NDS – News Distribution Service
From 2010 the new scheme will form part of personal skills accounts that will be available to all adults and will guarantee free training for older people up to at least level 2 GCSE equivalent. In todays Paper, Ministers will also announce a pilot to fund and support training up to Level 3 A Level standard for older adults who want to return to or move on in work in two regions – the South East and East Midlands. The pilots will be backed by £15 million over the next three years and is expected to benefit around 20,000 adults.
Not bad if you’re in the South East or East Midlands, aged 18 – 25 and have no A levels, you can get up to £7000 worth of training. If you’re currently 23/ 24 and live out of those areas, tough, you’ll be too old by the time it rolls out nationwide 🙁 At least, I think that’s what it’s saying.
And what about David Davis (it’s a hell of a speech, I suggest you pop through and read it, I’ll wait)? For the first time in my life, and I do mean the first time, even though my mother used to stand as a tory candidate, I would consider voting tory. Not that I have to, the by election isn’t in our area. I can’t see me doing any canvassing for him, but I’ll be keeping an eye on his campaign – I really hope that the media doesn’t just make this out to be a soft on terrorists excuse and notices some of what he is saying about our rapidly disappearing civil liberties.
In more local news, I’ve finally started really getting to grips with my montessori course. I’ve written up 3 of the first 6 summaries, I’ve another file to summarise and then 77 questions to answer. I’m hoping to get all of this off and away in email over the weekend – I’m going to try for another couple of summaries tonight. That would then give me next week to get familiar with the material for the second assignment, actually sending it in when I’ve got the marks back for this one. I’m incredibly nervous as I don’t have a clue what they are looking for – the guidance says things like “read the binder, close the binder, write a summary of this section”. Hm, is that glance through it once and come up with 5 sentences? Or like I have, read it a load of times, and quote dates, activities, actions and names. It’s very tempting to correct some of the bits that are missing as well, as I’ve done lots of reading about Montessori (herself) from other sources too, and this file seems to miss out a few bits.
Urgh. Am very tired. Took some children out on impromptu trip this morning, which was successful, but I always find it quite stressful, driving a minibus full of other ppl’s offspring. Does that sound weird? I mean I find it more stressful than just being in charge of them in a known environment where I have some control – there are just so many idiots on the roads today. Like the woman who sat on my rear bumper – it’s a minibus, it doesn’t really have acceleration, back off!
If I get all the parts of part 1 of the first assignment finished, I think I’ll treat myself to an evening read – I’ve got a few things on the two be read shelf. Looking forward to Covenants, as borrowed from Jonathan, and I owe you a book review post of Heroes Adrift too. Might get around to that later.
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