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Latest comment by Rebecca Hanson: "Is that the comment that not all schools have yet had 23 years of stable outstanding leadership with sufficient resource and support? Or did you have something else in mind Ricky in which case do tell...."
Comment + Debate
Five of the 24 first-wave free schools have been found to be in breach of the Schools Admission Code. In July, the Schools Adjudicator ruled that the Maharishi Free School and the Langley Hall Primary Academy were not compliant. In August the Adjudicator found fault with the admission arrangements of the Barnfield Moorland Free School, part of the Barnfield Federation, ... read more and comment →
Having spent yesterday listening to the inspirational children's author and former children's laureate Michael Rosen, I returned home to find yet another controversial education story occupying the media and generating a myriad of comment online. Michael's key theme, as he advocated developing talk through poetry and gave a rousing critique on government policy on reading, was that changes in the way ... read more and comment →
Latest comment by Rebecca Hanson: "One thing the ministers completely misunderstand and misquote is the evidence from China and the Pacific Rim, Michael, of which the best source is LiPing Ma's book - Knowing and Teaching Elementary Mathematics. It shows a more fundamental teaching of the ......"
Comment + Debate “To accuse teachers of manipulating marks… is a gross insult,” writes Simon Gibbons, Chair of the National Association for the Teaching of English, in a letter describing his anger about the Ofqual report into the GCSE English 2012 fiasco and remarks by Glenys Stacy, Ofqual’s Chief Executive, to the media. He describes how the pressure on teachers to deliver results ... read more and comment →
On the Government’s own terms, “the education department has probably been the most successful, and unsurprisingly was highlighted by David Cameron in his age of aspiration conference speech. The education secretary, Michael Gove, has assembled a handpicked team to drive reform relentlessly and take on what he calls "the blob" – the education establishment,” wrote the Guardian. So how has this ... read more and comment →
Latest comment by Rebecca Hanson: "Is it the 30% of properties big enough for them in the area they live in the private rented sector?..."
Comment + Debate For the headteacher of a primary school the publication of RAISEonline is one of the seminal moments of the autumn term. For the uninitiated, Raise (I can't keep mixing upper and lower case) is where the statisticians at Ofsted take all your school's data and present it back to you in a variety of charts, diagrams and graphs. There are ... read more and comment →
On the day that marks the mid-term for the Coalition government, it was instructive to read some research conducted by Findings from Race on the Agenda (ROTA) which shows that free schools are not recruiting students from the most deprived backgrounds. ROTA do not appear to be against the free school policy per se, but are anxious that the programme should make ... read more and comment →
Latest comment by Free Schools are not recruiting minority and ‘disadvantaged students’* «Seyi's thoughts on education Seyi's thoughts on education: "[...] London School Network: Francis Gilbert’s article: http://www.localschoolsnetwork.org.uk/2012/11/new-research-shows-that-free-schools-are-not-recruitin... [...]..."
Comment + Debate HMRC is losing millions in unpaid employers’ national insurance (NI) because employees are on the payroll of offshore companies, an investigation by Radio 5 Live has found. The programme revealed how employers, whether recruitment agencies, local authorities or schools, employed supply teachers who were actually paid by an offshore company outsourced to pay supply teachers’ wages. And this company was ... read more and comment →
Latest comment by Andy: "Thank you Ricky. You, as you usually are, right. Apologies to all readers for inadvertantly switching the terms around, other than that the thrust of the comments remain unamended and a fair reflection of the situation. PS the rumour ......"
Comment + Debate
I take it you, (like the thousands of others), read, ‘Is Toby ‘FrankenFreeSchoolstein’ Young Destined for PM Gove’s Ministry for Silly Education?’ If not, you can find it here. Many discussions arose from this article, of which several frivolous comments punctured my psyche. Probably not what you would expect as they concerned the long gowns worn by the West London Free ... read more and comment →
Latest comment by Nasmyth: "Harry Potter was born with a gift he inherited from his parents, while his friends had to work for their success. He is an empty hero for children. Nice children's fantasy books, to be sure, but nothing more. Enough with polarised ......"
Comment + Debate Two watchdogs which investigate whether the Government spends taxpayers’ money wisely, the Public Accounts Committee (PAC) and the National Audit Office (NAO), appeared on BBC Radio 4’s File on Four four months after the NAO published its report describing the risks and opportunities of delivering public services through market mechanisms. Margaret Hodge, PAC chair, told the BBC that “due diligence” was missing in ... read more and comment →
