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Turn your papers over – fresh start required

Turn your papers over – fresh start required

It was inevitable that cancelling examinations would cause conflicts and chaos, whatever alternative system was used to grade students. I said in March that the decision would lead to terrible problems. We were aware then that the peak of the virus outbreak was likely to be in April. While holding GCSEs would have posed difficulties…

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Back to basics – what schools should focus on in September

Back to basics – what schools should focus on in September

Primary school children should be taught basic numeracy and literacy when schools resume in September. The lockdown inevitably means many children will be behind, and knowing these basic building blocks is vital. Even for those who are on top of the subjects, a refresher term is no bad thing because numeracy and literacy are so…

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Progressive can be regressive

Progressive can be regressive

There have been many changes in the educational system since the late 1950s and early 60s, including a big move to a more progressive approach. This threw aside most of the traditional teaching methods in literacy and numeracy. Literacy focused less on grammar, syntax and good spelling – the structural elements of language – in…

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Why we must start getting children back to school

Why we must start getting children back to school

The longer children are not in school, the more they will suffer through their educational journey and beyond into the workplace. The government was correct to identify that children in Reception, Year 1 and Year 6 are being particularly hit by the school closures. Reception and Year 1 children are learning basic numeracy and literacy…

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Can parents replace their children’s teachers? Not by a long chalk.

Can parents replace their children’s teachers? Not by a long chalk.

Teaching is not easy at the best of times, so to be handed the responsibility of educating children having received no training or experience is daunting. But that is exactly what faced millions of parents when schools were suddenly closed due to the Coronavirus crisis. Their charges – of whatever age – needed to continue…

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