Latest Educational News
Schools tricking Ofsted inspectors by sending problem pupils home
by Independent, April 24, 2013
Illegal practices uncovered during investigation - which includes a survey of 1,000 teachers
Hundreds of schools are illegally excluding children – sometimes to get rid of them during Ofsted inspections or having them taken off the school’s roll for high-stakes tests – an investigation by the Children’s Commission for England has found.
Illegal practices uncovered during the investigation – which included a survey of 1,000 teachers – include:
* Sending pupils home for disciplinary reasons without recording it as an exclusion – 6.7 per cent of schools were guilty of this (1,600 schools)
Schools should be fined for illegally excluding pupils, inquiry finds
by Guardian, April 24, 2013
Children's commissioner says illegal exclusions are 'source of shame to education system'
Schools should be fined thousands of pounds for illegally excluding pupils, a major inquiry has found.
The children's commissioner for England, Dr Maggie Atkinson, conducted a two-year inquiry into illegal exclusions.
Mum claims son is ‘being set up to fail’
by Blackpool Gazette, April 23, 2013
A Blackpool mum has clashed with education bosses over where her son should go to school.
Katie Smith took 12-year-old Jed out of mainstream education six months ago and is demanding he be moved to a special school.
She alleges her son has multiple learning and emotional problems, including cerebral palsy, benign tumours in his knee, ADHD and slight brain damage caused during pregnancy.
Mrs Smith – a 31-year-old mum-of-three – took the controversial decision in October to withdraw Jed from St George’s High School in Marton claiming he was struggling to keep up with other children.
Costs of running ‘Eton of state sector’ hugely unrealistic
by Independent, April 23, 2013
West Sussex villagers object to boarding school for inner-city pupils, saying Government has got its sums wrong
In theory, it sounds like a brilliant idea. Take 600 inner city teenagers out of some of the most run-down council estates in the country, remove them from London gang culture – and educate them in a boarding school in the tranquillity of the West Sussex countryside.
All of this would be at no cost to their parents – making the school the first completely free state boarding school in the country. Backers have described it as the “Eton of the state sector”.
Why universities should acquire – and teach – digital literacy
by Guardian, April 23, 2013
Sponsor's feature: A strong digital focus will attract internet-savvy students with an eye on the jobs market
Sebastian Faulks observed recently that ease of access to the internet is leading to a "net loss of knowledge" in this generation of adults, leaving the modern intellectual world in a "kind of catastrophe". But is there another side to this gloomy story? Once time and brainpower are freed up from memorising, will other skills come into play, bringing hitherto unimagined benefits?
Comberton pupil Douglas Parr 'terrified' by Psycho scene
by BBC, April 23, 2013
A 13-year-old autistic boy was left traumatised after seeing the shower murder scene from the film Psycho at his school, says his mother.
Douglas Parr attends mainstream classes at Comberton Village College in Cambridgeshire.
His mother Kate Bourne said no consent was requested from parents for the 15-certificate film to be shown and the scene had made her son sick.
Firms' inaccurate use of English setting children poor example, says Ofsted
by Guardian, April 23, 2013
Report by schools inspectorate criticises firms 'that subvert standard spellings and syntax' in trade names and slogans
School inspectors in England have attacked companies for setting children a poor example by having names that "subvert" and "disregard" standard spelling and punctuation rules.
In its latest report on literacy in secondary schools, Ofsted warns – without identifying any companies – that, by using these names, businesses give the impression that spelling, grammar and punctuation do not matter.
No minister, nursery children do not 'run around unsupervised', say teachers
by Independent, April 23, 2013
Teachers have been upset by minister Liz Truss’s claims, Jonathan Brown finds in Leeds
It’s teatime at the Bright Beginnings nursery in Leeds and the children in the Grasshopper room are sitting expectantly at their little tables awaiting their cheesy pasta.
They have spent much of the afternoon outside in the playground and there is a happy burble as the last of the three-to-four year olds wash and dry their hands before joining their classmates to eat.
Dara O'Briain calls for more taxing exams after scoring A* in 10-minute GCSE maths paper
by Independent, April 23, 2013
GCSE maths examinations should be made more challenging for
the brightest pupils, the comedy presenter and sciences graduate Dara Ó’Briain,
has claimed, after passing a genuine paper with flying colours.
Ó’Briain, presenter of the maths show School of Hard Sums, volunteered to test his knowledge by sitting a real GCSE maths paper. He was given just ten minutes to complete the one-hour challenge.
The Irish comic, who took his degree at University College, Dublin, scored an A*, finishing with a tally of 47 out of 60.
