Dry January: Does it lead to binge-drinking in February?

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/health-46949102


This is an excellent article which poses the question about the fairly recent inception of 'Dry January'.


So does a month off drinking help people form new habits, or is it likely to lead to a February binge?


I would love to hear from you if you participated in Dry January (if you drink), or know of anybody who did, or what you think about the content of the article.


I know a lot of my friends, information gleaned from Facebook of course, went on proper binges post January, so there could be some mileage in the claims. A case of going from Detox to Retox if you will!


As always, please comment below at your leisure. All feedback welcomed.


Many thanks,


Mark

Alan Turing is named BBC's 20th Century Icon after passionate speech from Chris Packham

This is a short, but nevertheless impressive, passionate and measured presentation from Chris Packham. 

Scientist and World War Two codebreaker Alan Turing has been named 'The Greatest Person of the 20th Century' in the live final of BBC Two's Icons series. 

On Tuesday (February 5), Turing won the public vote after being up against fellow finalists Dr Martin Luther King, Nelson Mandela, Ernest Shackleton, David Bowie, Muhammad Ali and Pablo Picasso.

Let me know what you think about the presentation. 

https://mobile.twitter.com/bbctwo/status/1093192600239001600

Some essay titles used in previous years

Great class today and we had some very good discussion about possible essay titles.


These are some titles written by students in previous years which might help whet your appetite?


Remember, think about the sources you are using, look at the range of sources in the example essays and perhaps places like the NHS, The Guardian, NHS Conditions, BBC, NHS Scotland, Nursing Times could be good starting points for research.


Take your time with the essay and you have plenty of time.


To what extent is nursing training today better than in the past? Academic vs Hands on training


DNACPR and the law in the UK.


Big Pharma and the pharmaceutical companies


Asthma and the effects of Singulair


Is the NHS prejudiced against obesity?


Doctor Google - friend or foe?


Privatising the NHS


Obesity and the cost to the NHS in Scotland


Why the use of ECT should be banned


Talking to children about their bodies. Should it be left to the parents?


Euthanasia - should we have the right to make the choice to die?


Give every mother the chance to save their unborn baby's life


The cost of the UK's first 'fix rooms' for addicts in Glasgow


Obesity in children


Prescription drug addiction


Lazy parenting and obesity

Links to some good sites on essay writing

Here are a few links to sites where you will get some more information on writing essays (argumentative and persuasive).

http://access-socialstudies.cappelendamm.no/c319365/artikkel/vis.html?tid=382115

https://academichelp.net/academic-assignments/essay/write-persuasive-essay.html

http://www.phrasebank.manchester.ac.uk/

Strike / Communication

Hi all,


Just a quick note to say that if you contact me tomorrow with any remediation / report information, I will not be able to reply on the day. As I will be on strike, that means that all labour is withdrawn, so just a quick message to say I won't be ignoring your messages, just that it will have to wait until Wednesday or Thursday.


All the best,


Mark


https://www.facebook.com/honourthedeal/

Mental health crisis in teens is being magnified by demise of creative subjects in school

https://theconversation.com/mental-health-crisis-in-teens-is-being-magnified-by-demise-of-creative-subjects-in-school-102383


This is an interesting article worth looking at. There has been a lot written about creative subjects of late, and in particular I have been deeply saddened that some councils in Scotland are scrapping free music tuition.


It has always been my opinion that music helps develop self esteem through challenging “comfort zones” through public performance & constructive feedback.


It helps to develop a child’s world wide cultural awareness, so much political history, language skills, geographical awareness, not to mention the exposure to around seven centuries worth of cultural output.


Learning to sing or play an instrument has empirical evidence of neurological development.


It’s a wonderful stress reliever.


I was once a proficient classical musician and have never forgotten the numerous positives that music has given me in my own personal development when at school.


I look forward to your comments.

Proposed plan of action for the next few weeks

Hello all,

Below is how I propose to run the classes for the next few weeks.

7th February - discuss essay writing, look at the second writing assessment (vocationally relevant topic of your choosing), look at exemplar materials and some signposting to some helpful websites. A submission date will be agreed in this class.

14th February - sadly no chocolates and flowers, but something way better...watching a TED talk in class, discussing the content, looking at Listening questions and how to answer them.

21st February - looking at the presentation we will have watched on 14/2/19 and answering questions in line with the ones we will use for the actual assessment.

28th February - one further practice Listening presentation.

7th March - it is anticipated that I will know what the assessment presentation will be at this point. The Listening and Reading assessments are now centralised across the whole college instead of me preparing them!

I wish you all a great weekend and I will see you all in 2012 on Thursday coming.

All the best,

Mark