Art & Design (courses for teachers)

“Very impressed – lots of useful information delivered in an informal atmosphere. I had been on an Edexcel training course last year which gave very little info on BTEC & have learnt so much more on this course. Was also lovely to have the opportunity to ‘chat’ & share experiences.” June 2009

“Inspirational, I can’t wait to implement what I’ve learnt – thank you.” July 2009

“Fantastic course – very inspirational. Can’t wait to get back into school and put all these ideas into practice.” June 2009

“Excellent, the best A level course I have been to! Brilliant resources available in the file – scheme of work, student work, sketchbooks + display sheets (best resources). A lot of courses don’t show enough student work that is why this one was so successful (an abundance of work was available to look at). [Course Leader] was very helpful and happy to answer all questions, excellent delivery.” June 2009

“Very useful + informative. Beginning HOD in Sept + was anxious about task. Course has given me an idea on how to begin + how to achieve best for the department. Thank you.” June 2009

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Biology (courses for teachers)

“I was very impressed with the content + delivery of the course, and extremely happy with the resources provided. As a result I feel much less anxious about teaching A-level in my NQT year – this course will prove to be invaluable!” July 2009

“Absolutely brilliant. Went to “How to be an Outstanding Teacher” by [another organisation] & it was poor. Nothing new. Even as an AST loads to think about today.” June 2009

“Very full, very helpful & useful. Tons of resources. Very clearly presented. (Super food as well.) Thank you.” June 2009

“Excellent. Very well organised. [Course Leader] was just as good as I expected. He varied what he said skilfully, wasn’t too intense but always interesting. Hotel good, directions clear; lunch very well organised. I have been to many conferences in London + seen some very badly organised buffet lunches or expensive hotels. This was probably the best.” June 2009

“Very informative – especially for a college like ours going into this course new in September. The resources provided were impressive and gave lots of different angles to look at.” July 2009

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Biology (student conferences)

“Superb! Really informative, engaging and relevant to my Biology students. Feedback from students was very positive. A well-presented and fun day.” December 2008

“This was a well balanced biology student conference, which had a humorous delivery and gave some great advice excellent topics were chosen. It helped to build confidence in my pupils.” December 2008

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Chemistry (courses for teachers)

“Exactly what I expected, all questions answered – lots of ideas.” July 2009

“Excellent overall. Identification of problem topics very useful. New topics to be covered clearly explained.” June 2009

“Excellent! The course was very useful and answered all questions I had. The course leader was approachable and was able to answer all questions. There is nothing that I can say that is negative. It was very worthwhile attending.” June 2009

“Fantastic! [Course Leader] was knowledgeable, engaging and enthusiastic. Very good resources provided. The best CPD course I have been on!” June 2009

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Classics (courses for teachers)

“Excellent – full of wonderful/tangible ideas! A good forum of sharing good practice. Good range of resources provided – many thanks.” June 2009

“Very useful course. Good overview of the 2 new specifications. Lots of important information, including things not in the syllabuses or on the websites. Good course leader – information well delivered. Opportunities for discussion and questions at all times. V useful to share ideas with other delegates too.” June 2009

“Dealt with important issues. Clearly presented. Drew on extensive professional experience. Tackled issues from all points of view: students, teachers and examiners.” June 2009

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Dance (courses for teachers)

“Excellent! Great material – practical and written resources. Wonderful source of knowledge as a teacher and extremely helpful + supportive. Thank you!” June 2009

“The course was brilliant. A lot of information and exercises delivered. It has refreshed my memory of stuff I already knew and given me lots of ideas I can’t wait to go and try. Great teacher, very easy to understand.” June 2009

“Very well organised + informative. Excellent knowledge both practically and theoretically. I really enjoyed learning the rep. I will be able to take this and use this in lessons straight away.” June 2009

“Liz is fantastic! I have such a better understanding of the new GCSE Dance specification. She is so knowledgeable, engaging and gives lots of support. If you get the opportunity, go on one of these courses.” June 2009

“Hugely informative – made creating the new GCSE course very clear. Lots of information given – the DVD’s examples were brilliant – to share clips of the different works has really helped.” July 2009

“Absolutely fantastic. Thanks. I feel more confident now. Professional + approachable speaker.” July 2009

“Absolutely loved it! I got so many ideas to begin to teach, this course has helped me so much. I can’t wait to get back to school to get all this sorted. I would like Zoie to do another course again as she is really friendly, helpful and experienced. Thanks so much.” July 2009

