National News
Scottish schools have tumbled from top of the class. This is what went wrong | Sonia Sodha
Sunday 10th December 2023Pupils became unwitting guinea pigs of faddish, unproven theories – and paid a high priceThe Scottish school system was once the jewel in the British educational crown...
The school reports are in – and they’re not good
Sunday 10th December 2023Far from being places of safety, fun and enlightenment, many children just don’t see the point of school any moreWhen I was very little, I excelled at school...
'I couldn't handle the shame': Teachers' dread at Ofsted reports
Saturday 9th December 2023Head teachers talk frankly about the mental health impact that Ofsted inspections have had on them...
School complaints about bullying Ofsted inspectors soar to ‘ridiculous’ levels in England
Saturday 9th December 2023Education consultants say headteachers approaching in record numbers, after inspection ruled a factor in Ruth Perry’s suicideThe number of schools in England filing complaints to Ofsted about bullying inspectors has risen to “ridiculous” levels, education leaders warned this weekend...
'The shame of being told you're inadequate by Ofsted'
Saturday 9th December 2023Head teachers talk frankly about the mental health impact that Ofsted inspections have had on them...
Sister of headteacher who killed herself condemns Ofsted chief’s ‘crass’ comments
Friday 8th December 2023Chief inspector said death was being used to ‘discredit’ body, days before coroner ruled inspection contributed to Ruth Perry’s deathThe sister of a headteacher who killed herself after an Ofsted inspection said comments by the watchdog’s chief inspector were a “kick in the guts” and accused it of failing to make the changes needed to prevent further cases...
Republicans tout ‘school choice’ as issue to attract parents across party divide
Friday 8th December 2023Trump is calling for support of home schooling and tax breaks for providing scholarships for private and religious schoolsBeyond the tumult surrounding Donald Trump’s presidential bid and his threats to seek revenge against his political enemies should he win, the Republican frontrunner has seized on an issue that even some Democrats say could attract new voters in 2024...
Folk music stars join protests over plans to axe Gaelic at Aberdeen University
Friday 8th December 2023‘Staggering act of cultural vandalism’ is part of proposals to cut degree courses in modern languagesMany of Scotland’s best-known folk music stars have joined protests by Gaelic scholars, lecturers and politicians over plans by the University of Aberdeen to axe its languages courses...
‘Will I be able to avoid swearing at the inspector?’: a headteacher on an Ofsted inspection
Friday 8th December 2023An anonymous headteacher writes of the anxiety and long hours involved in their recent graded inspectionThe phone rings at 9...
Expelled pupil helps turn school around as governor
Friday 8th December 2023Duane Williams oversees the improvement of Ofsted reports at Colton Hills Community School...
Ofsted comments were ‘a kick in the guts’, says sister of headteacher who killed herself
Friday 8th December 2023Comments come after coroner said Ofsted inspection of Ruth Perry’s school contributed to her suicideThe sister of a headteacher who killed herself after an Ofsted inspection said comments by the watchdog’s chief inspector were a “kick in the guts” and accused it of failing to make the changes needed to prevent further cases...
Ruth Perry: Ofsted inspection 'contributed' to head teacher's death
Thursday 7th December 2023The head teacher died two months after Ofsted inspected her school in Reading in November 2022...
New Raac schools list of buildings with unsafe concrete
Thursday 7th December 2023The government has published an updated list of schools in England with crumbling concrete...
‘Dark thoughts’: how Ruth Perry’s resolve fell apart after Ofsted visit
Thursday 7th December 2023Experienced Reading headteacher suffered rapid psychological decline after stressful inspectors’ visit Ruth Perry was the headteacher of one of Reading’s most popular primary schools for 13 years, the same school that she had attended as a child...
I.N.A.D.E.Q.U.A.T.E - Ruth Perry’s despair in handwritten notes
Thursday 7th December 2023In the days following an inspection at her school, the head teacher wrote down her innermost thoughts...
US public schools took a stance on Israel-Hamas. The backlash was swift
Thursday 7th December 2023The politicization of education has resulted in schools becoming culture-war battlegrounds, often leading to more division than solidarityOn 7 October, the day Hamas attacked Israel and the country began bombarding Gaza, the superintendent of the Los Angeles unified school district posted on social media: “We stand with Israel...
