Oxford historians have expressed fear that much scholarship on British history may have to be rethought, after it emerged that the Foreign Office had kept 1.2 million files back from public release in contravention of the Public Records Acts.

On Wednesday, academics from the British Academy, including 15 from Oxford, published an open letter calling upon the Foreign Secretary to declassify the files. The British Academy are currently in the process of seeking legal advice to challenge the FCO. 

The files, some of which date back to the Crimean War, contain information on a wide range of matters, including colonial affairs, international relations, and spy rings. Historians fear that in an attempt to protect Britain’s global image, the understanding of history may have been tainted.

Nuffield College Professor Iain McLean, Vice-President of Public Policy at the British Academy, was amongst the signatories of the letter. He said, “We know from the recent revelations regarding the Mau Mau uprising that many of these documents are likely to be damaging [to Britain’s image]. It seems likely that other hidden documents may be damaging too”. 

Speaking to Cherwell, McLean expressed the importance of public archives in shaping how we understand the past, citing the example of how they were used to expose the deficiencies of authorities during the 1966 Aberfan disaster. 

Another signatory, Professor Archie Brown of St Anthony’s College, told Cherwell, “While some of the files held back may be for respectable reasons – such as protecting foreign intelligence informants who are still alive – the historical period covered is too long for this to be a convincing explanation more generally. I should be very surprised if the files did not contain information that showed British governments and their representatives in an embarrassingly bad light”.

 He continued, “While they might be unlikely to lead to entirely original interpretations of significant episodes, never voiced before, their importance could lie in shifting the weight of evidence in favour of one existing interpretation rather than another”. 

“The aim in keeping them secret may well have been to protect Britain’s image and influence abroad, but it is the wrong way to go about it”. 

Robert Gildea, Professor of Modern History at Worcester College, said that “shameful episodes” may have been hidden, adding, “Great Britain sees itself as a leader of the free world and an open society, but great powers did not become great by being nice to everybody”. 

The existence of the secret archive was revealed by the Guardian last October. Housed in a high-security facility at Hanslope Park, the archive contains 15 miles of floor-to-ceiling shelving, thought to amount to more files than all other non-disclosed government collections combined. 

The Public Records Acts require that government files must be released into the National Archive after a maximum of 30 years, soon to be decreased to 20. 

The British Academy’s letter stated, “Those of us who work on the history of some other countries are used to government obstruction when it comes to researching official papers, but the UK is supposed to be a free society. The writing of full and impartial accounts of the cold war, Britain’s colonial past, and other key subjects depends on access to all the available records”.

Jesus College’s Port Monday, designed to boost the attendance of the College’s bar, has been shut down after its first week.

According to an email sent to undergraduates, the JCR recently introduced Port Mondays to “increase numbers at the bar.” This involved offering “a free bottle of Port to the first group of 5 people in the bar.”

However, this was to be short-lived, as a later email said, “Port Mondays have ended. Giving away port is discouraged because you’re all such lightweights.”

The JCR member who organised the promotion stated, “It was all sorted out very amicably between myself and college staff.”

Likewise, Alexander Proudfoot, Vice President of Jesus College’s JCR Committee, concurred that, “I don’t think there was actually any issue with it from college or anybody else.”

Following the incident’s resolution, the event’s organiser emailed students saying that Port Mondays have been “changed to Wine Monday[s], which is the same deal but on a bottle of wine. So that’s the first 5 people in the bar get a free bottle of wine.”

Children’s social work charity Frontline has reported having received over 100 applications to its Leadership Development Programme from Oxford finalists over the course of last year.

In a press release, the charity welcomed the dramatic increase in Oxonian interest in social work from 2011, when only five Oxbridge finalists went on to do social work masters courses.

A Frontline spokesperson told Cherwell, “This is a remarkable shift from a few years ago. The large number of Oxford students applying to the Frontline graduate programme reflects the desire of many Oxford students to enter a career which makes a positive social impact and helps change the lives of some of the UK’s most vulnerable children”.

Frontline offers a two-year graduate Leadership Development Programme where participants train for 12 months, then start their second years as qualified social workers. Francis Goodburn, a Computer Scientist at St John’s College enrolled on the course, told Cherwell he was looking for a job where he would know “what I am doing is truly worthwhile”.

He added, “I don’t think anyone with half a heart could argue that there is a task much more worthwhile than protecting our society’s most vulnerable children from abuse and neglect, and as anyone who has read the news recently will know – with several tragic cases of children’s deaths due to abuse or neglect from their guardians – there certainly couldn’t be a more challenging job, particularly with the recent cuts to local authority funding”.

Some have criticised Frontline’s targeting of Oxbridge and Russell Group universities. One online commentator wrote, “[Frontline recruitment] is based on an elitist model where some universities are ‘better’ than others… I don’t think the university you go to defines your quality of potential for social work or your intelligence and ability to critically analyse and reflect.”

