Expert Contributor | Schools Week

The reception year isn’t all about learning to read

The UK’s dogmatic approach to teaching reading does a disservice to the different ways and speeds at which young children learn, writes Jan Dubiel Ofsted’s recent Bold Beginnings report was controversial for several reasons, not least because it appeared to suggest that the core purpose of the reception year is learning how to read. Literacy […]

Progress 8 is biased towards grammar schools – here’s the solution

The school progress measures were a step in the right direction, but in their current form they can only partially correct for intake ability, writes Tom Perry As we have known for decades, and the data clearly shows, raw attainment scores such as schools’ GCSE results say more about schools’ intakes than their performance. The […]

Universal Infant Free School Meals – what has the impact been so far?

Some parents and school leaders believe free lunches are having positive effects on the lives of infants and their families, but the costs to schools may become unsustainable unless the government keeps an eye on how much money it provides, writes Peter Sellen, who co-authored the EPI’s new report In September 2013, the previous coalition […]

How can the DfE use EdTech to reduce teacher workload?

Justine Greening was making progress on using EdTech to alleviate workload – here’s what she’d achieved so far, and what’s still left to do, says Atif Mahmood The DfE’s own research has identified workload as the “most important factor” behind teachers who leave the profession. I meet with heads of department and headteachers daily, all […]

How did ‘child-centred’ dogma get established in schools?

Mary Woolley interviewed 13 veterans of history teaching, in an effort to discover how teaching has changed over the last 30 years. This is what she learned. The role and approach of teachers in classrooms is frequently contested, particularly in the history education community. Advocates of direct instruction emphasise the place of the teacher at […]

Schools mustn’t stop teaching other religions

With talk in the air that the new education secretary will deregulate faith schools, Charlotte Avery makes her plea for the place of comparative religion It was suggested this week that the new education secretary Damian Hinds plans to remove the 50-per-cent cap on pupils of the same religion being admitted to faith schools. This […]

It’s time to beat the gender pay gap in schools!

Schools will soon all be obliged to publish the differences in what they pay men and women. Sameena Choudry explains why that gap must now be filled. Last October, Theresa May brought the gender pay gap back into prominence. She declared that tackling it is an absolute priority for the government and made it a […]

What does Damian Hinds’ appointment as education secretary mean for schools?

The new education secretary shares some of his predecessor’s conciliatory instincts, but Tory red meat may be back on the menu, writes Jon Andrews Despite the great hype across news outlets, ministerial reshuffles barely capture the attention of anyone outside the great bubble of Westminster. This is a misconception – in education at least – […]

Is the battle for SEND inclusion won?

We’re making small steps on many fronts, explains Anita Kerwin-Nye, and may even have reached the end of the beginning in the struggle for inclusion It’s 30 years since I started work on including children with SEND, 10 since I founded the Communication Trust, three since we started Whole School SEND and 18 months since […]