Changethinking

We had just met with Zev from the World Reader organisation at a World Literacy Foundation conference in Oxford. Some concepts just make sense form the start and this was our feelings for World Reader.

It works by loading a Kindle with over 300 books taking to Africa, direct to communities where the children have the chance to read! No more expensive lorry loads of slightly used books trying to find their way across the continent and then being stopped and refused entry.

This scheme actually works! You just need a small mind shift to know that children in Africa can access Kindles and benefit hugely from the supply of information at their fingertips.

The inquiring and smiling faces says it all. World Reader projects has some excellent photos. Read the stories of how empowering this project is for the whole family, Daniel and his grandmother are just one example.

We were invited to World Reader‘s new office celebrations and also to mark their ambition to get 1 million books into Africa. How amazing is that!

On St Jordi’s day in Barcelona the streets were full, the tradition is to mark the day of their patron saint by sharing gifts; the man to buy the woman a flower and the woman to buy the man a book.

At the SmithMartin Partnership we were delighted to celebrate with World Reader and look forward to being involved. It parallels and brings into one, our work with communities, children’s literature and modern technology solutions.

Sue Martin

SmithMartin Partnership LLP Inspiring communities and Broadening Horizons

Dolphin Booksellers- the best in children’s books always on line

We recently revisited the Gel talk, by Professor Barry Schwartz, of Swarthmore College, from the Gel Conference 2009.

This presentation is about the need to embrace, or rather re-embrace, the notion expounded by Aristotle of practical wisdom. The classical idea of ‘virtue’, which is refracted through our modern life experiences and emerges as ‘practical wisdom’ or phronesis…

Barry Schwartz at Gel 2009 from Gel Conference on Vimeo.

The short film above offers a view of this process, or rather how, in the current economic and socially turbulent times, we have lost or missed the key elements of wisdom in our dealings with each other, the institutions we serve or the people we entreat with.

The ideas expressed are as telling now as they ever were during the banking crisis of 2009.

Educators and childcare specialists can also find insight in Barry Schwartz’s talk – offering some interesting observations, as it does on teaching, rules in childcare settings and the difficulties of parenting.

The key message in the talk is perhaps that, following crises, we seek to implement more and more rules to prevent the crisis recurring. The stronger and stronger reliance on rules, Schwartz argues, ultimately deprives us of the moral skill to successfully negotiate our day to day relationships.

This key idea, having the moral will to do right, is intimately linked in this argument to developing the moral skills necessary to do the right thing.

As the shoot from the hip, reactive policy changes in current education, social care, health and charitable environments occur, it is easy to find parallels in the arguments presented by Schwarz.

What is missing, it can be argued, is the moral will of the actions taken. What effect does this have on a person, on a people, not only on the process, not only on the institution.

Professor Schwartz delivers his points in a humorous and easily understood way – making the power and challenge in his arguments even more telling. See what you think…

(What is Gel? “Short for “Good Experience Live”, Gel is a conference and community exploring good experience in all its forms – in art, business, technology, society, and life”. See more on the Gel website here.)

I was given a book mark yesterday by one of my colleagues. It carried the following inscription.

Those who say it cannot be done…

Should not interrupt the person doing it.  

(Ancient Chinese Proverb)

There’s no telling how the wisdom of China came to be on the bookmark, or yet still how to test the veracity of its origins in the short time since I read it.

However, I had been thinking about it through a couple of politically bumpy client meetings yesterday. Having a vision, having scoped alternative courses of action and begun the journey to realising your project, then there should come a time when the nay-sayers or constructive critiques about the original concept should fall gently away…I would wish to argue.

If your project has a sound ethical and inclusive focus, then you should remain true to your vision, realising that new enterprises, of whatever type, are difficult to begin, difficult to make happen and difficult to manage when they go live.

You need that period of buoyancy and enthusiasm in the start-up phase, untrammelled by the gloomy onlooker, to enable you to realise your successful outcomes.

My bookmark reflection led me to two conclusions today.

As an accidental serial entrepreneur in my own tiny corner of existence,  I recognise that occasionally projects do fold in on themselves no matter how good your heart or muscular your approach.

I also chided myself for not saying any of the above during the meeting.

(I think there’s another blog entry in that last line too!)

Tim Smith

Partner at SmithMartin

I wondered why I had decided to to travel to Kew to spend an afternoon at The National Archives.

Not normally for me to be interested in row upon row of carefully sealed shelves and files containing invaluable documents and manuscripts.

The London branch of The School Library Association had planned the day and it was fantastic!

One hundred and ten miles of carefully sealed shelves, only ever to be touched by the white gloves….we looked at maps of the 1600′s and the invasion of Caribbean islands, beautifully painted in water colour.

In the Education Room we studied a document which, after a Dan Brown type of investigation turned out to be a police report about two suffragettes burning a hotel in Felixstowe.

Lots of resources and an incredible website, where material can be downloaded(good plan to mention The National Archives) and can be a real bonus for research and for collecting more information. Excellent for schools and for anyone ready to learn.

Sue Martin

Dolphin Booksellers the best in children’s books always on line

An interesting report from The Social Market Foundation explores a new way to support the affordability of formal childcare for working parents.

It is based on a similar approach to the student loans model and aims to spread the load of childcare costs over a longer period of time.

The advantages for parents would be that the significant costs of childcare would be lessened immediately, and may well enable parents to continue in working arrangements without the worry of escalating childcare costs.

