An Exploration of the Use of Break Times to Promote the Social Curriculum in Secondary Schools

The social curriculum is taught implicitly in many schools and, whilst the new 'citizenship education' attempts to structure this 'hidden curriculum', secondary school break times seem to be providing pupils with opportunities to learn social and citizenship skills. The writer suggests that break times, especially in secondary schools, are an unused resource for developing values inherent in citizenship education. Currently there is little research which includes an investigation into the secondary school break time and which aims to understand the social value of break times. This paper reports such an investigation and suggests that break time is a potential location for the development of skills relating to citizenship.     

Excluding Primary School Children – The Outcomes Six Years On

This article reports and discusses a study which followed up, through case records, 726 children excluded permanently, indefinitely or for fixed–term periods in 1993/4 in 10 LEAs. The outcomes at secondary level in 1998/9 were found to be moderately poor with the problems intensifying for half the sample. Forty six per cent had further primary school exclusions and 36 per cent received exclusions in their secondary education. Looked–after children and those with special educational needs fared worse and achieved less. Case studies showed the kinds of commitment and support that can work even with very difficult cases.