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4 October 2026

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Opinion

Research: How to ensure more disadvantaged students succeed

Rebecca Wheater looks at a new PISA 2018 analysis that sheds light on the conditions for disadvantaged pupil’s academic success Recent national and international evidence has shown that the Covid-19 pandemic has increased the negative impact of disadvantage on educational success. Understanding how to mitigate this is therefore vital to ensuring an equitable recovery for […]

Three traps the edtech strategy must avoid at all costs

The Covid lockdowns have provided a golden opportunity for government to work out a well-thought-through strategy for edtech, writes Mark Anderson Three national lockdowns in, by and large most schools and trusts are making a good go of blended learning. It’s been challenging, even for those who have been successfully using edtech for years, to […]

Schools teach and care. We ought to value both

The return to school without exams presents a golden opportunity for schools to practise what they value, write Rebecca Boomer-Clark and Jake Curtis Our organisations support some of the country’s most vulnerable teenagers – the very children who, sadly but unsurprisingly, have been hardest hit by the pandemic. Together, we have been considering what seeds […]

Once open, schools must stay open for good

This lockdown has been a nightmare. The government must throw everything at making sure schools stay open, writes Qais Hussain The prime minister’s announcement that I and my peers can return to school on March 8 is perhaps the best news I have received throughout this pandemic – better even than my GCSE results. Truth […]

Boris Johnson’s ‘big bang’ is a big risk

The prime minister’s decision for a ‘big bang’ full reopening on 8 March makes no sense, writes Mary Bousted Throughout this awful pandemic, the National Education Union has followed the science and been proved right time after time.  We tracked the spread of Covid in schools and colleges and the disruption it was causing to […]

Can you really find research to back up any opinion?

Counter-intuitively perhaps, being research-informed does not negate engaging in debate. Cat Scutt explains why The Chartered College of Teaching has recently launched its Certificate in Evidence-Informed Practice, which culminates in teachers engaging in some of the most complex debates in education. In a way this might seem strange – surely acting based on evidence negates […]

Why we shouldn’t rush to scrap GCSEs in the wake of the Covid-19 pandemic

We need a debate about the future of education post-Covid-19, but that shouldn’t mean a rush to abolish things like GCSEs, writes Tim Oates. A lot has changed over the past year. The effect of Covid has been seismic for individuals, industries and countries around the globe. But there is now hope that mass vaccination […]

What academy finances can tell us about the future of the sector

Despite a slow-down in academy sector growth overall, some have clearly out-performed others. Who? How? And what can we learn from this? Pam Tuckett finds out Decision-making during the pandemic has been challenging. However, trust boards appear to have adapted quickly to the demands of pandemic leadership, and MATs have shown remarkable strength and flexibility […]

Can schools make staff vaccination mandatory?

There are good arguments for expecting school staff to get their vaccination against Covid but any policy must consider those who can’t or won’t, writes Paman Singh News of a vaccine is the light at the end of a very long tunnel for many teachers and school staff. Discussions around where in the pecking order […]