:00:00. > :00:17.report from South Africa, on the impact of the long-running Oscar
:00:18. > :00:22.Good evening. Learning through play - one of the Welsh Government's
:00:23. > :00:27.flagship programme for our youngest school children. Three years on, a
:00:28. > :00:30.new report says teaching of the Foundation phase varies considerably
:00:31. > :00:36.from school to school, but overall it has a positive impact on how our
:00:37. > :00:48.pupils learn. Here's our Education Correspondent, Arwyn Jones.
:00:49. > :00:54.It has been called play -based learning, but when the education
:00:55. > :00:58.minister is watching, it is a serious business. The foundation
:00:59. > :01:02.stage has been running in school for nearly three years. It concentrates
:01:03. > :01:07.on developing children's ability to learn, rather than just transferring
:01:08. > :01:09.knowledge. His teachers see it as benefiting their pupils, especially
:01:10. > :01:14.boys and those with special educational needs. The key thing is
:01:15. > :01:19.in the planning and delivery, so making sure that good activities are
:01:20. > :01:22.planned which give the total and the opportunity to think for
:01:23. > :01:26.themselves. But also, to talk about what they have learned afterwards so
:01:27. > :01:31.they can really communicate what they have learned. Teachers don't
:01:32. > :01:35.all agree about how the programme improves literacy, numeracy or
:01:36. > :01:39.improving performance of pupils from poorer backgrounds. There are other
:01:40. > :01:44.issues too, around how it prepares people for the rest of their time in
:01:45. > :01:47.school. Last year, the Welsh government introduced annual testing
:01:48. > :01:51.for all pupils from the age of seven, so immediately after the
:01:52. > :01:54.foundation stage. One in four teachers felt the foundation stage
:01:55. > :02:00.prepared peoples well for that, but one in five took the opposing view.
:02:01. > :02:06.Many teachers are frayed to a brace the ethos of the foundation stage --
:02:07. > :02:11.afraid. The minister acts that there are problems. There are still some
:02:12. > :02:15.qualms amongst some professionals about how the foundation phase net
:02:16. > :02:21.together with what else we are asking teachers to deliver. But we
:02:22. > :02:25.point to best practice settings like this one and say confidently that
:02:26. > :02:29.this is what we need to be happening in every foundation phase setting
:02:30. > :02:34.across Wales. The foundation phase does not come cheap. It calls for
:02:35. > :02:38.one adult for every eight pupils. The government says fostering a love
:02:39. > :02:42.of learning in our youngest learners will pay dividends in future, but at
:02:43. > :02:44.the moment it is still not clear if that is happening.
:02:45. > :02:47.And, for parents who home school their children, plans for a register
:02:48. > :02:50.to check on the quality of the education they provide have been
:02:51. > :02:54.dropped. Opponents say the proposals amounted to a licensing scheme. The
:02:55. > :02:56.Education Minister says he's now looking at introducing guidance
:02:57. > :03:04.that's not legally binding to support councils and home educating
:03:05. > :03:07.families instead. The bodies of two servicemen from
:03:08. > :03:11.Wales, who were killed along with three others in a helicopter crash
:03:12. > :03:13.in Afghanistan, have been flown back to Britain. Army reservist Lance
:03:14. > :03:19.Corporal Oliver Thomas from Brecon and Captain Thomas Clarke from
:03:20. > :03:22.Cowbridge died on 26th April. The investigation into the cause of the
:03:23. > :03:32.crash is continuing. Caroline Evans reports.
:03:33. > :03:39.They were among five servicemen killed during what the Ministry of
:03:40. > :03:43.Defence said was a routine flight over Afghanistan. 26-year-old Lance
:03:44. > :03:48.Corporal Oliver Thomas from Brecon, and 30-year-old Captain Thomas
:03:49. > :03:52.Clarke from Cowbridge who was one of the pilots, died when their Lynx
:03:53. > :03:58.helicopter crashed near the border with Pakistan. Today, at RAF rise
:03:59. > :04:04.Norton in Oxfordshire, their families were joined by senior
:04:05. > :04:13.military figures as their bodies were flown back to Britain. There
:04:14. > :04:24.was a short ceremony and then the cars left the base. Among the
:04:25. > :04:27.friends who travelled here to pay their respects, the MP Roger
:04:28. > :04:34.Williams, as Oliver Thomas worked for him as a researcher. He was an
:04:35. > :04:39.outstanding young man. He was popular, for all the right reasons.
