Those who can, teach

It's easy to envy the Stereotype of teachers in the summer: they've got week after week with absolutely nothing to do except lounge in the back garden, beer in hand. Well, spare a thought for them now. Because they haven't got an easy job, as Roy Horsefall, the hero of our special back-to-school issue, found out when he swapped roles with equally plucky geography teacher Emma Lent.

Yes, a site agent does have skills that transfer to the classroom: communicating, organising, planning, coping with crises. But there's a difference between discussing the week's work with the foreman joiner and trying to keep a room of 30 youthful individuals interested and involved. Find out how both Emma and Roy fared on page 16.

Learning was high on the agenda for contractor Durkan when it started bringing female trades trainees onto its site: and it had to re-educate its subcontractors to accept them (see page 26). But Durkan's women are not 'bra-burning feminists', they're just doing a job, and frankly that's the way it should be.

Education is also on government's mind just now, and not because of the scandal over poor GCSE results. The DfES is tackling the UK's under-achieving culture. See page 13 for how it intends to give industry the training it needs.

And finally, if you're thinking of going back to school yourself, turn to page 40 for inspiration: a tale of twin brothers, tireless in their quest for qualifications. One in the US, one in the UK, both working for Bovis Lend Lease, they're back at university for the third time.

New for you
Thanks to those of you who responded to our survey on CM's performance. As a result of your comments, we have added an extra legal page. This month we examine the finer details of why William Hare was found guilty when a worker died. You also wanted a more robust technical section, so we've expanded it to brief you on the latest changes to rules, regulations and guidance. And look out for a revamped Knowledge section too, with more courses, seminars and learning opportunities than ever. Hope it helps!