Schools in well-off areas 'are failing' poorer pupils - who get better exam results in deprived areas
by Independent, April 23, 2013
Minister says schools with more affluent pupils have disgraceful record for helping disadvantaged children
Schools in the most affluent parts of England are failing pupils from poor families, who are getting better exam results in deprived areas, the Government warns today.
David Laws, the Schools minister, described the record of schools in “some of the leafiest parts of the country” as “a disgrace”, accusing them of wasting extra money provided for disadvantaged young people. If these schools fail to improve the “outrageously low” exam results of poor children, he warned, they could eventually face closure.
School misses SATs deadline as head teacher ill
by BBC, April 23, 2013
The government has been urged to help a group of Year 6 pupils in Berkshire who cannot take their SATs tests because their head teacher has been ill.
Rob Wilson, Conservative MP for Reading East, told the Commons the application deadline for the tests had been missed.
Education Secretary Michael Gove said it was a "widespread issue".
'Tech Bacc' aims to boost status of vocational courses
by BBC, April 23, 2013
Plans to raise the status of vocational courses in sixth forms and colleges in England have been announced.
A "technical baccalaureate" is to be introduced showing young people's abilities in maths, literacy and a high level vocational qualification.
This will be a performance measure for schools and evidence of credible skills for students to show employers.
'Millions wasted' on inefficient academies scheme
by BBC, April 23, 2013
Millions of pounds were wasted on England's rapidly growing academies programme because of over-complex and inefficient funding systems, MPs say.
A Public Accounts Committee report describes a system peppered with overspends and errors, but subject to little oversight.
It urges the Department for Education to tighten its financial grip on these privately run but state-funded schools.
Shakespeare scholars try to see off the Bard's doubters
by BBC, April 23, 2013
This is the 449th birthday of William Shakespeare. Well, actually, it might be his birthday, because we don't really know when he was born.
There is a date for his baptism - with his name recorded in Latin as "Gulielmus" - and then it's a case of working back a few days.
It's an educated guess. And much of the endless debate about the identity of the author of Shakespeare's plays is because so much of the presumed life story is educated guesswork.
A third of pupils 'can hardly communicate' when they start school: Education minister risks fresh clash with nursery chiefs
by Daily Mail, April 23, 2013
.Elizabeth Truss's criticism of 'chaotic' nurseries has outraged unions
.She praised a traditional approach akin to France's écoles maternelles
.Tory MPs including Damian Hinds urged minister to 'stick to her guns'
Elizabeth Truss risked a fresh clash with nursery chiefs yesterday by saying a third of children start school without basic language and communication skills.
The education minister’s claim that nurseries are too ‘chaotic’ has already outraged teaching unions and childcare providers.
But yesterday she told MPs there was clear evidence that toddlers who took part in structured sessions led by a graduate were better prepared for primary school.
Teaching college established to combat classroom fads
by Telegraph, April 23, 2013
The report also highlighted alarm over the extent to which teaching is put at the whim of the “five-year cycle” of education policy announcements, warning that....
Dara O'Briain: GCSE maths paper 'not interesting enough' for bright students
by Telegraph, April 23, 2013
Earlier this year, Michael Gove, the Education Secretary, said the qualifications would be assessed through a single exam taken at the end of two years instead
Who works the most hours - MPs or teachers?
by Guardian, April 23, 2013
The working hours of both teachers and MPs have both come under attack this week, but who really works the most hours?
The working hours of both teachers and MPs have been under attack this week. Margaret Hodge, the chair of the public accounts committee, has said that MPs need to spend more time in Westminster. Elsewhere, Michael Gove has called for longer school days and a cut in the length of holidays.
Each claim drew anger from representatives of their respective profession but what do the numbers tell us? Who works harder: MPs or teachers?
London schools set to feel strain of population growth
by Guardian, April 23, 2013
The capital will need 118,000 extra state-funded primary and secondary places within three years, according to research
Schools in London will come under increasing strain because of the city's rapid population growth, with 118,000 extra state-funded primary and secondary places needed within three years time, according to analysis by a group representing the 33 London boroughs and authorities.
Arts and design A-level fails to prepare students
by Guardian, April 23, 2013
Students and teachers are criticial of how exams are set and marked, survey by top London arts university shows
Arts students are leaving school without the skills needed to study at university level, or the insight required to find a career in the creative sector, research suggests.
A survey of students and teachers in schools, colleges and universities, conducted by University of the Arts London (UAL), found more than half had little faith in the content of the present A-level. Of the hundreds who responded to the survey, (55%) had no strong opinion or disagreed that the A-level in art and design prepares students for higher education. Some 58% had no strong opinion or disagreed that the qualification prepares students for employment in the creative industries.