An Oxford student has been selected as one of ten finalists in an attempt to represent Great Britain in the Naked Sledding World Championship 2014.

Francis Thomas, a fresher at Brasenose, has been entered into a public vote to determine which contestants will make up the two-person UK Championship team. 30 male and female participants representing 15 different countries will compete in a bare-all sledding race in Germany.

The winners of the Naked World Sledding Championship will be the first man and woman to cross the finish line at the end of an 89 metre downhill course. The agency’s website claims that, “Huge crowds will turn out to admire the unique sporting spectacle of men and women careering down the snowy tracks wearing nothing but a helmet and their pants.”

For the rest of the year, Braunlage is a spa town and health resort, but on the day of the Naked Sledding World Championship, huge crowds arrive to witness the event. In 2012, more than 25,000 gathered at the resort. More than 5000 people have applied worldwide to represent their countries at the Championship this year.

Offering thoughts on the unusual sport, James Baker, the undergraduate Sports Rep at St Anne’s College, said, “Extreme sports are always the most entertaining. It’s just a shame I can’t offer it as a college sport.”

Event sponsors Chillisauce.co.uk’s National Sledding World Championship webpage describes Thomas as “a lacrosse expert with magnificent calves (his words not ours), Francis categorises himself as ‘being heavy and fast on a sled.’ He may also be the only Oxford student in history with the ability to carry a pint on his head, which makes him OK in our book.”

Mike Chidzey, a spokesperson for Chillisauce.co.uk, said, “We’re ecstatic that so many people applied – we hoped for a large number of applicants in order to have a wide variety for the top 10, but we never imagined that almost 500 people would apply to represent the UK at the Naked Sledding World Championship. We had such a hard choice when selecting the top 10, but now we need the public’s help to determine the two lucky winners. Get voting today!”

News of the competition has both amused and bemused Oxford students. One Oxford student commented, “As a lifelong wintersports enthusiast, this takes ‘getting back to nature’ to a whole new level. Although you’d never catch me stripping off my ski gear, good luck to team GB!”

However, scepticism about the desirability of participation persisted. Matt Morrow, St Anne’s Entz rep, suggested, “He’s going to discover a new meaning of friction burn. And not the good kind.”

The Championship will be broadcast live on the Chillisauce.co.uk blog site. Results of the vote will be announced on Wednesday 5th February.

The Cambridge Faculty of Education is set to establish a three-form entry primary school, focussing on research-based teaching and learning practice.

The University of Cambridge Training School (UCTS) will provide practical training for students taking the Postgraduate Certificate in Education (PGCE) at Cambridge while also teaching 630 four- to six-year-olds.

The plans have received support from some locals, including Nick Robinson, headmaster of King’s College School, who praised the University for, “leading the way in developing research-based exemplary teaching and learning among primary children.” He also looked forward to more widespread change, saying, “I hope that this will lead to Oxford and other Universities also following suit as it will undoubtedly lead to an excellent model for teacher training and school focussed academic research.”

Professor Ernesto Macaro, director of the Faculty of Education, put forward the newly established Oxford Education Deanery as Oxford’s, “way of responding to the current challenges and opportunities in England in relation to initial teacher education, professional development of teachers and in general the improvement of standards in schools.” The scheme works in conjunction with existing local schools, attempting to strengthen links between them and the University PGCE course.

Professor of Teacher Education, Ian Mentor, suggested that the Oxford Education Deanery’s educational network meant that there is no need for a similar school in Oxford. He commented, “Given the range of schools within the city and the county that the University already has strong relationships with, it was decided that there were unlikely to be any major benefits in setting up yet another school.”

Opinion amongst students was similarly divided. One student was reluctant to support a primary school “specifically designed for teacher training and research. It might create an artificial environment and skew potential conclusions drawn from the research due to the narrow pool from which the teachers are chosen.”

A spokesperson from Cambridge’s Education and Access department assured Cherwell that the scheme would be state-run and wholly inclusive.

Ukrainian students protested last Saturday near the Bodleian library to show solidarity for anti-government demonstrations at home.

Olena Seminog, a second year DPhil student in Population Health, coordinated the action and explained what prompted the demonstration. She told Cherwell, “On Wednesday 22nd of January, the Ukrainian police killed three people and about 100 people have been kidnapped since. We are witnessing severe human rights violations and want Oxford students to be aware of this”.

As well as raising awareness, the protests were meant to show moral support for students back home. “Our aim is to show our indignation against the anti-constitutional laws that have permitted such violence,” Seminog said, adding that the protest was “most of all, a clear sign that we want those responsible for these laws, President Yanukovych and the interior minister Zaharchenko, to resign”.

