Yesterday
‘Pro-girl’ gap in teachers’ predicted A-level grades identified
Teachers often predict higher A-level grades for girls than boys, and this could be affecting students’ access to university courses, researchers warn
Technical pathways plan: 7 lessons from failed 14-19 Diplomas
Responding to Andy Burnham’s announcement about new technical education pathways, a former civil servant who worked on 14-19 reforms reflects on the challenges that caused the collapse of Diplomas
New technical routes for schools: what we do and don’t know
A huge announcement on secondary education was made by Andy Burnham last night, begging a raft of questions. We set out the answers the sector needs and the detail – where it exists – we know already
Isolated school students ‘at higher risk of becoming Neet’
Schools are ‘well-placed’ to identify teenagers who are becoming isolated and their early intervention can ‘make a real difference for a young person’s future’, say researchers
Why deciding what not to do is the key to better teacher development
Schools cannot continue to add indefinitely, so they must make difficult decisions about what professional learning to prioritise, say Sam Gibbs and Kathryn Morgan
Monday
New technical pathways in secondary schools by 2028, PM announces
Schools will be inspected by Ofsted on vocational offering, but sector leaders want more details on multiple aspects of the plans
Ethnicity excluded from new similar-schools measure amid legal fears
A new DfE ‘similar schools’ measure, launching this September, is aimed at helping the government and Ofsted to understand how well pupils in one school are achieving compared with those in schools in a similar context
‘Compatible’ teaching of RE and science could boost interest in Stem
Many secondary students do not see science and religion as ‘contradictory’, UCL research suggests – and ‘connected’ teaching of the subjects can encourage further Stem studies
Friday
What Lucy Powell should do about Ofsted, staff wellbeing and pupil rolls
As the new education secretary begins her tenure, ASCL leader Pepe Di’Iasio outlines three priorities in her in-tray
Two years on and the VAT debate remains alive
Should private schools accept that VAT on fees is here to stay, or could political winds of change shift again one day, asks HMC CEO Simon Hyde
Students in England ‘substantially’ more likely to be mocked by peers
Research also warns that exam anxiety is contributing to a ‘steady decline’ in life satisfaction among young people