:04:40. > :04:43.Everybody who knew him liked him very much indeed. They also
:04:44. > :04:48.respected him. In Cowbridge, arrangements are under way for the
:04:49. > :04:52.funeral of Captain Thomas Clarke. The reverend who will conduct the
:04:53. > :04:58.service told me how his death has affected people here. He was
:04:59. > :05:02.somebody special. He was such an outgoing person, so warm and
:05:03. > :05:08.friendly, so committed to stop he really touched a lot of people. A
:05:09. > :05:12.very popular way. And rightly so. Captain Thomas Clarke was described
:05:13. > :05:18.by senior officers as a rising star of the army. But here where he grew
:05:19. > :05:22.up and attended comprehensive School, he will be remembered as a
:05:23. > :05:27.person who was bright and full of fun. This weekend, I am told,
:05:28. > :05:31.friends here held a celebration of his life, and today many of them
:05:32. > :05:35.have gone to Oxfordshire to support his family. The helicopter in which
:05:36. > :05:40.the five men died when down over Kandahar province. The Taliban
:05:41. > :05:45.claimed its fighters had shot the aircraft down, but the MoD has said
:05:46. > :05:49.the indications are that this was a tragic accident. The investigation
:05:50. > :05:54.into what exactly happened is still going on. The MoD has said it is not
:05:55. > :05:56.clear how long it will take for investigators to report back.
:05:57. > :06:00.A mines inspector has told a jury that the area of the Gleision
:06:01. > :06:03.colliery, where three of the four miners drowned, flooded in just six
:06:04. > :06:09.seconds. Swansea Crown Court heard how 17 tonnes of water filled the
:06:10. > :06:12.area where they were working. One of the miners was further away but
:06:13. > :06:14.became trapped. Mine manager Malcolm Fyfield denies four counts of
:06:15. > :06:17.manslaughter through gross negligence, and the mine operators
:06:18. > :06:24.also deny four counts of corporate manslaughter.
:06:25. > :06:27.Bomb disposal teams are continuing to investigate an explosion which
:06:28. > :06:31.seriously injured a man at a house in Dolgellau. The man, who's in his
:06:32. > :06:34.twenties, is still being treated in hospital after he was airlifted from
:06:35. > :06:40.the house on Sunday. His injuries are not believed to be life
:06:41. > :06:43.threatening. Two schoolgirls, arrested on
:06:44. > :06:48.suspicion of conspiring to murder their teacher, have been expelled.
:06:49. > :06:52.Police were called to Cwmcarn High School on Thursday after concerns
:06:53. > :06:55.were raised about their behaviour. A 15-year-old from Newbridge and a
:06:56. > :07:04.14-year-old girl from Risca were arrested and bailed. Rhodri Lewis
:07:05. > :07:08.reports. This afternoon there was little sign
:07:09. > :07:12.of Cwmcarn High School of the drama that happened here last Thursday.
:07:13. > :07:15.Pupils raise the alarm after becoming concerned about the
:07:16. > :07:19.behaviour of two girls. Police were called and the two were arrested and
:07:20. > :07:23.questioned. This morning it was announced they have both been
:07:24. > :07:27.expelled from the school after allegedly conspiring to kill their
:07:28. > :07:31.maths teacher. The teacher, who has taught at the school for more than
:07:32. > :07:34.ten years, has praised the school for the way it dealt with the
:07:35. > :07:45.incident. She said she knew little about it and let it all happened
:07:46. > :07:51.elsewhere. The 15-year-old girl is from Newbridge, and the 14-year-old
:07:52. > :07:55.is from Risca. They were both arrested on suspicion of conspiracy
:07:56. > :07:59.to commit murder, while the 15-year-old was also arrested on
:08:00. > :08:03.suspicion of making threats to kill and having a bladed article on
:08:04. > :08:08.school premises. They have both been bailed. The incident happened after
:08:09. > :08:20.another teacher, Ann Maguire, died after being stabbed at a college in
:08:21. > :08:23.Leeds. No one was harmed in the incident at Cwmcarn High School. On
:08:24. > :08:30.its website, the chairman of the governors says he is pleased with
:08:31. > :08:33.the way the school responded. A police investigation has concluded
:08:34. > :08:36.that pension payments made to the chief executives of Carmarthenshire
:08:37. > :08:40.and Pembrokeshire County Councils were not criminal offences.
:08:41. > :08:43.Gloucester Police looked into the payments to Mark James and Bryn
:08:44. > :08:51.Parry Jones after a Wales Audit office report last January said they
:08:52. > :08:55.were unlawful. The number of us regularly taking
:08:56. > :08:59.part in sport has hit a record high. The figures from Sport Wales also
:09:00. > :09:08.shows Wales is bucking the trend compared with the rest of the UK.
