Author Archives: burn.wm

Exploring Poetry with Jux.com

A little while back, Jose Picardo blogged about jux, a newish site that offers a free blogging service based around pictures rather than text. It is pretty slick, quite easy to use and makes an admirable alternative to PowerPoint, especially … Continue reading

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If the author’s dead, why is he tweeting?

Way back in the heady early days of post-structuralism, Rolande Barthes declared that the author is dead.  Not just sleeping, or pining for the fjords, but a member of the choir immortal and an ex-author.  From now on, we would … Continue reading

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Kindle – nearly ace

I’ve had a Kindle for several months now, and I think it’s marvellous.  True, it’s nowhere near as satisfying as reading a really well-made book, but for practical reading (research and so on), it’s very nearly ace.  Ben Goldacre loves … Continue reading

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New rock writing

We like interesting new writers here at Nottingham High School, especially if they come from our own ranks.  Jack Boaden is one such, and has recently had an interview published in NG5. His interview with The James Cleaver Quintet is a … Continue reading

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Shakespeare and maladies of the mind and body

Reports have been hitting various news websites of a study published by Dr Kenneth Heaton, a former gastroenterologist, which argues that doctors should turn to Shakespeare, who had a remarkable insight into the way that physical symptoms can be caused … Continue reading

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The future of education?

I love the Boston Globe’s Big Picture website. It presents a constantly changing diet of the best news photography in the world, picking up stories that might otherwise be overlooked, or images that, while not as striking as those that make the … Continue reading

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Chrome – a great browser for English Teachers

For a long time now I’ve been an enthusiastic user of Google Chrome: it’s lighter, faster and much less annoying than Internet Explorer, and doesn’t eat system resources the way Firefox used to (that said, I’m looking forward to seeing … Continue reading

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A New Year Begins

It is a bit of a meme for teachers to bemoan the beginning of September, but here at Nottingham High we in the English Department are looking forward to a really good academic year. The new Year 11 boys are … Continue reading

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How to write good

This week, we’ve been reviewing our schemes of assessment.  Now I know that sounds like the sort of activity usually reserved by Heads of Department as a particularly nasty punishment for their minions (some might even call it this), but … Continue reading

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The Wondering Minstrels

After a keenly felt period of absence, one of my favourite poetry websites is back up online.  The Wondering Minstrels presents a poem every day, along with a little comment and often some nicely illuminating discussion.  They have a great … Continue reading

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