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Dance (student conferences)

“Outstanding – so clear and well pitched. Very helpful for the students. Excellent use of demonstrations for set study and choreography. Nice and clear, detailed information.” January 2009

“Excellent revision – very in depth! Excellent pace and use of teaching methods. Good to see practical demonstrations, choreography section was very helpful.” January 2009

“Excellent, very useful for students and staff. Refocused the students towards examinations both practical and written. I was very impressed with this Dance conference.” January 2009

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Drama (courses for teachers)

“Excellent, very useful and has given me plenty of ideas and strategies.” June 2009

“Fantastic. All practical and learnt a lot. New schemes and I can use all this straight away in the classroom.” July 2009

“I found the delivery of the course to be outstanding. It was informative and full of useful, practical and innovative ideas to do with drama teaching.” June 2009

“Excellent and inspiring course today, very suited to the drama teacher. Mixture of theory and practice. The course has helped me with ideas and motivation to get back to school and let my passion for drama encourage the students and get them as hooked on theatre/drama as I am. Jason has an excellent delivery style and created a ‘safe space’! We drama teachers love to explore and share ideas.” July 2009

“Very useful – have gone away with lots of ideas that I can put in place – today! Thank you.” July 2009

“Lots of useful, practical tips + hints. Still applicable to an ‘old hand’, despite majority of group being new to the exam.” July 2009

“Very good. Learnt a lot that I hadn’t got from the spec + got some good tips!” June 2009

“Excellent. I was on an AQA course last week on the same topic and this was much much better! Clearly explained and questions answered in depth. Excellent resources were given out that were helpful and informative. I learned a lot. Thank you!” June 2009

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Drama (student conferences)

“Excellent. An informative day presented in an interesting style. Totally appropriate. Meets the needs of the students – nicely broken up by practical Drama activities and entertainment.” January 2009

“It was brilliant to have everything these students have been told confirmed – it certainly focused their minds! The students felt involved and valued. I will be bringing my classes to these events in the future.” January 2009

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English (courses for teachers)

“Very useful – have never been on a course as informative as this. Really loved the fact that it was practical and gave loads of resources that I can use on Monday in school. Superb!” June 2009

“Lots of great ideas – some new approaches which I will definitely take back to the classroom. Great delivery.” June 2009

“Learning needs of all delegates were catered for. Good resources provided, that I’ll definitely use in class. Thank you!” June 2009

“Well organised. Delivered by a practising teacher and examiner so relevant. Useful materials. Nice to have a simple, practical approach to teaching the course. Good to get us involved.” June 2009

“Very useful. More than adequate resources provided. Information delivered in a concise yet entertaining manner. Made me feel excited about the new spec, which is obviously a good thing! Gave me plenty of ideas to enhance my current and future planning and teaching. A day well spent. Thank you.” June 2009

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Geography (courses for teachers)

“Very different to any previous course! Teaching at our level. Very informative and obviously from a person passionate about her subject. Very enjoyable. Keynote’s organisation superb (as ever).” June 2009

“Fantastic and informative; covered all bases – instead of being ‘lectured’, we were being coached – which is valuable.” June 2009

“Brilliant – really inspirational – a good INSET course gets the ideas flowing & I have never had so many new ideas in such a short space of time. The course covers exactly what you expect it to & more.” June 2009

“Outstanding! Extremely interesting and informative. Pitched perfectly – stretching and challenging. Possibly the best inset I have ever had. Very refreshing to sit and listen and ask questions and have them well answered.” June 2009

“Very good, answered many questions raised by first year run-through + ideas for next year. Good resources to take away. Clarified many aspects. Good organisation + catering!” June 2009

“Really very good. Well organised and full of information I did need to know, together with fun stuff too! Good to have regular breaks + a variety of activities. Very well delivered. Great food!” June 2009

“Excellent. Went through exactly what was needed. Excellent resources. Allowed discussion & David was very honest & answered all questions we had.” July 2009

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History (courses for teachers)

(Sorry, Historians – in order to avoid presenting you with an unworkably long list of reviews, I have had to be particularly selective. Hopefully, the following gives a flavour.)

