isc logo  

Daily News Summary
14 June 2022

AQA apologises to pupils over GCSE physics question
Fewer than one in 10 teachers think Ofsted has raised standards at their school, poll finds
'Ministers come and go but the influence civil servants have over education seems eternal'
‘Katharine Birbalsingh has the temerity to save social mobility’
ASCL "deeply disappointed" by ministers' decision to not extend free school meals to more pupils
Schools in "levelling up" areas less likely to recruit specialist teachers
'The no-marking approach does not help pupils learn'
Almost half of school staff believe lack of teacher training is affecting autistic pupils' learning

AQA apologises to pupils over GCSE physics question

 

AQA, the UK's biggest exam board, has apologised to pupils for setting a GCSE physics question on a topic which it had specifically told them they would not need to revise. AQA has awarded all candidates full marks for the question following criticism on social media. By Will Hazell, iNews.

 
iNews

Fewer than one in 10 teachers think Ofsted has raised standards at their school, poll finds

 

According to a poll for The Times, fewer than one in 10 teachers think Ofsted has raised standards at their school, with the vast majority adding they would rate the regulator as “inadequate” or “requires improvement”. By Nicola Woolcock.

 
The Times

'Ministers come and go but the influence civil servants have over education seems eternal'

 

Melanie Phillips writes for The Times in response to an article reporting that the education secretary was 'hoodwinked' by his civil servants over a bill that paves the way for every school to become part of an academy trust.

 
The Times

‘Katharine Birbalsingh has the temerity to save social mobility’

 

Gavin Rice, policy director at the Centre for Social Justice think tank, writes in The Telegraph in defence of Katharine Birbalsingh, chair of the Social Mobility Commission. Mr Rice says: "In this environment, any meaningful scrutiny of our one-size-fits-all view of mobility seems impossible."

 
The Telegraph

ASCL "deeply disappointed" by ministers' decision to not extend free school meals to more pupils

 

Julie McCulloch, policy director at the Association of School and College Leaders (ASCL), has said the union is "deeply disappointed" by the Government's decision to shelve plans to extend free school meals provision to more pupils. Tes.

 
Tes

Schools in "levelling up" areas less likely to recruit specialist teachers

 

New research from the Gatsby Foundation and school data analysts SchoolDash, has found that schools in "levelling up" areas have fewer vacancies and are a third less likely to advertise for specialist science teachers than elsewhere. By Matilda Martin, Tes.

 
Tes

'The no-marking approach does not help pupils learn'

 

Journalist Celia Walden writes in The Telegraph in response to poll findings which suggest less than half of teachers are expected to mark pupils’ exercise books or homework. She argues against a no-marking approach, suggesting that it will result in children having “no clear barometer of progress”.

 
The Telegraph

Almost half of school staff believe lack of teacher training is affecting autistic pupils' learning

 

A poll of 300 school staff and leaders has found that 45 per cent of respondents believe autistic pupils' education is being affected by a lack of teacher training in how to support them. By Callum Mason, Tes.

 
Tes

 

The Independent Schools Council (ISC) monitors the national and educational press in order to keep independent schools up-to-date with relevant education news. The DNS is a service primarily for schools in membership of ISC associations, although other interested parties can choose to sign-up. We endeavour to include relevant news and commentary and, wherever possible, notable public letters. Where capacity allows, we may include links to ISC blogs, press statements and information about school or association events. News stories are selected based on their relevance to the independent sector as a whole. Editorial control of the DNS remains solely with the ISC.

Sign-up to the email service is available on our website.

Members can contact the ISC if they know in advance of news, letters or opinions that are likely to feature in the media, or are aware of existing coverage which they would like to see featured in the DNS.

Headlines and first-line summaries are written by the ISC with the link directing to the source material. You should read and comply with the terms and conditions of the websites to which we link.