Cribsheet daily 24.11.10

Busy day in education today, with the government's white paper imminent and a day of student walk-outs and marches against tuition fee rises getting underway. Michael Gove plans major reforms to teacher training in his white paper, casting teachers as "the guardians of the country's intellectual heritage" – though of course those working in free schools can sidestep training altogether. Gove has defended his plans to get more former members of the armed forces to train as teachers. The white paper will include proposals making it easier for them to get into the profession. He says: "We know that discipline is a problem in some schools. I can't think of anything better than getting people who know all about team work, self-discipline and a sense of pride into our schools to compliment the already huge number of great teachers than we have at the moment." Follow the white paper news live on Andrew Sparrow's Politics Live blog . Adam Gabbatt, meanwhile, is liveblogging the student protests , which have begun with walk-outs on campuses and in schools around the country. He has all the links you need to local coverage of demonstrations and events in your area. Paul Lewis, who reported on the protests two weeks ago and will be out again today, has been speaking to protesters and predicts the "epicentre of action" will be in London. "Anticipating what a protest will look like is never easy. The disparate nature of today's demonstrations – with potentially thousands of coordinated walk-outs across the country – means much of the action might go unseen by TV cameras. "But most expect the epicentre of action will, as ever, be in the capital, under the full glare of the cameras. While there were many people quietly predicting unrest ahead of the last student march in London on 10 November, this time round the picture is more complicated. Some of the anarchist and hard left activists I've been in touch with believe there is need for a "cooling off period", and fear roaming police surveillance teams will be picking off those identified as troublemakers and arresting them with so-called "snatch squads" that dive into the crowd and pull out suspects. "I think they're right about that, and everything points to a heavy police presence, courtesy of Bob Broadhurst, the Met commander responsible for the G20 policing operation. A man loathed by protesters as much as he is loved by rank and file in the territorial support group, I don't imagine he'll be averse to a "kettle" around or near Trafalgar Square. The containment tactic is seen by police as an effective tool to isolate protesters to prevent them from having the freedom of movement that, top cops fear, will enable them to re-enact the attack on Tory HQ. "You can be pretty sure activists, many of whom will be wearing masks this time, are going to try to avoid being herded, and if their numbers are bolstered by school-children and solidarity groups, that might make for a volatile mix. Then again, the key will be the turnout. And whatever indie singers say about riots, they're hard to predict." Follow him on Twitter @paul__lewis . Students at a north London secondary school have written a letter to their teachers explaining why they're quitting the classroom and going marching today: "Firstly, we would like to stress that our action is not a negative reflection on the education we receive here at Camden School for Girls. We appreciate the high quality of teaching and provision, which is a reflection of the effort put in by all members of the school community. "We are doing this not to skip lessons, but as a demonstration of our solidarity in the face of the harsh and unrealistic cuts proposed by the government, and indeed as an expression of just how much our education is valued through this sacrifice. This solidarity can be seen in the numbers who have walked out today, including the entirety of the senior prefect team. We regret the loss of valuable contact time that will occur as a result of our walkout, and we hope that teachers will use it to the best of their ability for other duties." We've just learned that student Edward Woollard has pleaded guilty to throwing a fire extinguisher off the Millbank Tower roof during the last student fees protest. Other Guardian education stories Nick Clegg implores students to study Lib Dem policy before they march Teachers improve educational outcomes for care leavers Oxford and Cambridge academics unite on pensions How to nail a million pound bequest for your university Weak teachers are the biggest problem in schools, says Ofsted Stories from around the web The Telegraph has done a useful bullet-point summary of what's expected to be in the white paper. The prolific Katharine Birbalsingh writes in the Telegraph that the damning Ofsted report should come as no surprise to teachers . And the Daily Mail has a sparkling editorial on what it calls "the curse of bad teachers" . Half of Wales's universities face an uncertain financial future , the BBC reports. The Independent recounts the story of the 1970 Garden House riot , which "marked a watershed in the history of student protest in the UK". Competition Do you have a clever way of using technology to teach children at your school? Enter the Classroom Innovation awards by sending us a short video of what you can do. There is a primary and secondary category and each winner will get £7,500 of Asus computing kit. Take a look at some of the entries so far . Find us on the Guardian website EducationGuardian.co.uk All today's EducationGuardian stories Follow us on Twitter and Facebook EducationGuardian on Twitter Judy Friedberg on Twitter Jeevan Vasagar on Twitter Jessica Shepherd on Twitter Claire Phipps on Twitter EducationGuardian on Facebook EducationGuardian resources The Guardian University Guide 2011 School league tables Postgrad tables The world's top 100 universities More education links on the Guardian Online learning and teaching resources from Learn Job vacancies in education More about Crib sheet Sign up to get Crib sheet as an email on Tuesdays To advertise in the Crib sheet email, contact Sunita Gordon on 0203 353 2447 or email [email protected]