“A very practical course full of useful ideas and resources which I can take back and use in the classroom immediately – thank you!” June 2009

“Excellent. Very enjoyable. Delivered every aspect. Answered all my questions.” June 2009

“Excellent. Very informative, expertly delivered. Extremely well structured.” June 2009

“Excellent – my second course and found the professional guidance (and top tips) along with the resources extremely valuable.” July 2009

“Really excellent ideas on source analysis and extended writing. It was clearly laid out and there were lots of examples that I can take back to use in my lessons. Thanks!” June 2009

“Interesting + informative. Most impressed with content of course + way that it was presented. I feel much happier in terms of delivery of the course to my students, particularly with controlled assessment.” June 2009

“Incredibly informative & interesting. Very useful indeed.” June 2009

“Outstanding, useful, effective with excellent content and resources. Pleasant venue too. Feeling motivated and less daunted by the new specification.” June 2009

“Excellent course. The day flowed well. Lots of very good ideas to take back to school & moreover lots of the ideas are practical ways to liven up the history curriculum.” July 2009

“Excellent – fantastic to have access to such academic depth. Really enjoyable. Probably the best course I’ve been on in 25 years of teaching. Please congratulate Eric and Geoffrey.” June 2009

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History (student conferences)

“Well delivered with excellent resources provided. Engaging and informative. Well-organised, good refreshment facilities for students and staff. Excellent drama performances, which helped my students with the historical events.” January 2009

“Well organised, excellent pace. Good helpful tips were given to my students. Lively and interesting speakers, the pace was great and kept the students engaged throughout.” March 2009

“A thoroughly enjoyable day, which will greatly help my History students back in the classroom. Thank-you!” March 2009

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Mathematics (courses for teachers)

“Fantastic – the first course in ages that has actually given me a variety of ideas and practical resources rather than just a pile of theory and past exam papers.” June 2009

“Fantastic – I have got so many ideas, resources, information to take back to the classroom. I will recommend this course, the day was organised well. Thank you.” July 2009

“Excellent. Amazing range of ideas + resources. Thought provoking. Hope I can do it justice when I get back.” July 2009

“The course has been fantastic. Excellent teacher to match brilliant resources. My confidence in teaching AS Maths has increased greatly. Thank you v much.” July 2009

“Scintillating! Really good, well planned and executed course. Thank you, very enjoyable.” July 2009

“Very well presented. Excellent materials. Highly recommended.” July 2009

“Excellent day with a lot of ideas to share with department and implement in lessons. Can see all ideas raising achievement dramatically in school where it can be difficult to engage learners in mathematics. Well broken up with visual aids helping to understand the ideas & how they’ll work.” June 2009

“Very enjoyable & interesting & delivered with real enthusiasm. Relevant & matched what I was hoping for – as well as teaching me a few things that I didn’t know I wanted to know. Thank you!” June 2009

“I thought that this course was tremendous, it wasn’t back to basics and it wasn’t futuristic. The pitch was ‘spot on’ and it was crammed with really useful practical help and suggestions which I will be able to actually use in the classroom. Angela showed her experience through numerous ‘tips and asides’ which have obviously been learned over many years teaching. Thank you!!” July 2009

“Thanks for a great course. It really motivated me (being dumped by loads of paperwork at the moment). You have given me so much tools. Thanks!! Will start in Sept with my vision!” July 2009

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Mathematics (student conferences)

“Well organised. Good resources and useful websites indicated. The course speakers were enthusiastic and have given my Maths students some excellent tips to take back to the classroom.” February 2009

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Media & Film Studies (courses for teachers)

“Superb resources and directions/navigation through the syllabus and examples. Very competent course leader who is knowledgeable and approachable.” June 2009

“Fantastic. Excellent leader, great resources. Thoroughly informative.” June 2009

“Extremely comprehensive and detailed. Inspirational & stimulating. Diverse & well presented. Hugely useful in terms of resources and perspective overview.” June 2009

“Incredible amount of diverse, interesting and useful information. Great overview of some really complicated theories and introductions to technological advances. Plenty of quality ideas offered and excellent resources.” June 2009

“Excellent + refreshing. Gave me a lot of ideas and helped me to formalise and structure themes of the course. Have taught Film Studies for a few years but this still helped me plan the A2 course much more effectively. Thanks.” June 2009

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Modern Languages (courses for teachers)

“Absolutely outstanding presenter, completely engaging. Materials fantastic, instantly usable. The best course I’ve ever been on.” June 2009

“Very enjoyable, some excellent ideas to implement into lessons, a refreshing change to have a course delivered by a teacher who has realistic ideas and expectations.” June 2009

“One of the most useful courses I have attended. Full of practical ideas, very motivating. The ideas and themes covered will easily transfer to other languages. Very useful information on the new specifications. Made me think about my choice of exam board for September 2009.” June 2009

