SCHOOLS MADE UP OF ONLY ETHNIC MINORITIES

5/4/2008 11:29:00 AM

Sunday Telegraph 4 May

More than 30 state schools in England are made up solely of ethnic minority pupils with no white children on the roll, according to government figures. The finding follows a warning from Britain's race watchdog that schools are becoming increasingly segregated along racial lines. This year's school census, carried out in January, found that 27 primaries and four secondaries were entirely non-white. The schools, which were not identified, are likely to include England's nine state Muslim schools and two state Sikh schools. Telegraph

General

NEW TOP A-LEVEL TO HIT STATE PUPILS

5/4/2008 11:31:00 AM

The Sunday Times 4 May

A Government reform of A-levels is set to backfire by making the gap in exam results between independent and comprehensive schools wider than ever, according to official forecasts. Almost 25% of pupils in the private sector are expected to gain at least one of the new A* grades, compared with just 9% from comprehensives. Grammar schools are forecast to perform even better. Pupils beginning A-level studies this autumn will be the first group eligible for the A* when it is awarded in 2010. The grade was introduced to help universities choose the brightest candidates from the soaring numbers being awarded straight As. The unintended consequence, however, could be to undermine the government’s policy of pushing universities to take more students from state schools. The forecasts, released under the Freedom of Information Act, were drawn up last year by the government’s exam regulator, the Qualifications and Curriculum Authority (QCA). Mike Cresswell, director-general of the exam board AQA, which helped with the authority’s analysis, said independent and grammar schools were already ahead on A grades and would become even more dominant with A* grades. Full A-level documentsSun Times

Curriculum / Quality Assurance

OFSTED ACCUSED OVER DEPUTY HEADS' INSPECTION FEARS

5/4/2008 11:27:00 AM

Independent on Sunday 4 May

Nearly two out of every three deputy headteachers have avoided applying for the top job because they fear Ofsted inspections, according to research published today. A survey of deputies revealed that 63 per cent were having second thoughts about going for headteaching posts because of the way the education standards watchdog carries out inspections and the possible career-ending prospects of a poor report. One deputy told researchers: "I don't think I will apply for headship because that will mean I have to go through 10 Ofsteds [before retirement] and I'm not prepared to do that."The research warns of the "variation in quality" of school inspection teams leading to the prospect of them reaching the wrong decision about a school's fate. Almost 70 per cent felt their last inspection had had an adverse effect on school morale.Delegates at the annual conference of the National Association of Head Teachers (NAHT) in Liverpool will demand an end to the new system of "no-notice" inspections. Ofsted said it introduced the new system after complaints from headteachers that the old system of giving a term's warning had created too much stress in the preceding weeks. The NAHT survey argues that, instead of seeking to find fault, inspectors should be looking to build on schools' successes and promoting good practice. Deputies' reluctance will add to a recruitment crisis. The NAHT warned that more than 1,000 headteachers are quitting their jobs early because they cannot stand the pressures.

IOS

OFSTED 'CAN DETER WOULD-BE HEADS'

BBC 3 May

A Commons committee is looking at the impact of OfstedOfsted inspection pressures deter talented teachers from taking on the top jobs in schools, research suggests. A National Association of Head Teachers survey of 500 members found 86% thought the impact of Ofsted meant potential head teachers were put off applying. More than two-thirds thought the impact on their school was at best neutral, and at worst very unhelpful. Some 86% said, in research released at the NAHT conference, inspections increased vulnerability and insecurity. The NAHT wants Ofsted inspectors to have a more positive role in schools. BBC