However Seminog expressed disappointment at the number of attendees given the seriousness of the issue. Only about 25 students, some research staff, and a few locals joined in the protesting ranks. Seminog suggested the turn-out “reflects how little is known about the events in Ukraine”. 

“The fact that not even representatives from Amnesty International attended is somewhat disappointing,” she said.

To the protestors, the world in general has been silent about the events in Ukraine. “It is as if Ukraine is too far for the Europeans to really care about,” Seminog commented.

Rostyslav Averchuk, a PPE finalist and fellow protester, added “It seems that, in the UK, distant African or Asian countries are better-known. Ukraine, due to its Soviet past, is seen as unknown and probably dangerous”. The lack of knowledge was, in his opinion, reflected in questions of passers-by at the Saturday protest. “I particularly remember one girl asking whether it’s true that many protesters are Neo-Nazis”, he said. While some protesters in Ukraine indeed belong to far-right parties, Averchuk clarified that their share is minimal.

However, Averchuk also underlined that “this protest in Oxford is a way to do something for those on the barricades back home. I don’t want to stay idle in my complete security while they’re risking everything. I’m amazed by the Ukrainian people because they literally risk their lives.”

Pavlo Smytsnyuk, who also protested echoed Averchuk’s sentiments. “My first feeling is that of big frustration about being far from home. What is happening is decisive and it’s a shame I can’t participate”. While he said he did not know how effective the Oxford protest was, the first year DPhil student in Theology commented that, “explaining ten times a day what is happening in Ukraine might be helpful in the long-term”.

Civil unrest began in earnest in Ukraine two months ago when President Yanukovych rejected an EU trade deal at the Eastern Partnership summit in Vilnius. The situation has since developed into a social revolt.

Seminog told Cherwell her commitment to activism on behalf of her country has had a significant impact on her work at Oxford. “I haven’t been very effective in my academic work recently. Which is why I’m very grateful for my supervisor’s support and understanding”, she said. The opposite has been the case for Averchuk, who commented, “The events prompt me to take my studies of politics and economics more seriously”.

Since last Saturday’s protest, Prime Minister Mykola Azarov has resigned, and President Viktor Yanukovych is now on sick leave. Oxford Ukranian Society President, Helen Morozovska, responded to the development: “I, personally, welcome any development that brings Ukraine closer to solving the current crisis. However, the recent resignations are, at this point, not significant enough to appease the protesters, nor are the terms laid out in the amnesty law. It’s quite likely that the only thing that will end the protests is the resignation of Yanukovych himself.”

Another protest is due to take place on Saturday 1st February at noon outside the Bodleian.

Education is the largest single industry sector for Oxford students immediately after graduation, according to the University Press Office.

The Oxford University Careers Service has seen dramatically increased interest in the education sector over the past few years, with 96 Oxford students going on to work as part of last year’s 1200-person Teach First graduate intake.

Teach First is one of several institutions that offers teaching experience to recent graduates; Oxford is currently the largest contributor of graduates to the programme.

Teach First gives potential teachers six weeks of intensive training before letting them work in schools in particularly low-income areas for two years. More than half of those who complete the programme then go on to teach full-time, with more entering the education sector in other ways, such as doing access work or tutoring.

James Darley, Teach First’s Director of Graduate Recruitment, told Cherwell, “It is inspiring then that so many of the country’s best graduates from universities across the UK, including Oxford, are choosing to work in schools in low-income communities and playing a part in closing the gap in educational disadvantage.”

Recently, Oxford University launched a new Insight Into Teaching programme, which gives current undergraduates the chance to try out teaching in schools, both state and private. The next programme runs in ninth week of Hilary. Insight Into Teaching also runs placements in London, Newcastle and Birmingham, so that applicants can work near their homes. This year’s programme has proved popular with undergraduates, with over 60 applications received so far.

“It’s great for people who can’t afford to stay up in Oxford for the extra week or travel down to London,” explained Jonathan Black from the Careers Office, “and it gives people a chance to ‘try out’ teaching. It’s such a practical thing – the only way to find out whether you like it is to try.”

Why does teaching draw so many Oxford graduates? “I think people here generally appreciate education and don’t take it for granted – sometimes they want to give something back,” commented Grace McGowan, a fresher at Exeter College.

Ellen Luckins, who is also a first year student felt similarly: “I wonder if the fact that Oxford students are supposedly super-committed to their subject means they’re more inclined to want to share it with others?”

However, this is not to say that everyone at Oxford wants to become a teacher. “I reckon some of us feel like we’ll never be able to fill the shoes of our inspirational teachers,” said Howell Fu, a first year medic. “And then there are some who see teaching as less glamorous than the other stuff they could do with their degree.”

