Watch this

Turn up the volume and watch this. Watch it a few times and send the link to your friends. It's Tony Hirst's call to arms and it's brilliant. Then go out and do stuff....

A future

(Click on the image to see full size)

Next week

Big gig a go-go next week! Monday I'm visiting another prison - I suppose I'm pushing my luck and eventually they might decide to keep me but this time it's my "local" in Maidstone. Tuesday is the final SLN eLearning team event, ELT2, so we're topping and tailing the arrangements for that - anyone who can do Brighton should book, still a couple of places left. On Wednesday I'm lucky enough to have been invited to a small but important conference on offender learning. Experts from Germany and Sweden will be there with senior folk from HM Prison Service.

It might seem strange to be excited by this stuff but I don't get out much :-)

Imaginary friends

FriendFeed - Imaginary Friends via kwout

Wonderful - a technology for creating imaginary friends!

DSC00037

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Explore@Bristol

Explore@Bristol

Anniversary

Just spotted that tomorrow is this blog's birthday! The first post was on 27th May, 2005. How's about that then?

From the BBC homepage

BBC - Homepage via kwout

SociaLearn

I bet loads of folk who read this blog can offer something............

This looks interesting

kwout | my kwout via kwout

Seesmic

I've joined Seesmic - video-twittering (maybe?) You'll see a widget on the right which takes you to my first Seesmic effort. I think the technology is great and I can certainly see how I might use it but what is really, but really cool is that each first effort gets a reply from a real person who is talking to the "first poster".

Who said that the web would get rid of service???

I'm off to give it another go!

This is how the world should work

This is how the world should work - click on the image to read the sign :-)

Brains

Loving this advert!

82, 000 and (no) change

Offenders have severe learning and skills needs: half of offenders in custody have no qualifications and almost 40 per cent have a reading age beneath that expected of a competent 11 year old. Addressing this is challenging as offenders are likely to have negative experiences of education in the past – almost half of offenders were excluded from school.

Meeting Needs? The Offenders learning and skills service - National Audit Office report (March, 2008)

The report goes on to suggest that the £110 m/annum spent on the Offender Learning and Skills Service (OLASS) is not delivering "to the level of which the service is capable" (NAO, 2008).

According to Debra Baldwin, Head of Prisoner Skills & Employment for NOMS nearly 70% of offenders have never been employed and if a parent is an offender a child has a better than 50% chance of ending up in gaol.

70% of convicted felons have two or more recognisable mental disorders

60% misused drugs and/or alcohol

32% were homeless prior to conviction.

Offender learning is a very seductive drug, most who come in contact with it become addicted for all sorts of reasons not least because it's "the right thing to do" and, like all junkies we think we can kick the habit when we want but I think we need to wise up.

The prison system in this country is actually serving as a final destination for those poorly served by compulsory education; 50% of those in prison were excluded from school, 30% were regularly truanting from school. Of course this raises another issue - should the school system be the place where those with mental illnesses can be diagnosed? And if it is what services have we in place to support people? But there can be little doubt that the current policy of building "Titan" prisons; prisons built to accommodate increasing numbers of offenders, won't deal with the real issues - in the UK today we wait until those who can't deal with modern society offend and then lock them away. And that's simply not working.

Reader's

Reader's
Originally uploaded by nogbad the bad

I go past this building on the way to East Malling (of train station fame). the product is famous the world over and it all started at this little place in Teston, not far from where I live. Click on the image to see it biggerer.

Teenagers and embarrasing ailments

I thought that might generate interest!

Health care in Spain will now extend to offering a service for teenagers in Second Life. They are able to use an anonymous service to discuss health issues.

"This is a way to talk about their doubts about taking drugs or sexual relations which they cannot do in a traditional consultation."

Check out the Guardian story, hat-tip to JW for spotting it.

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Croydon

Croydon

I'm on the train

I'm on the train

Quick post - already Twittered this

A view of what OU study means to a particular student - http://is.gd/dcg.

BTW

It's now possible to rate OpenLearn units and the SLN project is reaching its end. If anyone found "Working Online" useful or interesting or that it cleaned whiter than white and got all the stains out please hit the link and rate the unit. You know it makes sense :-)

Revolting

The citizens of Blunogville have once again become uppity. If time allows please click on the link to visit this peaceful idyll and do it daily :-)

"...to encourage people to holiday in Britain"???

Judge for yourselves

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