Lead Story | General | Curriculum / Quality Assurance

EASE JOB PRESSURE ON FAMILIES, URGES HEAD

5/4/2008 11:33:00 AM

The Observer 4 May

Parents should be given cash incentives to stay at home and spend 'quality time' with their children instead of feeling pressured by government to take jobs, a leading headteacher said yesterday. Clarissa Williams, president of the National Association of Headteachers, argued that, although Whitehall policy had made it the 'norm' to place toddlers in school-like settings while their parents worked, ministers should be encouraging parents to spend time talking, playing and reading with their children. 'Why do we feel the need to send children into an educational environment at the age of two?' Williams asked delegates at the union's annual conference in Liverpool. 'Are parents so distrusted that we want to separate them from their children at the earliest opportunity?' Williams also argued that those on benefits should not be punished for poor parenting, as they are now, but rewarded financially for helping at their children's schools, attending parent evenings and providing healthy meals. In letters to the Prime Minister, Williams called for a 'more creative approach to the benefits system... one based on rewarding parents who spend quality time with their children.'Observer

Foundation

TEENAGERS PAID £487M FOR STAYING IN SCHOOL

5/4/2008 11:30:00 AM

Sunday Telegraph 4 May

Teenagers have been paid more than £487 million in government handouts so far this academic year for staying in education. The weekly payments, of up to £30 a week, are given to 538,000 teenagers in sixth forms and colleges, under the Education Maintenance Allowance (EMA) scheme. Bonuses are also available to high achievers, so the most a pupil could receive in a year is £1,400. Ministers insist that the payments, which are linked to attendance, have had a significant impact on the number of 16 and 17-year-olds staying on in full-time education. Sun Tel

Secondary

DETERMINED TO HEAD FOR THE PRIVATE PATH

5/4/2008 11:34:00 AM

Sian Griffiths and Jack Grimston; The Sunday Times ; 4 May

More middle-class parents are opting for private schools, despite the huge costs, viewing it as a necessity. Many parents who have endured a stressful struggle to keep their child out of a failing comprehensive school will have been moved by the story last week of the inquest into Steve Don’s death. Don, a father of two, took his own life in 2005 after begging Brighton council to reverse its decision to give his daughter a place at one of the city’s worst schools, where only 25% of pupils gained five good GCSEs last summer. After one unsuccessful appeal, he threatened to commit suicide unless she was offered a better alternative. Eventually, an official told Don that the council had relented, but the surveyor didn’t believe him and flung himself under a train. On the day he died, his wife told the inquest that he had phoned to say: “They’re not returning my calls, I’m going to carry out my threat.” Their daughter reportedly told her: “Daddy killed himself because he could not get me into the school I wanted.” It’s a tragic and desperate story – but with a sixth of state secondary schools posting shockingly low exam results and reports that up to 24,000 teachers are incompetent, many families are digging deep – even borrowing against their homes – to avoid the state system. Figures published last week show private school numbers at their highest level for five years. Despite fee rises of more than 6% last year, which pushed the average annual cost of private schooling to more than £11,000, the number of pupils has climbed to a record 511,677. Sun Times

Independent/ Private Sector

News Review and Commentary

Click on the links below for the latest, in-depth education news review and commentary.

Comment and Analysis

Whitehall / Westminster

Research / Think Tanks

Conferences and Events

Sign in / Register

Calendar

Mo	Tu	We	Th	Fr	Sa	Su
28	29	30	1	2	3	4
5	6	7	8	9	10	11
12	13	14	15	16	17	18
19	20	21	22	23	24	25
26	27	28	29	30	31	1
2	3	4	5	6	7	8

View news items in large calendar

Daily News

Lead Story

General

Curriculum / Quality Assurance

Independent/ Private Sector

Mo	Tu	We	Th	Fr	Sa	Su
28	29	30	1	2	3	4
5	6	7	8	9	10	11
12	13	14	15	16	17	18
19	20	21	22	23	24	25
26	27	28	29	30	31	1
2	3	4	5	6	7	8

Mo	Tu	We	Th	Fr	Sa	Su
28	29	30	1	2	3	4
5	6	7	8	9	10	11
12	13	14	15	16	17	18
19	20	21	22	23	24	25
26	27	28	29	30	31	1
2	3	4	5	6	7	8

Mo	Tu	We	Th	Fr	Sa	Su
28	29	30	1	2	3	4
5	6	7	8	9	10	11
12	13	14	15	16	17	18
19	20	21	22	23	24	25
26	27	28	29	30	31	1
2	3	4	5	6	7	8