Ofsted inspection contributed to headteacher’s suicide, coroner rules
Thursday 7th December 2023Inquest examined watchdog’s role in Ruth Perry’s decline after Reading primary school’s rating was downgradedA headteacher killed herself this year after an Ofsted inspection of her school downgraded it from “outstanding” to “inadequate”, a coroner has concluded...
Ruth Perry: Ofsted inspection 'contributed' to headteacher's death
Thursday 7th December 2023The head teacher died two months after Ofsted inspected her school in Reading in November 2022...
Ruth Perry: Ofsted check 'likely contributed' to headteacher's death
Thursday 7th December 2023The head teacher died two months after Ofsted inspected her school in Reading in November 2022...
Ashford school to make students lock their phones in pouches
Wednesday 6th December 2023A school in Kent is set to make students lock their phones in a pouch during the day...
Pisa: Welsh curriculum not full answer to improve school tests - minister
Wednesday 6th December 2023Minister calls Wales' performance in international tests for 15-year olds "really disappointing"...
New Raac schools list of buildings with unsafe concrete
Wednesday 6th December 2023The government has published an updated list of schools in England with crumbling concrete...
Cuba health and education hollowed out as staff join emigration exodus
Wednesday 6th December 2023US ‘maximum pressure’ sanctions have slashed wages for state workers leading to a brain drain hitting the Revolution’s ‘pillars’Every morning before dawn, hundreds of people line up outside the US embassy...
A moment that changed me: I was pregnant at 16 – and a midwife said I was good for nothing. It was a red rag to a bull
Wednesday 6th December 2023All the odds were stacked against me, but there was no way I was going to give up...
Taliban causing ‘irreversible damage’ to whole education system in Afghanistan
Wednesday 6th December 2023Human Rights Watch warns bar on women means unqualified men now teach boys, fewer subjects are taught and beatings are routineThe Taliban is causing “irreversible damage” to Afghanistan’s education system through the reintroduction of corporal punishment, curriculum changes and the use of unqualified teachers to replace women, most of whom have been barred from schools, Human Rights Watch has warned...
‘Accessing healthcare is not easy here’: medical challenges around the world – in pictures
Tuesday 5th December 2023Since 2005, Brazilian photographer André François has been capturing pandemic, earthquake and other health responses in remote communities across the world Continue reading...
Free childcare for 30 hours a week? It sounds too good to be true – and for worse-off families, it is | Polly Toynbee
Tuesday 5th December 2023Early-years education can determine a child’s future – which is why a Labour government must make it a priorityFree childcare! Thirty hours a week from nine months until primary school was the eye-catcher in the chancellor’s spring budget...
UK pupils’ science and maths scores lowest since 2006 in international tests
Tuesday 5th December 2023Global slump means maths and reading rankings still up slightly in OECD assessment of 15-year-olds, but results vary for UK nationsThe UK has suffered a sharp decline in its performance in the latest round of influential international academic tests, wiping out recent progress, as the widespread disruption caused by Covid continued to take its toll on education...
Teaching kids to spot fake news: media literacy to be required in California schools
Tuesday 5th December 2023Experts say skills can teach critical thinking and even combat the youth mental health crisis California next year will become one of the few US states to teach students media literacy, a move experts say is imperative at a time when distrust in the media is at an all-time high and new technologies pose unprecedented challenges to identifying false information...
Pisa: Wales slumps to worst school test results
Tuesday 5th December 2023Wales' scores are the UK's lowest, and the results gap has widened in reading, maths and science...
Taliban could be convinced to open girls’ schools, says Afghanistan ex-education minister
Tuesday 5th December 2023Global governments should engage with the Taliban because some in the regime support reversing the ban, says Rangina HamidiThere are many Taliban officials who would support reversing the ban on schooling for girls in Afghanistan, according to the country’s last education minister before the takeover...
UK has high rate of teenagers missing meals due to poverty, OECD says – as it happpened
Tuesday 5th December 2023This live blog is now closed, you can read more of our UK political coverage hereThe UK has suffered a sharp decline in its performance in the latest round of influential international academic tests, wiping out recent progress, as the widespread disruption caused by Covid continued to take its toll on education, the Guardian reports...
