Primary school children affected by hygiene poverty, charity finds

June 18, 2018, 9:30 pm

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One in four families surveyed have gone without toiletries because of financial difficulties

Primary school children are arriving for their lessons unwashed and in dirty clothes because their parents cannot afford to buy washing powder, soap or shampoo, according to a survey by a UK charity.

More than four in 10 parents (43%) who took part in the survey said they have had to go without basic hygiene or cleaning products because they can’t afford them, while almost one in five (18%) admit their child wears the same underwear at least two days in a row.

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Job ads can give men a head start in school leadership selection

June 18, 2018, 10:45 pm

≫ Next: The academy dream is in freefall. Schools should not have to pick up the pieces

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Schools recruit using words such as ‘driven’, authoritative’ and ‘ambitious’, which can deter female candidates

At the Harrold primary academy in Bedford, governors are looking to recruit a “driven, ambitious and self-motivated natural leader” as executive principal. Ormiston Endeavour academy in Ipswich says that educational leadership is “not for the faint of heart” and is advertising for a head of school who will embrace its “no excuses” culture. At All Saints academy, Dunstable, they are after a head of school with “relentless drive, energy and ambition”. Salaries range from £70,000 to £103,000. These are the top jobs in education, and they want the best.

But who are they imagining will respond to such thrusting language? Vivienne Porritt, a former headteacher, has been analysing the wording used in advertisements for headships and school leaders. She believes much of the recruitment material for these jobs demonstrates evidence of “gendered” language– the types of words and phrases that lead to inequality.

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The academy dream is in freefall. Schools should not have to pick up the pieces

June 18, 2018, 11:00 pm

≫ Next: If postwar history starts in 1951, did the Tories ‘blue-wash’ the A-level syllabus?

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As more trusts are collapsing, a strict cap on executive pay and a lock on school assets is required

Eight years have passed since the coalition government empowered schools to free themselves of sinister-sounding local council “control” and become academies. Politicians sold a vision of a world in which our children’s education would instead be managed by “charitable trusts”.

The plan was to extend the “big society” – a utopian vision in which citizen groups would run public services, from local libraries to police units. But less than a decade later, and those have-a-go heroes have become walkaway washouts, as charity after charity is pulling the plug and handing back its schools.

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If postwar history starts in 1951, did the Tories ‘blue-wash’ the A-level syllabus?

June 18, 2018, 11:15 pm

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Critics claim OCR’s module on 20th-century Britain focuses too heavily on Churchill and ignores Attlee

It’s 3.15pm on a Wednesday afternoon in the airy atrium of the Suffolk One sixth-form college in Ipswich, and there’s a palpable sense of relief. This year’s A-level history candidates have emerged from an exam on Churchill, and are chatting animatedly about it with their teacher, Jenny Moore.

They are delighted because they were asked to discuss an extract on Churchill from the war diaries of General Sir Alan Brooke, which they know well. They have loved this part of the Oxford, Cambridge and RSA (OCR) exam board’s history syllabus.

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Bulldoze or rebuild? Architects at odds over future of Glasgow School of Art

June 19, 2018, 2:59 am

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Ideas about what to do with the charred remains of Charles Rennie Mackintosh’s range from restoration to a building ‘fit for the 21st century’

The smoke has barely cleared over the blackened carcass of the Glasgow School of Art, which was gutted by a fire on Friday night, but the architecture world is already alight with debate about what should come next.

To many, Glasgow without Charles Rennie Mackintosh’s finest work is unthinkable: his masterpiece must be reconstructed stone by stone, no matter the cost. But the extent of the destruction from the fire, which appears to have left only the stone facades standing, have led others to call for a new building to take its place.

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Share your 2018 GCSE and A-level experiences

June 19, 2018, 4:47 am

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We’d like to hear from students, parents and teachers to find out how A-levels and GCSEs have worked this year

New style exams for GCSE and A-level students could cause distortion and volitility in results, according to regulator Ofqual.

