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A tendency to over-protect children is preventing them from enjoying their childhood, it is claimed.

Mike Baker ponders the latest announcement about new Diplomas and the A-level review.

A computer game a day helps primary school children improve their maths ability, a study suggests.

Claims Oxbridge does not do enough to attract more state students are rejected by the head of an Oxford college.

Schoolgirls in Britain will be vaccinated against the virus that causes cervical cancer, ministers have announced.

UK technology agency Becta lodges an official complaint over Microsoft's school licensing agreements.

The decision not to ban smacking is a "missed opportunity" to protect children, says England's children's commissioner.

Student living costs are higher in the south of the UK than in the north and west, a study shows.

Virtual worlds for children could undermine the human values that societies need them to learn, says industry veteran.

A total ban on smacking in England and Wales is rejected by ministers, after a review suggests parents oppose it.

The government denies a Tory charge that targets for reducing truancy in England's schools have been dropped.

MPs urge a rethink of the government's refusal to split the assessment of special needs from its funding.

Tory leader David Cameron challenges a move to have councils redistribute school surpluses in England.

Research suggests summer-born pupils do worse in exams than those born earlier in the school year.

A west London primary school could be closed, with the council renting the premises to a private school.

Ed Balls urges parents to read to their children every night as part of a drive to raise literacy standards.

TV hosts Richard and Judy launch a children's version of their book club on their Channel 4 show.

Two pupils from Stepping Stones, Dominic and Amie were fortunate to represent the school at a National Digital Creativity event called Be Very Afraid in London. The venue for this event was the British Academy of Film and Television Arts (BAFTA) and is an ideal setting to hold this prestigious event. Now in its fourth year, Be Very Afraid has attracted a great deal of interest from professionals in Education, policy makers, ministers, the media and also from the gaming world. Stephen Heppell of heppell.net, which runs and organises this annual event, invited 13 schools in the UK to come along and present their work.

This is the third year that Stepping Stones have been involved and they had the opportunity this year, of showcasing their work on connecting with a small learning community on Little Cayman. The pupils demonstrated how collaboration in this way enhances teaching and learning and how this has a direct benefit on the self esteem and confidence of young learners. Arrowe, a 10 year old student at the Little Cayman Education Service, woke very early to join in via video conference, therefore demonstrating the power and delight of Apple's iChat technology. No longer are pupils in the hands of technicians and network administrators for connecting schools via expensive and unwieldy video conferencing equipment.

The Apple iChat software is a very empowering technology for learners in the 21st Century who need and want to be in control of their own learning. This means they need to be empowered to make the connections themselves and build relationships with pupils in the driving seat. During the event which ran for most of the day, we were able to link up with the Minister of Education, Hon. Alden McLaughlin in Grand Cayman. Stephen Heppell, Chair of Trustees and Director of heppell.net, spoke with pupils in Little Cayman and the Minister in a multi-way video conference. Stepping Stones are incredibly fortunate to have established this connection.

 

This international project is the first of many for Stepping Stones as we hope to connect schools in Africa, Russia and other regions of the world where children are in disadvantaged settings.

Stepping Stones School opened in September 2004 with the intention of providing an education for children with hemiplegia. So far it has changed the lives of children where mainstream education simply hasn't worked.

Read more about the Be Very Afraid event here:

• Building Cayman's Future.
• Building Excellence Together

   see also:

• Little Cayman Community Blog

View photographs of the Be Very Afraid event.

On Sunday 21st October the Stepping Stones School hosted the HemiHelp Music Workshop which attracted budding musicians to come for the day and have a chance to perform within a group. It was very much a family occasion where brothers and sisters, Mums and Dads were encouraged to join in.

The event was organised and run by Sally Motley and her team of talented musicians who each delivered a session, from singing to playing percussion instruments and boomwhackers, beating drums, and making digital music on a computer.

Sally commented on the day:

"It was a brilliant venue and the feedback that we've had about the workshop has been excellent."

The looks on the faces of those who took part, clearly show that everyone had a great time. Curiously enough, I wasn't quite sure who enjoyed it more, the parents or the kids!

Take a look at the photographs taken on the day.

A south-east London primary school says it was wrong to line up pupils according to skin colour for a school photograph.