|
|
New Part-time Courses Starting from January
The Workers’ Educational Association (WEA) is the UK’s largest voluntary provider of adult education.
|
Creative Writing at the Museum of London
WEA Tutor Elizabeth Sarkany appeared on BBC London’s Robert Elms Show 94.9fm to talk about her inspirational writing course at the Museum of London.
The Robert Elms Show is a long running feature on BBC London 94.9fm and regularly features call-in discussions on history, architecture, geography, city planning and the 'language of London'.
Topics for discussion in the show included how to get started with creative writing and museum objects that have been used to inspire written works.
|
.jpg)
WEA Tutor Liz Sarkany
|
The unique course, 'Writing London' uses the collections and special exhibitions at the museum as sources of inspiration for writing. The range of objects used is eclectic and items such as a medieval fish trap, a reconstruction of Newgate Prison and a Roman kitchen (pictured below) have all featured in learners' work.
WEA class at the Museum of London
Extracts of learners' written work together with images from the museum will be collated into a booklet and made available to view online in the very near future (watch this space).
Courses at the Museum of London have been a great success for the WEA and three other WEA courses are planned for the museum in April 2012:
- 'What the Dickens!' Exploring the books of Charles Dickens to coincide with the exhibition at the museum;
- 'London and the Slave Trade' also using Docklands Museum;
- 'Objective- Olympics!' Exploring sporting and cultural history through the museum
Elizabeth’s course, Writing London runs until the 28th March 2012 and you can join for the second term starting 18th January 2012 (course code: C2415616).
The fee for the second term is only £87.50 Please call 0207 4261 977 or contact Rowenna
This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it
to book a place. The course now runs for 2.5 hours per session.
Links: Museum of London
|
Community Outreach at Poplar HARCA
.jpg)
Michael Keating talks to Poplar HARCA learners
WEA London runs a community outreach course at Poplar HARCA (Housing and Regeneration Community Association) in Tower Hamlets, a registered social landlord with additional interest in regeneration and community engagement.
Participants on the course are learning how local, boroughwide and national services work and how they can get more involved in working within their neighbourhoods and with engaging people who do not currently access local facilities and services.
The group welcomed the chance to meet with Michael Keating the non party political rep from Tower Hamlets council and service head for One Tower Hamlets, when he visited as guest speaker to give a session on “How the council works” in November. One Tower Hamlets is part of the Chief Executive's directorate, providing leadership for how the council addresses equality, cohesion, partnership and the work of the backbench councillors undertaking their overview and scrutiny role, and on this occasion one could say the learners took on something of a scrutiny role in this session!
Michael’s talk outlined the political elected structure of the council and explained how the budget is allocated, a broad overview of the processes on how things are done, what actions can be taken at local level and what is beyond the local authority remit. Michael also spent some time discussing the implications of the Localism Act and how it will influence the way that all councils operate in future.
Questions from the learners ranged from geographical inconsistencies of parking allocation to difficulties with getting registered with a GP, what effect planning provisos have in the current climate of recession with potentially fewer developments going up and how school places are allocated. Mike later emailed answers to several questions which we greatly appreciate as well as his comprehensive and engaging talk to the course.
The Community Outreach course continues until March 2012.
Other WEA run provision with Poplar HARCA has included a wide variety of subjects including: ICT, Literacy, Indian head massage, ESOL, Numeracy, Community Interpreting and Sewing. |
‘What the Dickens!’ at the Museum of London.
Click here to enrol online
For Dickens, London has a unique life force. “Walk” the world that Dickens creates and see how the reader becomes an active participant in the story. This is a good progression route from autumn and spring term literature courses!
