Colors: Green Color

Former Walsall College student, Jermaine Francis, who is now an established fashion portrait and beauty photography, returned to his roots to talk to current students at the college about his successful career and assess their work.

Jermaine studied Pre-degree Foundation Art and Design at the college, specialising in Photography, before going on to study Photography and Critical Theory at Derbyshire University. He has since gone on and carved an illustrious career and photographed numerous talents, including, Emma Stone, Bradley Cooper, Rosamund Pike, Natalie Dormer, Winnie Harlow and Cara Delevigne, as well as also contributing to publications, and brands such as Harpers Bazaar UK, Vogue China, Vogue Japan, Bon, Porter Magazine, Stella McCartney, Roland Mouret, Gieves & Hawkes and Sky.

Jermaine has also appeared in the Thames & Hudson Publication ‘Fashion Photography Next’ and was recently included as a guest speaker at the Photo London Festival, and is Exhibiting at The National Portrait Gallery as part of the Taylor Wessing Portrait Competition.

Jermaine said: “Completing a Foundation Art and Design course at Walsall College gave me an advantage, not just when I went to university but also in my career. The tutors at the college were amazing and really left a lasting impression on me.

“They taught me how to talk about the work I had created and about my own practice. In the photographic and fashion industry, art directors and editors are all visually literate, so these skills have been important in helping me to advance my career.”

Alan Tyler, Curriculum Manager for Creative Industries at Walsall College said: “We are delighted that Jermaine was able to take time out of his busy schedule and help inspire our next generation of artists, as they are on the verge of forging their own careers.

“Our Pre-Degree Foundation Art and Design course is a great vehicle for students to explore a range of different mediums and then choose a specialist pathway for their final project. It also encourages independence in their work in preparation for study at a higher level and future paths.

“There is a strong culture of progression on this programme as the course is highly recognised by the competitive universities and art schools. Jermaine is a shining example of how the course can launch successful careers in the sector.”

Young students, representatives of youth organizations, scholars, media persons and civil society activists gathered here Wednesday to honour 10 young girls and boys from across the country who won art and writing competitions on culture of democracy, tolerance and inclusion.

Trust for Democratic Education and Accountability – Free and Fair Election Network (TDEA-FAFEN), hosted the event, which organized the competitions as part of its larger campaign titled as “Sab Ka Pakistan” ran between August 2016 and March 2017. The organization through Sab Ka Pakistan campaign promoted pro-democracy narrative through social media campaign, establishment of a Democratic Pakistan Forum, organizing debates around challenges to democracy and operating space for civil society, dialogue sessions with journalists and young students in 32 districts across Pakistan.

The young participants of the competition from colleges, schools, universities and religious seminaries depicted their understanding of concepts of inclusive democracy, tolerance and respect for diversity through their artwork and writings, which were exhibited during the ceremony.

FAFEN Chairperson Sarwar Bari, who chaired the ceremony, emphasized the role and power of citizens especially the youth to serve as a catalyst for positive change. He said womenfolk did not enjoy freedom of choice in the electoral process and were found missing from the democratic discourse in Pakistan. Bari also called for inclusion of weaker sections of the society in governance to realize the dream of real democracy.

TDEA-FAFEN Chief Executive Officer Shahid Fiaz congratulated the winners of the essay writing and art competitions and expressed pleasure that students from far flung districts had participated in the competition and depicted sound understanding of democracy and culture of tolerance in their artwork. “World considers Pakistan a homogenous society but there is a lot of diversity in this country which is our strength”, he stated.

Chairperson of the State Commission for Women, Azad Jammu and Kashmir, Maria Iqbal Tarana recalled the constructive role that student unions played in promoting democratic discourse among the youth. She urged the students to revive positive tradition of student unions so that these could serve as nurseries and inculcate in them democratic traditions for promotion of democracy in the country.

Executive Director of Chanan Welfare Organization Muhammad Shehzad Khan urged the students to appreciate diversity of cultures in Pakistan and actively engage and contribute to the democratic processes. He asked the eligible voters to review the election manifestoes of political parties prior to casting their votes. Zaheer Abbas Maseed of College for Youth Activism and Development also spoke on the occasion and advised the students to understand their role and responsibilities as citizens of the state.

Team Leader Rashid Chaudhry briefed the participants about TDEA-FAFEN’s engagement with the youth during DESP project and informed the audience that dialogues with young students had been arranged in 32 districts across four provinces of the country to initiate a discourse on tolerance, democracy and social inclusion. These dialogues engaged 7,000 youth, with more than 45% girls getting enrolled in various educational institutions including schools, colleges, religious seminaries and universities. The students from across the country sent 135 entries to TDEA-FAFEN’s Secretariat.