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Half of workers think Britain has a 'class ceiling'

June 19, 2018, 8:00 am

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Study commissioned by Justine Greening reveals perception of bias against working class accents

Half of UK workers believe a regional accent and a working class background are barriers to success, according to a new study that revealed working class representation in leadership roles is as low as 17%.

The study was commissioned by the former education secretary Justine Greening, who said working class people still believed they encountered a “class ceiling” with too much emphasis placed on personal connections more likely to suit middle class candidates.

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Exam board 'sorry' for audio mix-up in French and Spanish A-levels

June 19, 2018, 11:46 am

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Students still have to apply for ‘special consideration’ to have mark adjusted, says Eduqas

An examination board has apologised to A-level students and their teachers after a mix-up in recordings made it difficult for candidates to answer questions in Spanish and French exams taken this month.

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The ultimate guide to Cockney rhyming slang

June 9, 2014, 10:00 am

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From 'apples and pears' to 'weep and wail', an A to Z of Cockney rhyming slang and the meanings behind the east end's most famous linguistic export

Many of us know that "brown bread" is Cockney rhyming slang for dead, "china plate" for mate, and "bubble bath" for laugh. But how many know the meaning of the phrases? The historic native wit of this east end community (and its followers from around the world) often has an interesting logic to its phrases. Rather than simply a rhyming association, the slang reflects meaning in the expressions themselves. Here's a guide to the most commonly-used Cockney rhyming slang:

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10 things teachers want to say to parents, but can't

June 9, 2014, 11:20 pm

≫ Next: It’s time to confront A-level marking’s dirty little secret | Laura McInerney

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The long school year is coming to an end and one primary teacher has a few things to share

• 10 things parents want to say to teachers

1 Your kids are not your mates

Something I'm starting to hear with worrying frequency within the primary school setting is "my daughter's my best friend". Often, this rings alarm bells. Your kids aren't your mates. You're their parent, and your responsibility is to provide them with guidance and boundaries, not to drag them into your own disputes. Your nine-year-old doesn't need to know about your bitter feud with his friend's mother, or which dad you've got the hots for at the school gate. In the years to come he or she may realise that some of their own problems (social alienation, in its various forms, being a prime example) might have something to do with exposure to that sort of talk at an early age. Continue at your own risk.

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It’s time to confront A-level marking’s dirty little secret | Laura McInerney

August 15, 2016, 11:30 pm

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All A-level grades are not necessarily equal: schools can ask for papers to be re-marked – if they can afford it. Is there a way of making the system fairer?

There is an injustice haunting exams in England, Wales and Northern Ireland. No one mentions it because no one has any clue how to solve it. Last week, however, a thought struck me. Let’s see what you think.

On Thursday, thousands of young people will log on to computers and find out their A-level grades. We already know that pupils from state schools will receive proportionately fewer top grades than those in private schools. But what most people don’t know is that a bit of the exams process that happens after pupils have received their grades makes the inequity just that tiny bit worse.

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Bristol University faces growing anger after student suicides

May 25, 2018, 10:00 pm

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Backdrop to exam season is mounting concern about student mental health

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Graduation – a guide for parents

June 30, 2015, 1:49 am

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From sorting out practical arrangements to avoiding faux pas, follow our guide to graduation day

“At my first graduation I got my boyfriend and best friend to pretend to be my parents,” says doctorate student Lindsay Jordan. “My friend dressed up like Jackie Onassis. It was pretty funny, but I’d rather my real parents had been there.”

Jordan’s parents didn’t attend either her undergraduate or master’s graduation ceremonies, as “they hate travelling and formal occasions”. While they may not be for everyone, graduation ceremonies are a chance for parents to celebrate their child’s achievements – and mark the end of university life. But they can also be expensive, stressful and the cause of family arguments. Here’s how to make your student child’s graduation day a happy one.

