Higher Education Field Academy (HEFA) - 6th, 7th and 8th July 2016

Earlier this month Ely College students were in the lovely village of Rampton, on the edge of The Fens six miles to the north of Cambridge. The locals were friendly (especially the cats and dogs in one test pit), the weather stayed dry and we joined some great students from Bottisham Village College, Soham Village College and Cottenham Village College. 11 archaeological test-pits were located throughout the village on King Street, Church End, Cow Lane and the High Street. Alison Wedgbury of the Fen Edge Archaeology Group organised the test-pits which were located in the gardens of local residents and Rampton Village Hall served as the base for the two digging days. This is the third year ACA have held a HEFA in Rampton and the fifth year Ely College has taken part.

After receiving a briefing on Day 1 by Alison Dickens, Director of ACA, about how to excavate and record the test pits, the students went out on site and excavated for 2 days through the heavy clay, and sometimes thick roots, of Rampton. They worked brilliantly, in mixed-school teams, supervised by teachers and local volunteers. Also helping out this year was Emma Smith, Schools Liaison Officer at Homerton College, and ex- archaeology student at Cambridge; someone students could relate to and ask questions of, as she now works to widen access to Cambridge and help students make informed choices about university.

Cat Collins, ACA archaeological supervisor, and Paul Blinkhorn, pottery expert, toured the test pits providing guidance on excavating and recording techniques as well as identifying finds and pottery sherds. This real-time identification and assistance is of great value. Test pits that had been discouraged at finding very little were encouraged as Paul walked around the village adding some perspective on the things they were finding some of which were up to 900 years old. Paul’s full pottery report is available here.

The students recorded all of their findings context-by-context in their individual Test Pit Excavation Record Booklets. They then use this to write up their own report on what they found. We also keep the records they produce which then informs academic research about Rampton itself, the record of Cambridgeshire and the wider CORS project . Ely College students really are contributing in a big way to ongoing academic research at the University of Cambridge by taking part in HEFA. 

In previous years small amount of Roman pottery had been found which we added to this year in Test Pits 6, 10 and 11. Test Pit 11 had been finding very little, without the usual appearance of large amounts of Victorian pottery and more modern refuse. However by mid-morning Day 2 they were struggling through the heavy clays of Rampton when they came across a 1-inch fragment of dark grey pottery which turned out to be Roman, made between 100-400AD. Previous years have told us where settlements were concentrated in different periods, with finds of High Medieval pottery concentrated around the centre of the current village, and Late Medieval sherds coming from just outside that. It is only into the Post-Medieval and Victorian ages that dating evidence emerges from the furthest outlying pits. This year we continued to define the edges of the settlement with test pits 10, 9, 8, 6, 3 and 2 finding a lower density of pottery, and from later, suggesting their use as fields around the village before more recently being built on. Test Pits 5 and 4 have a higher concentration of medieval pottery, suggesting occupation there, but less from later periods suggesting they were then abandoned.

After two days excavating, students  got to spend their third day at the Archaeology Department in Cambridge. Despite living so close to Cambridge, many of the students had never seen the ‘gown’ side of the town and were excited to see the different colleges and departments. We at Ely College in particular, arriving early, took the opportunity to visit the Sedgwick Museum of Earth Sciences and started discussions about what going to a university so close to home might be like. Before long everyone had arrived and it was off for our first university lecture- a talk about the wider Currently Occupied Rural Settlement project from Debby Banham.

The students then split into groups for lunch and a tour at Trinity College. These tours were given by the schools liaison officers (SLO). Sam Twells, SLO for Corpus Christi, then gave a presentation to the pupils about the University of Cambridge and life as a university student.

The day concluded with Eoin Parkinson, pHD student at the Department of Archaeology giving a presentation on how to structure and present a written account of the excavation. The report collates and provides evidence for all of the skills students take from this course which they can then use when applying to 6^th form, university and beyond. Students themselves recognise this saying in their feedback they now know how to produce a report and “I have gained new skills, an insight into archaeology and a better understanding of university work and application”. The work also boosted confidence with one student saying the realised that getting into a ‘good’ university was a possibility for them.

Staff on the trip also appreciated the trust the University and ACA team put in the students to produce high quality archaeological work saying “being regarded as organised, adult individual helps boost their confidence and look towards the future”. Students felt they had gained other skills such as independent thinking, teamwork, communication: “I feel I am more able to work with new people and have more confidence”, “a lot of new and valuable knowledge and experience”.

We would like offer the ACA team and the University a huge thank you for offering this programme and supporting Ely College as a Beacon School over the last few years. Having this relationship and the opportunities it offers on our door step is something we look forward to expanding on in the future. HEFA coordinator at Ely College, Mrs Vella would also like to add thanks to all the staff and students at Bottisham, Soham, Cottenham. It was a pleasure working with you all and we look forward to seeing you next year hopefully!

Gentle Reminder: Students who attended the programme can email Mrs Vella at any point over the summer for support in writing their reports (kvella@elycollege.co.uk) and follow the HEFA at Ely College Twitter and Facebook links for hints, tips and photo sharing.

Follow us: Facebook and Twitter

https://www.facebook.com/HEFAElyCollege

https://twitter.com/hefa_elycollege

 

Credit:  Taken and adapted from ACA blog with thanks. https://accesscambridgearchaeology.wordpress.com/

The Health Related Behaviour Survey in Secondary Schools

Some Questions Answered

Why does the survey ask for our postcode and does this mean we can be identified?

