Got in this morning at 7.30am to prepare for the rest of the day. Met Pauline Evans at 8.30am. Pauline is our Childcare Information Officer. She has responsibility for giving information to childminders, playgroups and nurseries. I'm beginning to understand the importance of early years and childcare. Pauline showed me an excellent website she helps to maintain – worth a look -
www.childcarelink.gov.uk/eastlothian
Out to Preston Lodge for 11.00am. Visitors from Barga – a town in Italy – which has links with Prestonpans through John Bellany. Willie Galbraith had organised a tour of the school and the chance to meet students and staff. I met some great senior students who told me about their plans for the school. I hope to invite the Head Girl and Boy from each secondary school for lunch at John Muir House once they have all be elected. PL are setting up PLTV – I'm going to go back to the school in couple of weeks to find out more but it might have some potential for exc-el?
Back for a brief meeting with the education officers who were discussing the content of the first evaluation visit which will take place this term. We are trying to get the appropriate focus to these meetings – a key part of which must be that information is submitted by schools prior to the meeting taking place otherwise no proper interpretation or discussion can take place.
Secondary Heads meeting at 2.00pm. Agenda – PPP; complaints procedures; Health and safety; Additional Support for Learning Act; Student placements in schools; Education Department budget;Attainment action plan; teacher exchange; work shadowing.
The meeting went well and I'm looking forwards to working with my colleagues over the coming session. It is my intention that our relationship should be characterised by transparency; collective enterprise; creativity; positive solution focussed debate; honesty and a determination to improve the quality of teaching and learning in East Lothian.