“Absolutely fantastic – the best course I have attended in a long while. Some really good advice and more importantly examples + ideas of how to make it easier/better.” June 2009

“Very enjoyable, some excellent ideas to implement into lessons, a refreshing change to have a course delivered by a teacher who has realistic ideas and expectations.” June 2009

“Absolutely outstanding presenter, completely engaging. Materials fantastic, instantly usable. The best course I’ve ever been on.” June 2009

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Modern Languages (student conferences)

“Excellent – good to have a variety of presentation techniques and for the students to spend a whole day immersed in French exam techniques. Also, very good for students to hear ‘the experts’ repeating the same points that they hear from their teachers!” January 2009

“Superb advice for students who are serious about wanting to gain good marks in their GCSE French. The pace was great, which enabled my students to stay focused. The information packs were an excellent guide for students with clear useful hints.” January 2009

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Music (courses for teachers)

(Sorry, Musicians, I have been particularly brutal with this selection of reviews – I could have dedicated 100s of pages to this subject alone, this is an extremely brutal cut. NB – every review listed is from a different course, there are no “repeats”.)

“Excellent course, lots of ideas, well resourced, tutor was excellent and informative. Best course I have been on for a long time.” June 2009

“Excellent! A fantastic instructor with helpful resources. Very nice venue, with great food.” June 2009

“Excellent – just what I expect from Keynote. Totally organised, good venue. Speaker ‘spot on’. Thank you!” July 2009

“Good pace. Excellent resources. Informal atmosphere. Excellent.” June 2009

“Excellent provision & inspirational/clear. Left feeling informed & supported + had a laugh too – went too quickly (& that’s a first!)” July 2009

“Excellent! All of my questions have been answered, resources are fantastic and I feel much better informed about the new GCSE now.” June 2009

“Really worthwhile coming to it. I thoroughly enjoyed my day out! Sessions were well structured with lots of back up materials. The pack is great. Nice venue, good lunch. [Course Leader] clear + very knowledgeable.” June 2009

“Excellent presentation. Good advice + explanations. Willingness to discuss any issues we have had appreciated.” July 2009

“Excellent – everything as described – a lot clearer now about things than I was beforehand. Probably the best and most beneficial course I have been on!!!” July 2009

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Music (student conferences)

“Very well organised, very professional, very very helpful! The tips on the listening exam were particularly helpful. The venue was great, and the atmosphere of the concert hall added to the importance of the day, the live music was great.” February 2009

“Pace, stage presentation, use of humour, listening paper part – excellent. The pupil packs are really clear and will be a valuable resource for revision. The information was presented in manageable chunks for the pupils to digest.” March 2009

“Well organised, friendly staff. Course leaders were knowledgeable, with a student-friendly approach. Question box – great idea and very helpful for students, Ipod incentive was good! Helpful to have live performances, and discussion of them.” March 2009

“Very well organised and professional. Informative for both teachers and pupils. Useful handouts. Lovely venue – good facilities. Nice mix of talking and exercises – good to have one speaker per aspect (listening, composing, performing).” February 2009

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Perfoming arts (courses for teachers)

“Really enjoyed the course. [Course Leader] answered all questions. It was a really inspiring day. Got loads of ideas from it.” June 2009

“Excellent resources, delivery of information very clear. Able to answer questions throughout the day. Qualification made very accessible to all.” June 2009

“This course was excellent. It made the muddy waters clear. I am now looking forward to teaching this. Thanks, Sally!” June 2009

“Really helpful! Great resources to use and the course has inspired me to create new and interesting assignment briefs. I have come away from the course feeling confident to teach and assess and grade my students.” June 2009

“Excellent – really informative. Loads of really useful suggestions. Feel much more confident.” June 2009

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Physical Education (courses for teachers)

(Sorry, again! I have been particularly brutal with this selection of reviews – I could have dedicated 100s of pages to this subject alone, this is an extremely brutal cut,)

“Excellent course, lots of ideas, well resourced, tutor was excellent and informative. Best course I have been on for a long time.” June 2009

“Excellent – opened up eyes about where we can go with the new curriculum and how it can be implemented. Really well delivered with very worthwhile discussions.” June 2009

“Very good structure and variety. Very good presentation. Excellent amount of detail & information provided, found it very informative. Very good knowledge content & explained thoroughly.” June 2009

