Jess Staufenberg | Schools Week

Ofsted boss calls for teachers to prove subject knowledge to stay qualified

Teachers should have to prove their subject knowledge is up-to-date at regular intervals to maintain their qualified status, a top Ofsted boss has said. Professor Daniel Muijs (pictured), the watchdog’s head of research, said he supported a “periodic requirement” for teachers to demonstrate they know about the latest research and discoveries in their subject area. […]

OCR suffers 20% drop in awards as schools flee iGCSE

A major exam board has reported a huge slump in certifications as schools shun iGCSEs in favour of more traditional qualifications. According to Ofqual’s annual qualifications market report, OCR, the third-largest provider of GCSE and equivalent qualifications, awarded 21 per cent fewer certificates last year. Exam boards WJEC and Pearson also saw falls of 17 […]

ASCL: ‘Stop telling primary pupils they haven’t met expectations’

Schools must stop telling pupils they “didn’t meet standards” in year six, the Association of School and College Leaders has warned. The union, which represents 19,000 heads, business managers and other leaders, has published a report criticising the way primary schools assess pupils and the way they are judged by Ofsted. Following a consultation with […]

DfE confirms ITT applicants WON’T be assessed on suitability to teach

Teacher training providers will be pressured to enrol failed applicants under new changes confirmed by the government today, an expert has warned. The National College for Teaching and Leadership has confirmed that ITT providers must now accept applicants “based on their suitability to train to teach, rather than their suitability to teach”. Ofsted will also be […]

Rodillian MAT hit with financial notice to improve after ESFA investigation

A Yorkshire academy trust has been hit with a financial notice to improve as a result of “historic failures” of governance and a failure to balance its budget. Under the terms of the notice, many of the Rodillian multi-academy trust’s spending powers are suspended, and decisions have to be run past officials. However the trust’s […]

Revealed: The 5 schools investigated over severance pay

Five schools investigated for spending more than £320,000 in severance payments without government approval have been named. Stand-alone academies Wilnecote High School near Birmingham, Langley Park School for Boys in south London and the Cathedral C of E Academy Trust in Wakefield, plus the multi-academy trust owned former Rydens Enterprise School in Surrey, and Grindon […]

Six fresh facts about teacher supply

The government has published a wide-ranging new analysis of data on teacher supply, retention and mobility. Officials analysed the school workforce census data, initial teacher training statistics and pupil projections, and looked at factors like how far teachers are willing to travel for a job, and the Ofsted grades of schools that attract the most teachers. […]

Set aside 15 minutes of dedicated reading time, secondary schools told

Secondary schools should set aside at least 15 minutes of “dedicated reading time” every day to encourage pupils to read more advanced books, a study has found. The tenth annual ‘What Kids Are Reading’ report found the 10 most popular books among the 750,000 secondary-age pupils surveyed were all written for primary pupils. One researcher […]

Minister: Academy trustees ‘not rigorous enough’ on CEO pay

Academy trust boards are “not being rigorous enough” in curbing excessive pay of senior leaders, the academies minister Theodore Agnew has said. Lord Agnew has written to chairs of academy trust boards urging them to take their financial responsibilities seriously, and not to over-reward trust bosses. In particular he said the salaries of non-teaching senior […]