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Parents: not happy about something at school? Here’s how to complain

February 23, 2015, 11:30 pm

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Your daughter’s homework isn’t being marked. Your son’s been put in detention for no real reason. What’s the best course of action? A teacher writes …

One of the best pieces of advice I was ever given was from a friend in the restaurant business. If I were planning to complain about any part of my meal or service, he said, I should wait until I had eaten all I was going to eat that night. He illustrated this warning with examples of what can happen to food prepared for awkward customers, and so I’ve followed this advice ever since. It’s a good principle: don’t complain to people on whom you’re relying – unless there’s no way they can wipe your steak on their bum or drop a bogey in your soup.

As with restaurants, so with schools. The difference with schools is that you’re likely to be stuck with them for a lot longer than one meal. So think carefully before putting on your Mr Angry face and marching into the school for a spot of ranting.

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Matt Hancock: schools across the UK should ban mobile phones

June 19, 2018, 4:06 pm

≫ Next: What happens when ordinary people learn economics? | Aditya Chakrabortty

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The culture secretary who heads up the digital brief says tech makes parenting harder

The culture secretary has called on more schools to ban mobile phones.

Matt Hancock said he admired those headteachers who did not allow their use during the school day and linked social media use with the problem of bullying among young children.

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What happens when ordinary people learn economics? | Aditya Chakrabortty

June 19, 2018, 10:00 pm

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In Manchester, groundbreaking economics courses are giving locals the means to challenge some of society’s received wisdom – for free.
• Listen to Aditya Chakrabortty talking about game-changing economic models on The Alternatives podcast

In a makeshift classroom, nine lay people are battling some of the greatest economists of all time – and they appear to be winning. Just watch what happens to David Ricardo, the 18th-century father of our free-trade system. In best BBC voice, one of the group reads out Ricardo’s words: “Economics studies how the produce of the Earth is distributed.”

Not good enough, says another, Brigitte Lechner. Shouldn’t economists study how to meet basic needs? “We all need a roof over our heads, we all need to survive.” Nor does the Earth belong solely to humans. Her judgment is brisk. “Ricardo was talking tosh.”

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Parents urged to set boundaries around children's use of the internet

June 20, 2018, 6:28 am

≫ Next: My predicted grades were way off. It’s time to get real about A-levels | Grace Holliday

≪ Previous: What happens when ordinary people learn economics? | Aditya Chakrabortty

Culture secretary condemns unsupervised access to smartphones and urges more heads to ban them in schools

The culture secretary has said it is up to parents to set boundaries around their children’s use of the internet and has condemned unlimited and unsupervised access to smartphones.

Matt Hancock, whose brief includes digital issues, agreed parenting in the digital era was difficult but he said it was not impossible and he urged parents to set boundaries around new technology in the same way they have always set boundaries for their children.

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My predicted grades were way off. It’s time to get real about A-levels | Grace Holliday

June 20, 2018, 7:21 am

≫ Next: £20,000 losses and late-night casino binges: the student gambling epidemic

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Universities must ditch the crystal ball – as it stands, the admissions process is failing disadvantaged students

Hunched over on dirty stairs, surrounded by other students either crying or squealing, I struggled to open the envelope because my hands were shaking so much. The page inside listed grades of A, A and B. It took me several long, confused seconds to process that these were my A-level results. Just two years earlier, I’d been told me to expect – and apply to university on the basis of getting – CCD.

The University and College Union (UCU) has this week called for an end to university applications being based on predicted grades. Research by UCL’s Institute of Education back in 2016 found that over three years, 84% of predictions for three A-levels or equivalent had been inaccurate.

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£20,000 losses and late-night casino binges: the student gambling epidemic

June 20, 2018, 7:25 am

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Three former addicts tell their stories of gambling at university – and explain what can be done to prevent more young people falling into the trap

The cocktail of new-found freedom at university, easy availability of borrowed money and the ever-present opportunity to gamble has driven some students to academic failure, bankruptcy and mental health problems.

Gambling is a growing issue for students at British universities. The Gambling Commission estimated that more than 100,000 students are in debt due to their habit, with one in four of those indebted beyond £10,000.

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