The postcode can not identify individual homes and is only used to look at the information about children’s health in local communities. This is very useful for Public Health who need information to help them target their resources and support most effectively.

Schools, too, can work with their Locality Teams to identify parts of their communities which may need extra support and care.

 

Why my child is asked if they have free school meals?

The government has set Cambridgeshire tough targets to reduce inequalities in health and achievement for children and young people.  We know that, generally speaking, children from homes with lower than average incomes may achieve less well and have more problems in terms of their health and wellbeing, although, clearly, this is not always the case. The government’s chosen indicator for this group of children/ young people is those who have free school meals and there are plans and programmes to give them and their families’ additional support.

Being able to look at the survey information for this group of children/young people in our communities can help us see if these programmes are really helping and judge what more could and should be done.

 

Won’t some questions upset and worry my child?

Young people are always told that they do not have to answer any questions with which they are uncomfortable and most of the more sensitive questions have a “Rather not say” option.

Pupils are reassured that, although important, the survey is not an “exam” or “test” of them. Our experience is that young people find the survey and the areas it covers interesting and stimulating for discussion.

 

Is the survey reliable? Surely some young people will lie?

Yes some probably will. But we take a lot of trouble to stress the importance of honest answers and this is reinforced by emphasising that the survey is genuinely anonymous. Even if some do lie, the size of the sample means that it would take a lot of young people to lie in one way to change the results.

 

Is this just more information that will end up in a computer somewhere never to be seen again?

We are a busy and fully committed school and we would not give our staff and pupils any more work to do if we didn’t feel it was of real benefit to us and what we do. We know this information will help us meet the needs of our young people and their families better. Also we are committed to sharing it with you to support our partnership of care for children and young people.

 

 

A sample copy of the survey currently being offered to Ely College students in Years 8 and 10 can be viewed here.

 

We would like to share with you this lovely poem written by Year 10 student Jiaolin Chen. Our EAL team were very impressed with her original poem and suggested that Jiaolin translate it into English and enter it into the 'Mother Tongue, Other Tongue' competition.

This Laureate Education Project is a multilingual poetry competition that celebrates cultural diversity and the many languages spoken in schools in the UK.

Below is also a short explanation from Jiaolin. We wish her every success in the competition.

记忆中的那双手          The Hand in the Memory        

        - 致我的母亲                   - To my Mum 

陈娇琳                          by  Jiaolin Chen                                                                                                                   

手，记忆中的那双。                                            Hand, the hand in the memory,           

摊开时，默默的拉着小手，                                 when spread out hand,       

然后一起前行。那是一份爱                                 Silently holding little hands,                  

紧握时，紧紧的握着小手，                                 Then forward together, this is love            

那是一种力量，也是一种鼓励                             When clasping the hands.                   

鼓励着我迈出人生第一步。                                 Tightly grip the little hands.                  

再一次摊开手，                                                     It is a force, it is also a kind of encouragement.    

慢慢的放开了小手，                                             She encouraged me to take the first step in life. 

挥舞着双手.                                                           Once again, spread out hand,                  

是别离，也是期盼                                                 slowly let go off the hands. Waving the Hands   

默默的擦着脸，留下的是感动。                          Is the separation, it is also expectations          

当双手并在一起。                                                 Quietly wipe the face, leaving behind the       

是祈祷，也是一种寄托。                                      Moved                                   

如今这双手，依旧温暖，但慢慢的变粗糙           when both hands together                   

泪眼朦胧，心心想念记忆中妈妈的手。               Is prayer, is also a kind of sustenance.          

记忆中的那双手，我会把它藏在心里，               Now the hands are still warm, but slowly become

因为女儿对妈妈的爱永远不变                              coarse. Teary-eyed, miss the memory of my

                                                                                Mum’s hands

                                                                                Hand in the memory; I will put in my heart.

 

This poem’s title is “The Hand in the Memory”. This is my own poem; I wrote this poem in 2015 and I wrote this poem to my mum. In 2002 my dad came to England, he had been in England for 14 years. Over the years I had been living with my mum in China.  My mum loves me very much. When I was young my mum was “Silently holding my hands,” protecting me.  When I was 7 years old, I went to school “Tightly grip my hands”. She encouraged me when I needed to leave her, she prayed for me. So I wrote this poem. I want to say thanks to my mum, and let her know that “Daughter of Mother's Love never changes.”

Sixth Form students at Ely College took part in a Stress<Less Campaign run by the charity MIND last week.

The aim of the campaign was to train students to help support other students through the stress of exams. The training was very informative and interesting and gave the students various strategies to help them through the exam season.

Read more here: http://www.cambridge-news.co.uk/Hundreds-Cambridgeshire-students-helped-month/story-29288826-detail/story.html

Ely College PSFA are holding a Disco on Friday 13th May at the College for lower school students; Years 7,8,9.

Sophie Martin, Chairperson of the PSFA, has been delighted by the offers of help from both parents, carers and staff, but if anyone else would like to offer help on the night please contact her on smartin@elycollege.co.uk.

We are hoping that the disco will be another huge success, helping the PSFA to raise funds for the college.

Further events are already being discussed, and we are all very much looking forward to meeting many more volunteers into our PSFA.