'If it wasn't for my foster carer I'd be in prison,' says Swindon man
Monday 4th December 2023Swindon's urgent push for more local fostering placements to help at-risk children...
Record number of girls on Borders College farming course
Monday 4th December 2023A record number of female students have started an agriculture course at Borders College...
Teachers at Kent school halt strike after deal to tackle pupil violence
Monday 4th December 2023Staff at Oasis Academy on the Isle of Sheppey took industrial action demanding a clampdowon on unacceptable behaviourA deal has been struck between school staff and an academy where teachers have been striking over pupils’ threats and violence...
Misinformation expert says she was fired by Harvard under Meta pressure
Monday 4th December 2023Joan Donovan says funding was cut off for criticizing Meta when university was receiving $500m from Mark Zuckerberg’s charityOne of the world’s leading experts on misinformation says she was fired by Harvard University for criticising Meta at a time that the school was being pledged $500m from Mark Zuckerberg’s charity...
Record numbers of children being home schooled
Monday 4th December 2023A parent says a range of factors were behind their decision to home-educate...
Buckton Fields Primary School building to be demolished
Monday 4th December 2023It is virtually brand new but was shut suddenly when problems were discovered with its structure...
Ofsted inspectors not given guidance on distressed headteachers, Ruth Perry inquest hears
Monday 4th December 2023Berkshire coroner’s office hears there was one reference to managing stress given to inspectors before November 2022Ofsted inspectors were not given specific written guidance about what to do if a headteacher becomes distressed during an inspection, an inquest has heard...
Care sector fears migration changes are a step back
Monday 4th December 2023Many in social care believe overseas staff saved the system from collapse, reports Alison Holt...
Ofsted accused of ‘misleading’ inquest into death of teacher Ruth Perry
Saturday 2nd December 2023Inspectors say claims made to coroner about wellbeing training following death of Reading headteacher are ‘nonsense’School inspectors have accused their employer, Ofsted, of misleading the court during last week’s inquest into the death of headteacher Ruth Perry, the Observer can reveal...
Sir Frederick Gibberd College in Harlow to be demolished
Friday 1st December 2023The school in Harlow, which opened in 2019, will be demolished and rebuilt due to construction issues...
Windsor prep school appoints first female head after 675 years
Friday 1st December 2023Emma Károlyi joins the Windsor school famous for being the home of St George's Chapel's choir...
Ruth Perry ‘amazed’ more heads did not kill themselves, inquest hears
Friday 1st December 2023Hearing into death of Caversham primary school head was also told she thought Ofsted inspections were ‘inhumane’Ruth Perry told an NHS clinician she was “amazed” that more headteachers did not take their own lives as a result of Ofsted inspections during a conversation a few weeks before her death, an inquest has heard...
‘Direct link’ between Ruth Perry’s death and Ofsted inspection, inquest told
Thursday 30th November 2023Chair of governors and two deputy heads say ‘inadequate’ rating brought about deterioration in Perry’s mental healthThere was a “direct link” between Ruth Perry’s death and the Ofsted inspection that rated her school inadequate, the chair of the board of governors has told an inquest...
Stars back Andrew Lloyd Webber call for music education funding
Thursday 30th November 2023Ed Sheeran and Dua Lipa among signatories of letter to Rishi Sunak and Keir Starmer calling for funds for music in disadvantaged schoolsAndrew Lloyd Webber, Ed Sheeran, Coldplay and Dua Lipa are among the music industry leaders who have called for public funding for music in disadvantaged schools...
Dining across the divide: ‘He was convinced of the worth of private schools, the finishing-school element’
Thursday 30th November 2023With differing views on private education set in stone, would the two radicals agree on public transport?Jonathan, 62, OxfordOccupation Retired publisher and estate agent Continue reading...
My sister is getting opportunities I feel I missed. How do I grieve my past, but support her? | Leading questions
Thursday 30th November 2023Beware of grass is always greener thinking, writes advice columnist Eleanor Gordon-Smith...
Childcare providers welcome £400m funding but say more support needed
Wednesday 29th November 2023Nurseries and providers welcome a rise in funding rates but say demand could soon outstrip capacity...
Fancy a life of misery? We’ve just the degree for you! | Zing Tsjeng
Wednesday 29th November 2023Studying sociology, politics or the creative arts may well make you unhappy...
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