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We've been working alongside teachers while we revamp and refresh our Standard Grade Bitesize sites. A bit of subject expertise and classroom reality helps keep us and the content right, we hope. So last week with a visitor with fresh eyes to our resources in for three days, we thought we'd get her to give us a wee write-up of how she got on and what she thought of our content as is. She left us with a jolly card and plenty of posh biscuits, so hopefully her comments are going to be as nice...

I'm from , Faculty of Creative Industries. This year's batch of hopeful students have just joined us. New starts, all ready for a new session. They arrive like a human storm with all their ambitions and anxieties, some straight from school and a sprinkling of adult returners harbouring mature student angst. Then it's non-stop for another year.

It was last week, B.S., (Before the Students arrive), or never. I was let out. I'm on the loose looking for inspiration, and where better to find it than at the Â鶹Éç, to see what they do to support the learning community. I'm with the Learning team, learning(!), about what they already do (and that's plenty), and the new initiatives they've got in the pipeline. How do you support the whole learning community of Scotland, top-to-bottom, teachers and learners, from nursery to college and beyond? With a lot of creativity and ingenuity as I've discovered - and good teamwork, that's what.

Cards on the table now... I had seen the e-mail, I knew the Learning site was there, but didn't know it well. So the first task was to see what was on offer, and wander. That's the key for most of us - taking the time to look. If you you don't get direct to the Scottish stuff, which is a bit off-putting. You have to go to Nations and select Scotland to get into material that relates to the Scottish Curriculum and exam system.

But once you're in, the range of resources is impressive. I was tempted to stay in the Nursery and Primary education area, which looked fun, but moved to the video library which gives you news or other clips - and not necessarily full programmes. Plenty of short clips to sprinkle into the lesson plan. Bitesize looked really useful for school-teachers and pupils, following the syllabus for the various subjects in digestible chunks.

Not much for the FE sector here unless you're delivering standard Higher syllabus subject material. And nothing for our Media classes there either, so there are gaps. For instance newer subjects like Higher Psychology and Sociology are not covered at all. We'll need to canvass for space. It's traditional school curriculum only at the moment. But I soon grasped the magnitude of what the team have already achieved and are continuing to achieve when I saw what's involved in creating just one course on Bitesize. They'll get round to us in Media and Social Sciences. (You will, won't you?). is where you get to see what's actually going on in schools around the country: projects and events, and schools doing things in the community.

That might seem like plenty to keep the team here going, but in three days I've been in on as many planning meetings for new initiatives, like new material for Genius that's designed to boost motivation and help students prepare for exams. Watch this space! Every time there's a real creative buzz in the process, genuine awareness of how the material's going to be used out there in classrooms, and lots of emphasis on interactive programming that could engage learners. Maybe there's a place for giving the pupils more of a voice on the Learning Zone, but if we expect that to happen we've got to introduce the pupils to what LZ does for them.

Speaking of which I'll be roaming the Learning Zone for material in future and watching for the latest developments. I'd recommend anyone else to do the same. Try to squeeze in a brief exploratory visit, even if you don't get 'time out' like me.

And now it's back to the classroom.

Mollie Tubb

Claire was mentioning our development day the other week, stuff we're going to be working on over the year. But we're always listening and interested in hearing what people want us to produce - we receive, read and respond to emails but now you can have your say a bit more publicly by commenting on this blog. We're very interested too to know what you think we're not getting right, as well as any encouragement or ideas for improvement.

Mollie mentions Genius, a working name for project that's just starting out. A little bit more about that next week. Alistair Mooney

The A-level results came out last week, and, as ever, the media was awash with reports of 'dumbing down' and exams getting easier. The same reaction met the Higher results a couple of weeks back. The GCSE results, which are released later this week, are .

Am I alone in thinking this is sour grapes?

Apparently not. about the criticism of this year's crop of A-level passes, and about 'inverted ageism -- that anti-youth attitude which seems to be becoming the country's favourite brand of bigotry' was both compelling and, sadly, I think, true.

