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Apart from role as Director of Studies, I am also Head
of English within my school. My colleagues and I (and indeed
former colleagues) have always felt it is very hard to find
a single English text book for a year group that doesn't
cost the earth and covers what we want it to cover! Eighteen
months ago, sitting around the swimming pool in Greece,
I was thinking about this problem again. Having a notebook
to hand, I started to write just such a textbook for year
7 pupils. Over the course of the summer I completed the
book and got a local print shop to copy and bind it for
me. We are now onto the second edition of the book, which
has been copyrighted.
The nature of the text and tasks is such that pupils are
not simply left to work on it alone - it is very definitely
provides a dialogue between pupils and teacher. As I have
electronic copies we are able to use it on the interactive
whiteboard and, as a group, we can type in the responses
on screen. It is called "Ramsfleet English" because many
of the tasks are based in a fictional town call "Ramsfleet"
and it is entirely geared to our own scheme of work.
While it is by means unique for a teacher to produce a
textbook, I do think the benefits of this text are unique
because it is not geared to a wider publishing audience
but to the pupils we see at our school. It may be updated
and amended easily each year because the cost is low (£2.50
per copy) and isn't a problem if pupils wish to keep their
copy. Probably the most important benefit is the attitude
of the pupils - they regard it has a book written especially
for them and they take it that I/we have therefore placed
a huge emphasis upon their needs in the subject. This feedback
comes from both parent and pupils.
While producing a book is enormously hard work, it is to
be recommended. Planning for lessons during the busiest
times of term has never been easier and when possible I
intend to produce similar texts for other year groups.
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