout which provided questioning approaches for artworks useful as it encouraged students to form opinions about artworks. I also plan to use the Tate web resources search engine to find supporting materials for lessons.

The course provided useful advice and generated interesting group discussions. I would recommend others to attend however I feel that prior knowledge of basic citizenship issues is essential as this is only lightly touched upon on the course.

Rating: 4/5

Review of: An Inconvenient Truth - film of Al Gore's view on climate change (Winner of 2 Oscars)

Available from: DVD available to rent or buy. On 2 February 2007, Environment Secretary David Miliband and Education Secretary Alan Johnson announced that a copy of An Inconvenient Truth would be sent to each secondary school in England. Read comments by Alan Johnson and David Miliband about An Inconvenient Truth here.

Reviewed by: Julia Fiehn

Review: Although long for teaching purposes (100 minutes), the message of the film is loud, clear and persuasive. If used with pre-16 students, or those working at levels 1 or 2, it would need to be broken down into shorter segments, but for the full effect for students working at level 3, the film should be seen all through. It had the effect of making me switch off every socket before going to bed! The DfES and Defra have produced teachers’ guidance to accompany the film available here. In addition to raising issues about what governments’ responses to climate change should be, it could also be used to debate effective use of persuasion, the role of scientific evidence in making an argument, and the way in which the press selects which views to promote.

Rating: 4/5

Review of: Ending Slavery: an Unfinished Business, by Terry Fiehn

Available from: http://www.amazinggracemovie.com/_pdf/ending_slavery.pdf

Reviewed by: Andrew Miller

Review: These materials are very suitable for post-16. They aim to: deepen students’ understanding of the events commemorated by the bicentenary of the abolition of the slave trade; increase students’ knowledge of the campaign to end slavery in the end of the eighteenth and beginning of the nineteenth centuries; link the campaign to abolish slavery then with the campaign to fight slavery today; develop students’ understanding of pressure groups and the methods they use to influence Parliament and decision makers, raise awareness of modern day slavery and the campaign against slavery. The materials provide a wealth of activities for active learning, to explain the issues surrounding the transatlantic slave trade and encourage learners to think about action they could take today to help in the fight against modern slavery.

Rating: 5/5

Review of: The Democracy Cookbook, by The Electoral Commission

Available from: http://www.dopolitics.org.uk/Toolbox/toolbox-9.cfm

Reviewed by: Jackie Wyke

Review: In my organisation we currently offer a citizenship programme over 16 weeks. My staff identified an excellent website www.dopolitics.org.uk - this site has a wonderful Democracy Cook Book with recipes that you follow with your learners to create political parties, identify manifestos etc. The focus our learners have picked for their democratic efforts this time will be to campaign parliament (their MP/local council) about:

a) Education Maintenance Allowance and how low this is, effectively ensuring people stay below the poverty line

b) One of our learners recently drowned in a tragic accident at a local beauty spot lake, the learners at his centre are to start a campaign for better leisure facilities to avoid this happening again, or in the very least some signs and buoyancy aids at the beauty spot warning of potential dangers

Check out the Democracy Cookbook it is really worth a look - our learners enjoy the activities and involvement it fosters - as for the success of their campaigns - only time will tell!

Rating: 4/5

The Teacher’s Toolkit  by Paul Ginnis – a book of classroom activities

Available from: www.crownhouse.co.uk

Reviewed by: Julia Fiehn

Review: The book provides a rationale for active learning and provides 50 different models for adaptation to any subject or classroom situation. It provides a further 18 models for classroom management activities. The activities enable to teacher to control the situation, while enabling learners to take control of their own learning. I have used the activities in a wide variety of ways – writing my own materials as well as developing training tools.  As it says in the forward, the book is important because it places an emphasis on ‘how we teach rather than what we teach’. Do not be put off by the title – it is relevant for all educators and trainers.

Rating: 5/5

A Better Way to Work, A TUC Educational Resource for Careers, Citizenship and Work-Related Learning

Available from: www.tuc.org.uk or TUC, Congress House, Great Russell Street, London, WC1B 3LS

Reviewed by: Julia Fiehn

Review: This pack is aimed at key stage 4, but is entirely suitable for post-16. It provides classroom activities and work experience assignments under five headings: Trade Unions at Work, Rights and Responsibilities at Work, Equal Opportunities at Work, Health and Safety, and The Future of Work.  Each section provides introductory activities, case studies, a simulation and an assignment. The value of the pack for citizenship is that it encourages students to consider the bigger social and political issues that arise at work and that have always fallen within the responsibility of trade unions. It is especially useful for learners on the work-based route, who could provide examples and case studies from their own vocational area.

Rating: 5/5