The rising pass rate raises expectations year on year, putting more pressure on our young people to do better and aim higher. And yet, when they invariably succeed, they are neither credited with this success nor allowed to enjoy their rewards - the same media who told them that they must get straight A's are now telling them that their new qualifications are not up to scratch. Hardly a positive message. What is it about success we find so difficult to accept? Could it be that learners and teachers alike are just getting better?

this morning raises interesting questions - if Usain Bolt and the like can continue to run faster and faster, beating the old records that no one thought could be broken, why can't learners get smarter and smarter? He does, however, believe that hunger for success leads to grade inflation.

None of this cancels out the fact that our most recently qualified young people are entering into the toughest job market in decades and face more competition for places in further and higher education than ever before. They will need the skills they have developed at school, now more than ever. Let's stop queuing up to tell them that it was harder in our day (whenever that day may have been!) and applaud them and their teachers and parents who made it possible.

We had our annual development day last week here at Pacific Quay. This is the first stage in our production process - the ideas! We had several group 'brainstorming' sessions on a wide range of topics, including resources for secondary social subjects (particularly what us old fuddy-duddies call Geography) and upper primary - or Second Level - on personal development and health. The seeds of ideas that we plant on development day grow throughout the year, into consultations with teachers and learners, and then into programme plans which eventually end up on your screens, on the radio, and online.

The development day was all the more valuable and special because this time round we were joined by several representatives from Scottish education, with , , , , , Secondary Education and Gaelic all well represented. We were delighted to have their input as we threw ideas around, and they got right into the spirit of things - particularly Graeme Clark from SQA who even got up and pitched one of the ideas to the room!

The next stage for us here is to collate all the brilliant ideas and pieces of advice we received and come up with a set of useful resources we can make over the coming year. However, part of the idea of this blog is for us to be more open about our processes and to invite comment! Even although we couldn't invite you all along to our day (sadly!) we still want your input. If you'd been at our sessions on personal development or geography, what would you have pitched for? What resources would you love to have for use in your classroom, or at home?

You may have read last month articles in papers and online with headlines such as and .

These are quotes attributed to , a member of the review group which wrote , Scotland's national curriculum strategy.

Reading , it's interesting to see her reaction to the coverage from the initial response to the quote, then as and as . Interesting because Jacquetta is Keir Bloomer's wife of 41 years.

In a post she highlights her husband's article response: and links to the 7-point plan of as featured in the Times Educational Supplement. She also mentions a Â鶹Éç interview with Shereen Nanjiani.

This is the interview from Sunday's Shereen programme, with comments from from the University of Glasgow, The Big Issue's Editor in Scotland , and from The Sun.

Keir Bloomer's expression of frustration at the slow pace at which the world of education moves and disappointment in the progress so far highlights the difference between the current state of and the original long-term vision for a curriculum suited to the 21st century. Small steps are fine, but could do with one giant leap of imagination to go with them.

As the fresh new term starts it seems a good time to take what started as negative headlines and turn them into a positive outlook and onto excellent experiences in the classroom. Are you excited by the possibilities of Curriculum for Excellence, or in a world of confusion, hoping it will sort itself out? What are your radical and inspiring thoughts?

The exam results are on their way - certificates will arrive across the country by post and if you registered with MySQA, results will be sent out by text and email between 8am and 9am. The opens at 8am too - free advice on .

If you're in Glasgow you can take your troubles to the Â鶹Éç Switch Road Trip at the ABC on Sauchiehall Street where Aled from The Surgery will be joined by various experts to offer reassurance and advice on next steps. And in the evening there's a chance to dance your cares away at a party with the Radio 1 team and Calvin Harris.

There's plenty of online help too. If you didn't get the results you were hoping for or are confused about what options are open to you, have a look at the and .

Radio Scotland and the and will tell the story of results day as it unfolds.

And that Careers Scotland helpline again, open from 8am - 8pm on Wednesday, thereafter 9am - 5pm until Friday 28th August (including weekends) -

Good luck to everyone receiving results.

The is now forty years old. Lenny Henry tells its story and reveals how The OU changed his own life.

This hour long special features contributions from Sir David Attenborough, Myleene Klass and Anna Ford.

Relive the sights, sounds and stories of 40 years with the .