:09:09. > :09:15.Natasha Livingstone reports. This group of women come to their
:09:16. > :09:19.local fitness class several times a week. Jim has only been open since
:09:20. > :09:24.February, but already, extra classes have been put on to help cope with
:09:25. > :09:29.an increase in numbers. We are surprised. We thought we be busy,
:09:30. > :09:36.but not as busy as we are. We seem to have done something right, just
:09:37. > :09:42.being attractive for women to come and have a go. It is not just these
:09:43. > :09:45.women having a go. Sport Wales say there is a 34% jump in the number of
:09:46. > :09:56.people doing regular exercise between 2008 and 2012. That is
:09:57. > :09:59.262,000 more people aged between 15 and 65 doing some sort of sport or
:10:00. > :10:04.activity more than three times a week. While Wales is bucking the
:10:05. > :10:08.trend compared to the rest of the UK, there is concern that some are
:10:09. > :10:11.missing out. A recent assembly committee report said there is not
:10:12. > :10:15.enough information about sport levels from people with deprived
:10:16. > :10:19.backgrounds of those with cultural barriers. There are still
:10:20. > :10:23.challenges. We know that women take part less frequently than men in
:10:24. > :10:28.sport, and we know that in poorer socially economic deprived areas of
:10:29. > :10:32.Wales there is no participation. It is important that all adults have
:10:33. > :10:37.the same opportunities to take part in sport, so we will be working
:10:38. > :10:42.doubly hard once we have digested the findings of the survey to make
:10:43. > :10:48.sure that the offer for all adults is right and keep them involved for
:10:49. > :10:53.life. Keeping people involved in sport could potentially save the NHS
:10:54. > :10:57.in Wales ?53 million a year. The survey shows those who exercised
:10:58. > :11:02.three or more times a week are more likely to be healthy. That is
:11:03. > :11:06.motivation for these women. It is incredibly busy, whatever class you
:11:07. > :11:10.come to. People from all different walks of life. It is written in
:11:11. > :11:14.nice, you start making friends with people you would not normally meet.
:11:15. > :11:19.Organisers say, with summer around the corner, they are expecting even
:11:20. > :11:21.people through the doors. Cricket, and rain has interrupted day three
:11:22. > :11:23.of Glamorgan's match against Worcestershire at the Swalec
:11:24. > :11:26.Stadium. After a promising start by the home
:11:27. > :11:29.side's bowlers, Worcestershire declared on 296 for six. Glamorgan
:11:30. > :11:33.began their second innings late. At the close, they were on 14-1. They
:11:34. > :11:44.need to make 382 runs with nine wickets remaining.
:11:45. > :11:51.Not a dry day inside over the coming days. We have got showers in the
:11:52. > :12:00.forecast merging into longer spells of rain. We did have some showers
:12:01. > :12:05.today, but equally there was plenty of dry weather. Tonight we have got
:12:06. > :12:08.more showers are making their way in from the south-west. They are
:12:09. > :12:13.pushing through quite quickly, thanks to the breeze. It is a fairly
:12:14. > :12:16.mild night, temperatures no lower than eight Celsius, but it won't
:12:17. > :12:22.feel like it with a brisk south-westerly wind. Tomorrow, more
:12:23. > :12:27.showers, and another weather fronts waiting out in the Atlantic, which
:12:28. > :12:32.will bring wet and windy conditions across Wales by Thursday. A blustery
:12:33. > :12:37.start to tomorrow morning. Some hints of brightness if you are lucky
:12:38. > :12:39.across parts of Powys. The worst of the showers will be across Northern
:12:40. > :12:51.Ireland, Scotland and northern England. Highs of 17 Celsius in
:12:52. > :12:55.London. 12 Celsius in Edinburgh. In Wales tomorrow afternoon, the
:12:56. > :13:00.showers will continue and could be heavy at times. Across parts of the
:13:01. > :13:06.South and west, we can enjoy dry brighter weather through the
:13:07. > :13:12.afternoon. Temperatures 12-14dC, but it is blustery, which will take the
:13:13. > :13:16.edge off the temperatures. Overnight, the next weather system
:13:17. > :13:26.will move in from the south-west, bringing rain to parts of the South
:13:27. > :13:31.and West. On Thursday, the rain will make its way north and east with.
:13:32. > :13:34.Heavy at times, and lingering well into the evening. Another blustery
:13:35. > :13:41.day, the worst day of the week. Once the clay of the rain on Thursday,
:13:42. > :13:44.Friday will see showers which will be mixed with hail and thunder, but
:13:45. > :13:49.there will be some brightness in between those showers. More rain in
:13:50. > :13:52.the forecast for Saturday. We're back in Breakfast with the
:13:53. > :13:55.latest news and sport, traffic reports and weather forecasts.
:13:56. > :13:57.That's Wales Today. Thank you for watching. From all of us on the
:13:58. > :14:02.programme, good night.