A new study has declared the way school pupils learn to read is ‘uninformed and failing children’, and there have been calls on the government to drop its phonics focus. I disagree. The UCL’s Institute of Education says that phonics learning isn’t ‘underpinned by the latest evidence’ – but it is underpinned by the experience…
With disrupted schooling due to Covid many parents are keen to ensure their children haven’t fallen too far behind… Basic reading and numeracy are the two most important things that children should be competent in, especially before they go up to secondary school. Here are a few tips that will enable parents to help their…
There are fears that the government will impose another strict lockdown due to the new variant of Covid. It must resist. The education of our children has been severely affected during the pandemic and they need to be in school to catch up. A balance must be struck between the risks of Covid and the…
With girls again outperforming boys at GCSEs an academic has posed the question: “Why can’t we accept it is just that they are cleverer?” Professor Alan Smithers’ comment was not just a throw-away line; he had conducted research into this area and published a report on it. And for the most part, I would go…
Having read the reaction to the Commons Education Select Committee’s report I must agree that there is prejudice and discrimination built into the education system. It wrongly values academic ability above vocational ability. Our priority in education must be to provide an education that fits each child’s needs and their particular strengths and abilities. The ‘one size fits…