For the government there would be no cost and it would bolster incentives to work, helping to make work pay, as well as the drive to ensure the access to high quality early years care and education.

This would seem to be a solution to families who are in long term employment and have a foreseeable future in their careers. It could be a positive step in ensuring that childcare costs can be calculated into their budgets over time.

It will be interesting to see if it is an option for part time and casual employment, or is an incentive to start looking for work in an environment where being unable to pay in the short term is the main driver to making the decision to return to work or not.

Download a pdf copy of the document here.

The Social Market Foundation, a think tank developing innovative ideas on social and economic policy.

Sue Martin

Nothing new in the fact that childcare is hard to afford and the cost remains one of the biggest barriers to accessing high quality early years education.

The good news is the extension of free places to 40% of the most disadvantaged 2 year olds and the 15 hours a week for 3 -5 year olds. But there remains the problem of the impact that the freeze on aspects of the child tax credit and working tax credit creates.

But there is good news in the London authority of Westminster. A brilliant pilot says Children and Young People Now, “Should go some way to show parents making the first steps into work that childcare is affordable and necessary to boost aspiration and social mobility.”

To secure a place at a nursery parents can be asked for approx £1000 to pay for the first 4 – 6 weeks. Quite daunting and often impossible.

Westminster’s affordability pilot, which will run until 2013, will underwrite the risk and postpone the fees for about 90 families. Parents will then pay at the end of the 6 week period, allowing for a delay in tax credit receipts.

Anna Devine, Childcare Marketing Facilitation Manager for Westminster, is confident that the programme will enable families to take the first steps and it is only if the parent does default that Westminster will have to pay the setting.

A positive move from a local authority when times are difficult and one step towards making life easier and a better chance for young children.

Sue Martin

Some startling figures emerging about Children’s Centre closures…

In November the government confirmed that 124 Sure Start centres had closed, (Children and Young People Now). In addition, there is much evidence that formation of clusters and alternative ways of meeting the community needs are being applied in local authorities.

When the council budgets are being squeezed there have to be cuts on the ground. The impact on centres and communities is felt by some of the people most in need.

Mergers, clusters, closures may be unavoidable when finance is the main driver.

The benefit of a good neighbourhood Sure Start Children’s Centre for all the community is incalculable. One that is serving the needs and being there for young children and their families creates enormous social wealth and prevents much hardship.

We welcome the opportunities that an All Party Parliamentary Sure Start group will bring to the continued existence and governmental backing for Sure Start Children’s Centres.

Childcare policy and the wider role of the community was the focus of the Daycare Trust annual conference in London on 22 November.

A subject one would expect to have been well and truly embedded in the structure of our society. All the evidence clearly indicates the benefit of excellent early years environments and good foundations for young children. The effect on raising aspirations and morale of parents, enabling all to enjoy this crucial time in their lives is such a bonus.

Kate Groucutt, Policy Director provided information about the numbers of Children’s Centres that are facing major changes or have closed, in the light of budget cuts. The removal of ring fenced budgets means that local authorities are, in some cases having to make major cuts.

Harriet Harman reflected that a child- centred’ view is what many parents want and that it should be part of the infra structure. It is a universal requirement and not just for those parents in most need.

Other speakers included; Professor John Mohan  from Southampton University, Lynn Chesterman from the Grandparents Association, representatives from Children’s Centres and local authorities,Professor Pat Thane, social historian, from King’s College and Sarah Teather, Minister of State for Children and Families.

Daycare Trust, still in the driving seat campaigning for childcare and the provider of research, training and consultancy.

Sue Martin

SmithMartin Partnership LLP – bringing life to communities – centres and enterprise

We have always liked the Open Culture web site, which is probably the very best of free learning and education media resources on the internet.

We are particularly keen to embed translation into the web sites we build at Thirdsectorweb for clients, for example. So having a language learning resource that is free and readily available on the internet is a great thing…we think.

The Open Culture learn a language pages are here. However, they include much more than just the language per se. You can also dip into cultural aspects of your target language, the majority available on iTunes or as direct downloads from the relevant web site.

What better way to bridge a cultural and geographic gap, than to learn some key phrases in another language? Find our more here.

Just a single click away and just as importantly, freely available in the same formats, are over 400 courses from major learning institutions.

Whether your interest is law, the classics, history, journalism or philosophy – there is a wealth of knowledge and research experience freely available to you here.

Explore your mind…in the company of others, at no cost.

What the internet was really built for…probably.

(Image: Plato - Creative Commons/Public Domain)

Bunker Roy explains an amazing college and concept in Rajasthan, India. An extraordinary school teaches rural women and men — many of them illiterate — to become solar engineers, artisans, dentists and doctors in their own villages.

It’s called the Barefoot College.

Through TED, Bunker Roy, founder of Barefoot College explains that it works without money or qualifications. In fact if you have any qualifications you are not able to attend.

In remote villages in India and also Afghanistan, projects which have benefited the communities have reshaped people’s lives. The women have been given training and help to make projects work. They made solar cables and equipment to bring light to their villages. Imagine the difference that light at night has made to their lives. The cost is negligible and uses resources like sunlight, always there.

‘What is the best way to communicate?’ asks Bunker Roy. ‘Is it telephone, television…. No telewoman!’

It is an engaging video and inspiring speaker with a calm and quiet confidence. Despite having the best education in India Bunker Roy wanted to work with the villages, his mother wouldn’t speak to him for 5 years.

No money no problem! And even a project to make puppets out of recycled World Bank papers!!

SmithMartin Partnership – bringing communities together