Popular alternative options for teaching include sectors such as banking and law, with companies in these areas such as tax and audit gateway Discover EY frequently holding dinners and events for undergraduates.

For some, teaching is just not in the cards from the outset. One student did not consider himself part of the movement back to the classroom, saying, “I don’t think I would become a teacher, just because I think I’d be absolutely terrible at it!”

The number of those who have completed their PGCE (Post-Graduate Certificate in Education) at Oxford who are employed immediately after completing the degree has also increased.

Over the past three years, an average of 14.1 per cent of PGCE graduates have entered teaching and/or education six months after graduation through organisations such as Teach First and Schools Direct.

The endangered Moluccan Woodcock has been photographed for the first time by a researcher from Oxford.

Eden Cottee-Jones from Oxford, and John Meieittermr from Lousiana State University, both alumni of Teddy Hall, camped on Obi Island in the Northern Moluccas of Indonesia for two months in 2012, in order to rediscover and take the first ever photographs of the Moluccan Woodcock. The team also included three members of the University of Indonesia.

The bird’s elusive nature has made it difficult to record. The Woodcock, which has only been recorded 10 times since its discovery in 1862, only performs territorial display flights at dusk and dawn and stays hidden in dense undergrowth in the day. John Mittermeier said “We only had two or three chances daily of taking a picture, and the best spot for a view of the bird was usually in the middle of a river!”

Cottee-Jones told Cherwell how the researchers were standing in the river when they managed to photograph the Moluccan Woodcock, which was flying 20 metres overhead. They were alerted to the bird’s nearby flight by its “distinctive rattling call”.

The researchers faced many challenges in their endeavour. The island’s terrain and humidity affected the camera equipment. “Every morning we would have to wake up and put our disgusting wet, blood-stained (leeches, palm spines) and muddy clothes on, which I can tell you gets pretty dispiriting. At one point we had to dive off a boat to into saltwater crocodile infested waters to swim ashore, collect some equipment from a logging camp and paddle it back to our boat with a canoe we found on the beach.”

Cottee-Jones was inspired to travel to Obi Island after reading a book named ‘Shorebirds of the World.’ He said, “Inside I stumbled upon an account of the Moluccan Woodcock. It basically said ‘we know nothing about this species, it is the largest woodcock on Earth, and is also believed to be endangered. It is only found on one or possibly two islands in a remote corner of Indonesia.’ I immediately wanted to go and find it. Eight months and several funding applications later, I was watching one perform its display flight on Obi.”

The expedition apparently proved that the Moluccan Woodcock was not as rare as previously suggested. The researchers calculated that as many as 9500 species could live on the island. “It is actually quite common. Our results were published a couple of months ago where we recommend that the status of the species is re-evaluated, and downgraded from Endangered to Vulnerable. A rare case of good news in conservation!”

While on the island, the team also made first documented ascent of its summit, discovering at the peak a new subspecies of pygmy-parrot. Cottee-Jones stated “Sadly, the non-stop rain we had endured for two weeks while making the climb had damaged all our photographical equipment.”

“We are currently planning a return trip to climb the mountain again and catch the parrot.”

The researchers also found 14 species which appear to be new island records, along with a new subspecies of Invisible Rail.

At a JCR meeting Sunday evening, the Corpus Charities Officer apologised for the styling of a college charities mascot. The mascot, a teddy bear known as “Swaggy-B”, has since retired.

It is understood that a number of students were concerned that the styling of the mascot was racially insensitive, after a the bear was described in an e-mail as, “some straight-up sick mofo of a bear huz sorry ass has made some mistakes, but wants ta make his mama bear proud” (sic).

The JCR rep decided of her own accord to apologise for any offence caused, despite other reps advising that it was unnecessary.

The Charities rep was unavailable for comment, but in a statement to Cherwell, Corpus JCR President Erika Pheby said, “Our Rag and Charities Rep came up with the idea of a mascot to help to support a new charity fundraising initiative by the JCR. Due to the styling of the mascot, one or two members thought that the tone could be misinterpreted and suggested that she reconsider the way the character had been developed”.

She continued, “The Rep was only too happy to do this, but wanted to go further and apologise in case she had caused any unintended offence. Although her colleagues felt this was unnecessary, she explained the situation very courteously to our meeting and I am happy with the understanding constructive way our members approached the matter – one which we now regard as closed”.

One Corpus student, who wished to remain anonymous, told Cherwell, “Like most college people, I deleted the e-mail without reading. I’m actually in two minds. I’m not sure this is racist – although it seems to invoke an ethnic stereotype, it’s not a stereotype exclusive to African-Americans, nor is it a negative one; he’s a nice bear etcetera.”

“I hope it won’t negatively impact on the good work many Corpuscles have put into access and our charitable endeavours.”