Opinion

As our system continues to struggle to improve the achievement of learners from poorer backgrounds, Mel Ainscow argues the ‘what works’ mantra is symptomatic of a failure to grasp the complexities of change management This month, another school in England has been rapped for off-rolling in the full knowledge, and with the support, of its […]

The new computing curriculum in England regards computer science in exactly the same way as the more familiar natural sciences. This is an ambitious recoding of the curriculum, says NCCE chair Simon Peyton Jones, but do we have the capacity to deliver it? Ask yourself this: why do we invite every child to learn elementary […]

The Education Policy Institute was right to publish pupil exits data for MATs and councils, argues its research chief Natalie Perera. The publication of our report last week on ‘Unexplained pupil exits from schools’ has attracted some criticism because of our decision to publish the prevalence of such exits amongst individual MATs and LAs. Publishing data […]

Setting aside the moral question as to whether this is what schools should be doing, how easy is it to actually make a difference? A school’s core activities are difficult enough. Where activities are, arguably, tangential to that core, the challenges may be even greater. Schools are often seen as the first line of defence […]

Survey results show a bleak and unsustainable situation for the school business leadership community. Hilary Goldsmith calls for action in the face of impending crisis At the start of September, 324 respondents completed my survey of school business leadership (SBL) salaries across the UK. I asked a number of questions about how SBLs are regarded […]

The fifth  #WomenEd unconference highlighted the need for flexible working to become standard in schools, says Vivienne Porritt. But she admits that won’t happen without collaboration and a willingness to innovate When 300 women and men gathered at Sheffield Hallam University recently for #WomenEd’s unconference, values-led discussions were the hallmark of the event. They included […]

Last week, the Education Policy Institute published new research examining unexplained pupil exits from English schools. While the EPI was very careful in the language used, it is clear from the media and social media that many people have seen the phrase “unexplained exits” as ultimately being the terminology to raise the debate about “off-rolling”. […]

Teachers are less religious today than they were 50 years ago. In some ways, this is no surprise – the profession’s loss of religion mirrors society. In August the British Attitudes Survey reported a doubling in the past two decades of the number of people who don’t believe in God. According to our recent Teacher […]

Ofsted has been inspecting schools under its new framework for little more than a month. It is probably too early to infer too much, says Alex Ford, but publication of the first batch of reports shows Ofsted’s understanding of curriculum quality in practice – and it isn’t without problems Schools and parents were promised that […]