Memorial Service for Former Somervale Teacher

A memorial service for Mark Jones, a former ICT Teacher at Somervale School, will be held on Saturday 2nd February 2008 in the School Hall between 3pm and 4pm. The service will be informal, and dress code is smart casual. The service will take the form of a celebration of Mr Jones’ life.

Mr Jones was at home for Christmas from Bahrain, where he had taken up a new teaching position in September. He was involved in a car accident on the A367 at Dunkerton Hill on January 4th at approximately 5am. 

Mr Jones was also a prominent Scout Leader in Midsomer Norton and a tribute to him is being compiled on the scout group website at www.nortonscouts.net

Sports Captains Appointed

At present their main responsibilities are to check with the relevant PE staff what fixtures there are in that week and to go round their particular year group with the team list and ensure every player in aware of practice and when the fixture is. If there are any problems, they then need to discuss this with the teacher. They are also responsible for getting the relevant kit ready for the fixture night.

 

We also expect them to promote the clubs that are on offer to all students and encourage participation.

The sports captains will also be given the opportunity to express their concerns/suggestions on what they feel is important and what they would like to see improved.

Becta publishes report on Microsoft Vista and Office 2007

Becta (the British Educational Communications and Technology Agency) is an agency of Department for Education and Skills in the UK. In its capacity it oversees the procurement of all information and communication technology (ICT) equipment and e-learning strategy for schools. It was founded in 1998.

On 9th January 2008 Becta published its final report on the use of Microsoft Vista and Office 2007 in an educational context. The report follows an interim report in January 2006. The report sets out Becta’s recommendations in relation to the adoption of Vista and Office 2007 by schools and colleges and on issues related to interoperability between competitor products. Becta recommends that schools and colleges consider the findings of the report before considering any large scale investment or deployment.

Dr. Stephen Lucey, Becta’s Executive Director of Strategic Technologies, says:

‘Our objective is to make sure schools and colleges obtain the best possible value for money. Our advice is to be sure there is a strong business case before upgrading to these products, as the costs are significant and the benefits remain unclear.’ ‘We also want to see easier access to competitor products enhancing innovation and choice.’

Upgrading existing ICT systems to Microsoft Vista or Office 2007 is not recommended and mixed operating environments should be avoided. However, Vista can be considered where new institution wide ICT provision is being planned. To ensure widest compatibility of files between different computers, users of Office 2007 should not save in Microsoft’s new Office open XML format(.docx, .xlsx, .pptx).

Due to limitations in Microsoft’s implementation of the Open Document Format (ODF) international standard, users of Office 2007 should continue to use the more widely adopted .doc, .xls and .ppt formats. Pupils, teachers and parents should also be made aware of the wide range of free-to-use products currently available and on how to use and access them.

To download a copy of the full report go to www.becta.org.uk/publications

Somervale One of the Most Improved Schools in the Country

The Government School Performance Tables are published today. You’ll be pleased to hear that Somervale School is listed as one of the ‘most improved’ schools in the country over 4 years. More details can be found at the BBC News Website from where you can look at the actual figures showing the improvement. Congratulations to all the the Staff and Pupils for making this possible!

New Assistant Head of Purnell College Appointed

Mrs Vincent-Norgate – Assistant Head of Purnell College

 I first made the short jump from Hampshire to the West Country in 2004 to attend Bath Spa University. I studied a single honours degree in Drama and loved every second of it. During my studies I took part in a number of performances in Bath at both ‘The Rondo’ and ‘The Egg’ and in London at ‘The Courtyard Theatre’. And have acted in some short films for MA students at Bath Spa University. I enjoy all aspects of theatre and performance including writing, devising, acting, dancing, singing and directing. Besides my dissertation, my last big project was directing Arthur Miller’s ‘The Crucible’ for Holybourne Theatre.

My husband is a personal trainer at South Wansdyke Sports Centre in Midsomer Norton, so in my spare time (if my head is not buried in a script) I enjoy being active, by going to the gym, cycling, walking and going swimming.

On Saturdays I run a youth theatre for young people aged 5 – 18, each week the members work with me to build up experience of theatrical skills and at the end of each term we perform a showcase, parading every scene, dance or song we have worked on that term. I also write and direct their summer schools; this summer we performed a country and western tale which involved a dance off between the good and the bad. (We had no ugly in our story!)

I enjoy spending my Saturday with the youth theatre and witness a lot of benefit that drama and performance has for young people. I empathise with the life stresses and pressures that some members of my youth theatre contend with and we occasionally use these as stimulus for performance.

I hope that what I have learnt and achieved with them is something that I can transfer and continue in my work at Somervale School.