Laiba Saeed, Rida Zahra and Farhat Shaheen received cash prizes of Rs. 50,000 and Rs 25,000 each in essay writing competition. Hira Bibi, Asif Sultan and Aarti Partaap were winners of Poster Designing and Photography competitions while Sadaf Hanif, Muhammad Arslan, Iqra Samad and Muhammad Adnan were winners of the Drawing competition, who also got similar cash prizes. The winning students belonged to Sahiwal, Faisalabad, Rajanpur, Mardan, Kambar Shahdadkot, Swat, and Sukkur districts.

The University of Warwick’s new teaching building, the Oculus, has been officially opened by Her Royal Highness The Princess Royal.

The Princess Royal visited the campus on Thursday 30 March and unveiled a plaque in the building which is the University’s first dedicated completely to teaching. The Oculus consists of two large state-of-the-art tiered lecture theatres, 12 other top quality flexible teaching spaces, study areas and a café.

Her Royal Highness was received by the Lord-Lieutenant of West Midlands, Mr John Crabtree and was presented to a number of dignitaries including the Vice-Chancellor, University of Warwick Professor Stuart Croft, Chairman of WMG Professor Lord Kumar Bhattacharyya, the High Sheriff of West Midlands, Dr Keith Bradshaw and the Lord Mayor of Coventry Councillor Lindsley Harvard.

Commenting on the visit Professor Croft said: “The Oculus has been designed to bring together the strengths of the University’s departments to widen the worlds of students through innovative teaching resources and social learning spaces. We are extremely proud to have on our campus world class teaching and seminar spaces, innovative social learning and network spaces.”

During her visit Her Royal Highness met students and staff including two members of academic staff who last year were named as National Teaching Fellows; Margaret Low, principal teaching fellow, WMG and Rachel Dickinson, principal teaching fellow, Warwick Business School. The National Teaching Fellowship Scheme (NTFS) is run by the Higher Education Academy to recognise and celebrate the absolute highest standards of learning and teaching across higher education. HRH was also introduced to Professor Gwen Van der Velden, academic director, Warwick International Higher Education Academy.

At the end of her tour of the building The Princess Royal  unveiled the plaque in the ground floor foyer. It is the second time Her Royal Highness has marked the development of the Oculus. In October 2015 HRH visited the University to celebrate its 50th Anniversary and unveiled the foundation stone of the building.

This month (March) the QS World University Rankings by Subject were published placing 10 subjects at the University of Warwick to be in the world’s top 50 – with one, English and Comparative Literary Studies, in the top 20. In February the University was as one of the world’s most international universities by the THE (Times Higher Education). Recognised for its international outlook, research influence and global academic reputation, Warwick was ranked 17th in the world.

A team comprising 7 students from the Department of Electrical Engineering at the Syed Babar Ali School of Science and Engineering (SBASSE), LUMS participated in the Shell Eco-marathon Asia, held for the first time in Singapore. The event, attended by over 20, 000 people, was organised at the Changi Exhibition Centre.

In total, 123 teams from across the Asia-Pacific region competed in the competition where students were challenged to push through the boundaries to build energy efficient vehicles. The LUMS team, MotoLUMS represented Pakistan and presented their prototype vehicle built using an Aluminium frame with an in-house ‘carbon fiber’ top to compensate weight for fuel efficiency. The team successfully passed the “Technical and Safety Inspection” criterion.

The project operations of MotoLUMS were carried out under the supervision of the Energy and Power Systems (EPS) cluster and the Physics Lab at SBASSE. The ten month project was mentored by LUMS faculty members, Dr. Nauman Zaffar and Dr. Sabieh Anwar. The team was supported by Descon Engineering.

Education experts from the Czech Republic, Greece, Ireland and the UK are teaming up to up skill teachers in the early identification of gifted and talented students in schools.

By sharing academic research and examples of best practice from across the continent, it is hoped that a new curriculum can be developed transnationally that enables the most able students to reach their potential within mainstream education.

The project, known as EUREKA, has been made possible as a result of funding from the European Union’s Erasmus+ initiative.

Alongside study visits for professionals from across Europe, academics involved plan to deliver a handbook for teachers on gifted and talented provision in each country involved, as well as produce a recommendation paper for decision makers and strategists.

The UK activity is being led by Birmingham City University’s School of Education and Social Work, in collaboration with the Titan Partnership, a membership network that aims to combat disadvantage and help improve to life chances of children and young people.

