Interesting Times!

Monday, 30 April 2007

I started the day with the Education Leeds Learning Environments Team...

This team has transformed the learning landscape here in Leeds over the last six years... and, while I know that a lot of people still have grumbles and concerns about the condition and suitability of school buildings here in Leeds, we have achieved some incredible things.

The PFI programme, the BSF programme, the School Partnership programme and the Capital Programme are transforming the school estate. The intelligent and focused use of resources has resulted in a huge programme of minor works as well which means that the learning landscape is largely unrecognisable compared to what we inherited in 2001.

Thanks must go to this team of brave souls who have rolled their sleeves up and simply got on with it... despite the criticism and the negativity.

Their legacy is there for all to see and it's brilliant.
Chris

2 comments:

Oaf said...: Chris,

Hope all is tickety boo.
I read with interest the letter from Jane Haswell. It is great that people have had the commitment and passion to build up their skills.

It does however show a lack of respect to make you wear a balloon hat in the photo.

You need to add a couple of things to your list of things that make you happy - beer and pies. I have also recently developed a penchant
for treacle and dumplings.

Oaf; 30 April 2007 at 15:30
Chris Edwards said...: Hi Oaf, great to know that you are still with us! It is a mark of respect to wear the balloon hat at events like this. Remember that we are dealing with an obesity epidemic amongst our young people... beer, pies, treacle and dumplings are, like all things, great in moderation.
I think exercise, laughter and great company is the best way to make you happy!
Chris; 30 April 2007 at 16:09

Brilliant Quotes!

“I must accept life unconditionally. Most people ask for happiness on condition. Happiness can only be felt if you don't set any condition.”
Margaret Lee Runbeck

“Happiness is not in our circumstances but in ourselves. It is not something we see, like a rainbow, or feel, like the heat of a fire. Happiness is something we are.”
John B. Sheerin

“Most true happiness comes from one's inner life, from the disposition of the mind and soul. Admittedly, a good inner life is difficult to achieve, especially in these trying times. It takes reflection and contemplation and self-discipline.”
William L Shirer

“The pursuit of happiness is a most ridiculous phrase: If you pursue happiness you'll never find it.”
C.P. Snow

“Doubly rich is the man still boyish enough to play, laugh and sing as he carries and emanates sunshine along a friendly road.”
Charles R. Wiers

"Faith is not a shelter against difficulties, but belief in the face of all contradictions."
Paul Tournier

"Convictions are the mainsprings of action, the driving powers of life. What a man lives are his convictions."
Francis C. Kelley

"To do anything in this world worth doing, we must not stand back shivering and thinking of the cold and danger; but jump in, and scramble through as well as we can."
Sydney Smith

"It is often just as sacred to laugh as it is to pray"
Charles R. Swindoll

"Things never go so well that one should have no fear; and never so ill that one should have no hope"
Turkish proverb

"Teachers open the door, but you must enter by yourself"
Chinese proverb

"Don't bother to be better than your contemporaries or predecessors. Try to be better than yourself."
William Faulkner

"In times of change, learners will inherit the earth,while the learned will find themselves beautifully equipped to deal with a world that no longer exists"
Eric Hoffer

"Life is what happens while you are busy making other plans."
John Lennon

"Few will have the greatness to bend history itself; but each of us can work to change a small portion of events, and in the total of all those acts will be written the history of this generation."
Robert F. Kennedy

"The difference between what we do and what we are capable of doing would suffice to solve most of the world's problems."
Mahatma Gandhi

"Determine that the thing can and shall be done, and then we shall find the way."
Abraham Lincoln

"The ultimate measure of a man is not where he stands in moments of comfort and convenience, but where he stands at times of challenge and controversy."
Martin Luther King Jr.

"There is nothing in life so difficult that it cannot be overcome. This faith can move mountains. It can change people. It can change the world."
Norman Vincent Peale

"Two things are infinite: the universe and human stupidity; and I'm not sure about the the universe."
Albert Einstein

"Life isn't measured by the number of breaths we take but the moments that take our breath away."
Anonymous

"Patience and perseverence have a magical affect before which difficulties disappear and obstacles vanish."
John Quincy Adams

"Whatever you do, you need courage. Whatever course you decide upon, there is always someone to tell you that you are wrong. There are always difficulties arising that tempt you to believe your critics are right. To map out a course of action and follow it to an end requires courage. Peace has its victories, but it takes brave men and woman to win them."
Ralph Waldo Emerson