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22 May 2026

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Opinion

If I were education secretary…

I should keep at the back of all my policymaking the remembrance that what goes on beyond the world of education has an impact on what takes place inside it, and that a popular culture more or less founded on the glorification of stupidity will necessarily colour the atmosphere in which children make the decisions […]

Beware! Live streaming ahead

Filming that special lesson to share with others seems a good idea. But it’s not that simple; you will need to think about safeguarding, privacy laws and the need for parents’ permission You can “live stream” at the click of a button these days. Apps such as Periscope and Meerkat are becoming more commonplace in […]

Testing DfE Transparency – How easy is it to see the Register of Interests?

Were the Dead Sea Scrolls any easier to discover, I wonder? My setting was the more mundane headquarters of the Department for Education in Westminster, rather than caves in the Middle East, but at times the documents seemed just as elusive. Two weeks ago  – under orders from the editor – I was tasked with […]

Do the education manifesto pledges stand up?

It’s the election next week and all the parties have waved their education banners long and hard. But the evidence that any of their policies might work in raising attainment or participation is slight or non-existent With the general election looming, the three major political parties have all promised to protect the education budget for […]

If I were education secretary…

To deliver the best possible education for all children we need motivated, well-paid and respected teachers. School budgets must be sufficient to meet the needs of every pupil and our children deserve to be taught by qualified teachers. The current curriculum is not encouraging critical or creative thinking, particularly at primary level where the succession of tests […]

Vocational qualifications don’t need more ‘rigour’

Despite the many flaws, teachers must act with integrity when delivering and assessing the constantly changing BTECs The BTEC qualification causes many anxieties for many teachers. It is perpetually changing, not least because of the desire of consecutive education secretaries to “bring more rigour” to vocational education. There are some egregious faults as a result […]

If I were education secretary…

As the chief executive of a multi-academy trust, my team of three executives and myself spend nearly all of our time trying to make sure that the trust and the schools within in are following all the rules. But it is impossible to be 100 per cent compliant. Not only is there a ridiculous amount […]

The practicalities of making students study English to 18

More teachers will be needed to teach students who don’t really want to be there. . . and just as more budget cuts are about to hit further education. Why hasn’t someone thought this through? After teaching English in secondary schools for 12 or so years, I began working as an FE lecturer in Warwickshire; […]

While some children get Apple Watches – others go hungry

Half of my facebook timeline are excited about a £500 Apple Watch; the other half are despairing over news that teachers are spending their own cash to feed, wash and clothe increasingly poor children. What a world we live in. When first learning of today’s NAHT survey, and its finding that teachers are paying from their own […]