Designed to coinside with the Dickens and London exhibition at the Museum of London, this course builds on the premise that for Dickens, London is often more protagonist than backdrop, this 6-week literature course offers learners the opportunity to extend their experience of the exhibition at the Museum by taking a studious walk through the world that the writer creates. It will examine how the reader takes an active role in the developing narrative and in addressing the themes on which it focuses. This exploration begins with a study of the fog, both literal and figurative, which surrounds the Court of Chancery in Bleak House; we then move to the Marshalsea Debtors’ Prison in Little Dorrit and complete our study with the fascinating but often horrifying portrayal of the River Thames and the overpowering heaps of rubbish in Our Mutual Friend. The course will aim for a balance between detailed analysis of key passages and an illuminating overview of the role played by the London created by Dickens in his novels. In doing that, we will tackle the complex and challenging boundary between fact and fiction – the London of Dickens’ imagination and that which can be evidenced historically.
Main topics covered by this course are:
• How Dickens creates the world within which the narrative develops and invites the reader into it
• Critical analysis of plot and structure: complicated or complex?
• Characterisation and the interaction between character and environment
• Narrative voice: the changing relationship between narrator and reader
• Overall impact of Victorian London and Victorian literature on the 21st century reader
Standard Fee: £42.00
Venue:
The Museum of London
150 London Wall
London
|
TU Learner Testimonials
The following learners studied on our TUC Stepping Up for Union Reps course. The course is a follow-on from stage one level courses and looks in more detail at the trade union context, planning, organising and campaigning, collective bargaining, employment law and the UK and European legal structures.
Here's what the learners had to say about our course:
| Clive Murray |
|
 |
I’ve been doing courses with the WEA on-and-off for the past 4 years. I’m currently on the Stepping Up for Union Reps course. This course has helped to broaden my understanding as it’s more in depth than the Stage 1.
The tutors here are knowledgeable and draw on their own experiences in the lessons, which is invaluable and the learning materials have been really good too.
I’ve had plenty of opportunity for putting what I’ve learnt into practice and the course has given me the confidence to influence change in a constructive way at work.
I would definitely recommend WEA courses to anyone who is or about to become a TU Rep.
|
| Michael Keown |
|
 |
I’ve been a TU member since leaving school and only became a TU Rep fairly recently.
What’s been really good for me about this course, is meeting up with like minded people from other industries and being able to share ideas and experiences with them.
I’ve enjoyed learning about the tribunal process as we visited an actual tribunal as part of the course. The legislation aspect of the course has also been valuable and given me more confidence with TU matters at work.
Staff at the WEA have been really helpful and I’ve even learnt some basic IT skills while I've been here. I wish I’d done something like this ten years ago.
|
| Andre Ashman |
|
 |
There’s been a good mix of people from different backgrounds and industries on this course.
The learning environment is informal and conducive to learning and the guest speakers that have come to talk to us have been well informed and from the real world, this has been a highlight for me. The law aspect of the course has also been very interesting.
The course has helped me as a Rep to influence change at work and to engage with people in the workplace.
I've had no problems with getting time off from work to do this course and I would definitely recommend it to colleagues or anyone else who is thinking about becoming a TU Rep.
|
| Leslie Knibbs |
|
 |
I’ve been learning with the WEA for about 12 years on-and-off.
The current course has helped me with things like negotiation at work, kept me up-to-date with legislation and helped my confidence when dealing with various issues at work. I’ve also been able to give advice to others as the training provided by the course has been really thorough.
The quality and resources here have all been really good and the WEA have been easy to approach about any issues.
I’ve really enjoyed this course and I would definitely return for another course in the future.
|
For more information about our Trade Union courses please see here or contact Monica Gort: 020 7426 1976 E-mail:
This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it
|
|
Film Club @ Clapham Picture House |
| Print | |
Every second Monday of the month 6 – 10pm (except 6th Feb 2012)
Hosted by John Riley from Resonance 104.4fm’s film show ‘I’m Ready for My Close Up’
- Watch a new feature film
- ‘Show Your Shorts’ featuring the best short films by London film makers with clips, live discussions and free WEA membership all for £10
|
|
Read more...
|
Latest Tweets
|
|
Read more...
|
Latest Vacancies at WEA London Region
|
|
Read more...
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
