A study last week has claimed that social background has more bearing on whether you go to an elite university than which school you go to – especially when comparing state schools. The research from the 1970 British Cohort Study found that when you compare pupils from similar social backgrounds grammar schools offered no advantage…
This week several large MATs came out to attack Ofsted’s new framework as too “middle class”. Their main gripe appears to be that they can no longer sacrifice the teaching of more creative subjects in favour of more focus on the core subjects and teaching to exams, whether that be SATs or GCSEs. Some schools…
In its annual report, published this week, Ofsted said more apprenticeships are urgently needed to meet the needs of the economy. This is something I have been calling on for years. Apprenticeships are vital for the economy and also better fit the vast majority of students. We have become degree obsessed when most young people do…
As we leave 2019 behind and all the political uncertainty of the past three years I am hopeful that the new year could hold real promise for education. For someone like me who has backed the changes to the curriculum, supports testing and schools being held to account and believes in selective and specialist state…
Now all the manifestos have been published I’ve taken a look at the three main political parties’ education pledges. I’m pleased to see that funding is key and all the parties have recognised that more investment in schools is needed if we’re to thrive as a country. The most important issue is per-pupil funding and…