“Excellent delivery. Exactly the content I required. Very beneficial.” July 2009

“Kirk an excellent presenter. Can’t get better than Chief Examiner presenting, especially new material that PE staff often don’t know about or are a little scared of! Very knowledgeable and ‘user friendly’: very reassuring. Great tips for how to plan, organise AQA GCSE PE for 2009+. Good advice and direction given. I feel happier now about delivering the new spec.” June 2009

“This was an excellent course. I’ve learned loads and it more than met my expectations.” July 2009

“Excellent session – very informative with lots of practical examples, tips for students and focus on exam technique. Excellent venue + the food was fantastic.” June 2009

“Excellent. I have been on courses for 27 years and this has been the best by far. Thank you.” July 2009

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Physical Education (student conferences)

“Superb day! The conference gave a good variety of topics and different teaching styles. The speakers gave lots of vital information for exam techniques, what to look out for, what to include and why. The speakers kept the audience captivated and interested throughout the whole day. We enjoyed the whole day and would definitely come again.” March 2009

“Excellent presentation, with up to date information and delivery. The exam and revision tips were superb, with lots of information provided for my students to take back to the classroom. The students really enjoyed the day and learnt a lot.” March 2009

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Physics (courses for teachers)

“Once again a great day – Howard as always entertaining, informative and ‘human’! Course materials
exemplary, venue great and dinner lovely. Looking forward to next years course.” July 2008

“Excellent – lots of information provided with relevance. Flexibility to follow issues relevant to delegates. Very approachable. One of the most useful courses I have attended.” June 2009

“V well organised, good venue, good lunch. V knowledgeable presenter with useful content and an excellent pack to take away.” June 2009

“Enthusiastc and highly knowledgeable delivery. Practical resources for direct use in classroom. Highly appropriate for advertised course title.” June 2009

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Physics (student conferences)

“An excellent day, the students really enjoyed it. The speakers were very entertaining. The visual resources were superb. Thank you very much.” March 2008

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Psychology (courses for teachers)

“A fantastic course! Really found this very stimulating and inspiring.” June 2009

“I thoroughly enjoyed it and found all the ideas useful and thought provoking. It was great to see examples of T&L activities fitting into interactive lessons which is on areas we are in the process of developing and reviewing. Really well organised “housekeeping” + welcome. Thank you.” June 2009

“Very helpful – been to many of your previous courses and always find them informative + of practical use.” June 2009

“Excellent – very well presented, lots of innovative ideas to take to the classroom – should engage even the most reluctant students!” June 2009

“It’s the best course I have been on for years. I learned a huge amount and feel much more at ease with the A2 material. Great.” June 2009

“Very helpful discussing useful websites/practice within classes. The location and facilities were great. Leader of the course was knowledgeable and encouraged delegates to discuss ideas.” June 2009

“A fantastic range of strategies for teaching the new specification. The marking exercises were particularly useful and helped my understanding of (hopefully) how my students can get top grades. Very approachable for Qs!!!” June 2009

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Religious Education (courses for teachers)

“Very useful practical ideas. I feel much more equipped to teach this confidently.” July 2009

“Excellent! To the point! Many questions answered. Very supportive with practical advice.” June 2009

“Very useful – good to develop different methods of teaching and strategies to encourage and include all students. The course was well planned and structured. Useful info about the new specs.” June 2009

“Fantastic, brilliant – now feel a little more confident in taking on AS – a brand new area for me. Very much enjoyed Jon Mayled’s style of delivery – no fuss – no nonsense. Straight to the point with confidence and expertise. Thank you.” June 2009

“Excellent – great resources, outstanding delivery – very informative. Really useful to have a practitioner who discussed ‘warts + all’. Extremely useful pack + discussion.” June 2009

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Sociology (courses for teachers)

“It’s the best course I have been on for years. I learned a huge amount and feel much more at ease with the A2 material. Great.” June 2009

“Excellent. David was very helpful + knowledgeable. He targeted the sessions at what we really needed. It was well paced + very informative. I especially enjoyed the time spent going over the new studies relating to Crime & Deviance. I would definitely come again! Good venue too. David was really excellent at presenting the information.” June 2009

“A fantastic course! Really found this very stimulating and inspiring.” June 2009

“Very useful – appropriate timing to go over the new specification. Helpful advice/comments. A chance to share problems/ideas with other Sociology teachers. Gained a useful overview of the new course and will help with SOW preparation over the next 4 weeks.” June 2009

“Very informative – I gained lots of new ideas about how to make Sociology engaging – objective met! Resources good. Lots of varied activities.” June 2009

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