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5 June 2026

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Opinion

Schools must stay open and here’s how to achieve it

The former prime minister reveals a long-term strategy that he says will build confidence to keep schools open Covid-19 has already deprived 300 million children of their education worldwide. We cannot let this happen again and must do everything in our power to keep schools open throughout and beyond this second lockdown. It is essential […]

Why the rank order contingency plan is flawed

If the best contingency we have is to slot students who missed exams into an unreliable grade ranking then we need to look again at the fundamentals, writes Dennis Sherwood Despite assurances from ministers that exams will go ahead in England this academic year, the exams regulator and exam boards are nevertheless developing contingency plans. […]

School closures or not, a second wave of lost learning is already upon us

The latest data shows the most disadvantaged pupils were more likely to have missed the most school this term, writes Luke Sibieta Passionate views have been put forward over the past few days about whether schools should remain open, and it is almost certain that arguments will only intensify as the national lockdown comes into […]

Technology has reduced workload and stress, right?

Laura McInerney looks at the latest Teacher Tapp data to contrast the perceptions of policy makers with the reality in schools Policy makers keep asking an odd question. Every time they ask it, I’m totally baffled. “Why are teachers so stressed out?” they ask, “Surely they’ve got less to do now that technology has become […]

How to make the best of one-to-one tuition

As the national tutoring programme rolls out, David Hatchett sets out the lessons AET have learned about effective implementation of one-to one tuition When I joined AET in December 2017 and took on responsibility for 28 secondary schools, it was immediately apparent that our results that summer were going to be a real issue. We […]

Après SKE. What next for Subject Knowledge Enhancement courses?

With course allocations on hold, Sam Sims looks at the value of subject knowledge enhacement courses and how they might be used to respond to a changing labour market Many countries require secondary school teachers to have a degree in the subject they teach. In England, government used to insist that secondary teachers had subject […]

Teachers can’t increase diversity alone. Exam boards have a role to play too

Increasing diversity across the curriculum is about far more than making more texts available, writes Katy Lewis. It requires a long-term commitment to change When students are exposed to literature from a variety of authors from different backgrounds, it benefits everyone. They should be able to read about issues they can engage with and relate […]

Don’t demonise the school uniform shop

As the Education (Guidance about Costs of School Uniforms) Bill makes its way through parliament, with its report stage scheduled for November, Andrew Lewer presents the case for sole-supplier arrangements There has been much debate of late over school uniforms, in the House of Commons, in the press and on social media. Themes within this […]

Some temporary Covid measures should be made permanent

Some of the temporary changes made to respond to the pandemic should now be made permanent, argues Benoit Guerin The coronavirus pandemic and lockdown created unprecedented disruptions for schools in England. In response, a host of changes were made including the provision of additional funding, delivering lessons remotely and providing free school meals at home […]