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24 April 2026

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Opinion

Stop labelling summer-born pupils as SEN!

There’s a huge difference in the attainment of older and younger pupils in the same year, and it’s too often misdiagnosed, says Stephen Gorard It is well known that summer-born pupils leave school with lower grades than their peers, but research has now shown that they are also diagnosed by schools with special educational needs […]

Every child can read – don’t write them off

We must stop rating reading skills on a bell curve – it lets us leave struggling pupils behind, says James Murphy It is alarming that so many students arrive at secondary school not reading well enough to access the curriculum. It is even more alarming that we don’t believe these students can catch up. The […]

Why a SEND initial teacher training pathway is a bad idea

Inclusive pedagogy should be built into the fabric of every initial teacher training programme, rather than bolted on as an afterthought, argues Jacqui Ver Loren van Themaat Many people across the sector have called for more in-depth knowledge in initial teacher training (ITT): more behaviour-management strategies, more focus on subject knowledge, and more special educational needs […]

Schools No One Wants are in limbo – here’s what needs to change

The system for rebrokering schools needs reforming to better support vulnerable schools and pupils during the transition to a new academy trust, argues Mary Riall Inadequate’ academies are too often left unsupported for long periods while their transfer to a new multi-academy trust is negotiated, even though we could make simple changes to address this. […]

Is it time to bring back the EdTech quango Becta?

England has fallen behind as an international EdTEch player, so is it time to bring back a centralised body to oversee the sector, asks Tony Parkin It is two decades since the Blair Government swept to power on the mantra of “education, education, education” and the belief in the power of education technology to transform. […]

Governors! Here’s how to tell if your turnaround head is effective

Heads with the best long-term school improvement plans are often nearly fired two years into the job simply because they don’t improve exam results quickly enough – here’s how to avoid making that mistake, explain Ben Laker and Alex Hill Our previous study of the actions and impacts of 411 headteachers trying to turn around […]

Animal dissection must be cut from the curriculum

The modern curriculum is no place for cutting up dead animals, argues PETA’s Dr Julia Baines As a teacher, if you could take a stand against needless suffering while improving your students’ learning experience, wouldn’t you jump at the opportunity? Fortunately, this isn’t a rhetorical exercise: you can do both, by replacing animal dissection with […]

What’s the law on confiscating a pupil’s mobile phone?

Confiscation has been a hot topic on social media this week. Ramona Derbyshire clarifies schools’ and teachers’ legal rights If a teacher confiscates a mobile phone (or something else of value) from a pupil and it then gets broken or lost, who is responsible, and who must therefore bear the cost of replacing the item? […]

How to improve academy trust governance

Too many multi-academy trusts are struggling under poor governance at trust level, says Michael Pain, but Forum Education has some suggestions for improvement Ask most academy trust leaders about the most fundamental challenge for the multi-academy trust system and they will tell you about the massively varying quality of governance. So while some MATs are […]