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Daily News Summary
18 August 2022

Exams 2022: Proportion of top A-level grades falls but remains higher than in 2019
University admissions: Near-record number of students accepted into first or second choice university
New teacher training taskforce designed to tackle 'cold spots'
In conversation with Ian Munro, head of Dollar Academy

Exams 2022: Proportion of top A-level grades falls but remains higher than in 2019

 

BBC News reports the proportion of top A-level grades in England, Wales and Northern Ireland has fallen since last year, but remains higher than in 2019. By Hazel Shearing.

A statement from Barnaby Lenon, chairman of the Independent Schools Council (ISC), congratulating pupils as they receive their results can be read here.

iNews reports on concerns of a "North-South divide" emerging in A-level results due to the "disproportionate" impact of COVID lockdowns on disadvantaged pupils. By Molly Blackall.

According to The Times, some experts believe some teachers may have overpredicted A-level grades to keep pupils motivated and attending school during the pandemic. By Nicola Woolcock. The article quotes Barnaby Lenon, chairman of the ISC.

Dr Martin Stephen, chair of governors at Regent High School, London, writes in The Telegraph arguing: "We owe it to this generation of A-level students, when the required result is missed by a few grades, to recognise that they suffered trial and tribulation not of their own making."

Geraint Jones, the executive director and associate pro-vice-chancellor of the National Institute of Teaching and Education, Coventry University, writes in Tes arguing that teachers should go into A-level results day with confidence that the system will work for this year's cohort.

An analysis piece in The Times reflects on the return of exams, with this year's school leavers to be the first ever to sit A-levels having had no other experience of public exams. By Nicola Woolcock.

Schools Week summarises six key trends in the A-level results data for England. By Samantha Booth.

 

University admissions: Near-record number of students accepted into first or second choice university

 

According to UCAS, 425,830 A-level pupils received the grades they needed for their firm or insurance choice university, the second-highest figure to date. By Zoe Tidman, The Independent.

Barnaby Lenon, chairman of the ISC, has said that Oxford and Cambridge universities are accepting fewer UK middle-class students from both state and independent schools, while increasing their intake of international students and those from disadvantaged backgrounds. By Sarah Harris and Eleanor Harding, The Mail.

Professor Jenny Higham, the vice-chancellor of St George's, University of London, has said that teenagers with straight-A* grades could be among those rejected as trainee doctors this year. By Nicola Woolcock, The Times.

Chris Hale, interim chief executive of Universities UK, has advised students considering delaying the start of their university course to "think very carefully", warning that the demand for places could continue next year. By Kate Devlin and Holly Bancroft, The Independent.

James Cleverly, the education secretary, has said he is "not uncomfortable" with universities using the background of children to decide between applicants with similar grades. By Louisa Clarence-Smith, The Telegraph.

 

New teacher training taskforce designed to tackle 'cold spots'

 

According to Tes, the Government is setting up a new initial teacher training (ITT) taskforce to encourage more providers to expand to parts of the country at risk of becoming ITT 'cold spots'. By Matilda Martin.

 
Tes

In conversation with Ian Munro, head of Dollar Academy

 

Tes interviews Ian Munro, the rector at Dollar Academy, as part of its '10 questions' series.

 
Tes

 

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