University of Buckingham
The Lucy Powell argument is that children from poorer backgrounds and with special needs have suffered as a result of the Gove reforms because many of them do badly at GCSE and end up unemployed. Where does the truth lie? Gove got rid of ‘vocational alternatives’ to GCSEs because of clear evidence that they were... Continue Reading →
Grades are stable because of Ofqual’s comparable outcomes approach to grading – they keep grade distributions similar to the pre-Covid distribution of 2019. Girls did better than boys. That’s because they are more mature and more likely to want to please the teacher. They work harder. There is a long tail of underperformance. Nearly a... Continue Reading →
The University of Buckingham has achieved a ‘Strong Standard’ in its QTS (Qualified Teacher Status) Ofsted inspection report. The University of Buckingham is one of the largest providers of teacher training in England. This year, 400 students are taking the Qualified Teacher Status apprenticeship levy-funded course alone - much the biggest group in England. The QTS courses are designed for graduates who want to... Continue Reading →
More than a decade ago I was the head of Harrow, a good school but an unusual one being 100% boarding and 100% boys – and private. So when I retired I decided to do a few things which might inform me about state schools, the schools which teach the vast majority of children. What... Continue Reading →
Schools Governments can only do so much at any one time. Gove did schools but failed to deal with skills and FE. Filling the skills gap in the British economy should be the number one focus, concentrating on young people aged 16+ eg energy production, infrastructure development, AI and IT, hospital technicians, lab assistants. Review... Continue Reading →
The Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA) is the most important international measure of the proficiency of 15-year-olds in maths, reading and science. It is run by the OECD and the last test was in 2022. Comparing the results of 2022 with those of previous years shows how well individual countries are doing compared to... Continue Reading →