Dr Eleni Kanira, Senior Lecturer in Early Childhood Studies at Birmingham City University, said:

“Education systems should aim to ensure that all pupils – regardless of background – can complete their studies. Schools and other institutions, therefore, must create an atmosphere of acceptance and recognition of their most able students that doesn’t allow a disadvantaged background to become a barrier to achievement.

“We need to ensure that practitioners across Europe and beyond have the correct knowledge and skills for early identification of a talented child, which is bolstered by support from their parents and families.”

Birmingham City University and the Titan Partnership will be working with collaborators from the Pedagogical Counselling and Assessment Centre (KPPP) in Zlín, Czech Republic, the Galway and Roscommon Education and Training Board (GRETB) in Ireland and the Greek educational organisation, Ellinogermaniki Agogi.

EUREKA officially commences in June this year, when the academic participants will deliver a five-day training programme in Zlín to build the skills and knowledge to identify most able learners at an early stage.

It will include observation and shadowing at both local schools and the Assessment Centre in Zlín, as well as workshops and seminars with teachers and educational psychologists.

Sarah Bonser is Senior Lecturer in Secondary Mathematics Education at Birmingham City University and a member of the institution’s Teach First team. She added:

“We have already compared and contrasted provision of gifted and talented identification and support in each partner country. From this research, we have highlighted key examples of best practice to share transnationally including supplementary teaching activities which require pupils to use problem solving, enquiry, critical thinking and research skills.

“Gifted and talented learners can be identified based on progress that exceeds that of their peers significantly. They are often good at making links both within the subject content and across topics. They excel at learning when provided with resources that ask for consideration of ‘big ideas’, analogising and the identification of trends and patterns. Rich tasks and mastery approaches often suit gifted and talented students.”

Following the training programme in Zlín, partners Ellinogermaniki Agogi and GRETB will prepare additional resources, including a guide to support identification training and a resource directory of best practice ideas and materials from across the partner countries.

In 2018, a further training programme and conference will be organised and delivered by Birmingham City University, which aims to support teaching practice and curriculum adaptation to ensure the most able students are sufficiently challenged.

Hosted at the University’s City South Campus in the Birmingham suburb of Edgbaston, this five-day conference will be attended by teachers from the Czech Republic, Greece, Ireland and the UK, which will also offer networking opportunities for schools wishing to develop links to international schools.

Students at a school in Bushbury are the first to get their hands on some of the life-size Wolves set to bring a splash of colour to the city from July to September.

A pack of three fibre glass Wolves have been delivered to the Moreton School in Old Fallings Lane, as part of the Wolves in Wolves project.

As with other designers across the city the school has been partnered with sponsors to create artwork to decorate the wolves.

The pupils, aged between 11 and 18, have been working on designs for the Mayoral wolf, with Mayor of Wolverhampton, Councillor Barry Findlay, set to choose the winner shortly.

The students are also designing the Clinical Commissioning Group (CCG) wolf and Head of Art, Jody Williams, will be decorating one for Yoo Recruit.

Wolves in Wolves, is being organised by The Outside Centre and Enjoy Wolverhampton, with support from City of Wolverhampton Council.

It will see 30 sculptures of wolves placed around the City of Wolverhampton, creating the largest public art event in the city.

Moreton School Headteacher, Nicola Bayliss, said: "We're really excited to be involved in such a prestigious project.

“This is great opportunity for our school to showcase our creativity.

“Since we found out that we had been selected to be part of the design team there’s been a real buzz in the school, it’s an absolute privilege to be asked to get involved and we can’t wait to get started."

Councillor John Reynolds, Cabinet Member for City Economy, added: “Wolves in Wolves is a great opportunity to showcase the city to visitors.

“Businesses, schools and residents are working closely together, as demonstrated by the fantastic contribution from the pupils and staff at the Moreton School.

“It is an exciting project that will help put the city on the map as a cultural centre.

“It is also a fun way for families to get active and discover the city and what it has to offer.”

The wolves will form a trail of approximately 4.5 miles, with maps available nearer the time.

The ambition with Wolves in Wolves is to combine a quality artistic and cultural event with associated public health, educational and economic benefits.

Once the event is finished, the majority of the sculptures will be auctioned off to raise money for several charities.

Dr Paul Darke of The Outside Centre said: “Wolves in Wolves is the beginning of a new Wolverhampton cultural project for us; throwing out the drab, the negative and the misconceptions for a future of colour, hope and ensuring people from across the region, country, and internationally, see Wolverhampton for the great cultural city that it is.”