Beyond Ofsted is a new inquiry established to develop a set of principles for underpinning a better school inspection system and proposals for an alternative approach. It is chaired by Jim Knight, Rt Hon Lord Knight of Weymouth (former schools’ minister), and its findings have been published in a report "Beyond Ofsted. an inquiry into … Continue reading Beyond Ofsted
Author: Bruce Levitan
Improvement through empowerment
The Institute for Public Policy Research (IPPR) has published a new report "Improvement through empowerment: Helping our teachers and schools be the best they can be". On their website they state: We need to shift the drivers of better schooling from high stakes top-down accountability to a system which empowers schools and teachers to innovate and … Continue reading Improvement through empowerment
Local authority interactive tool (LAIT)
The Local authority interactive tool (LAIT) has recently been updated (10 November 2023). It is a useful, government produced spreadhseet with a range of useful information about children and young people across all local authorities in England. The website includes links to the tool itself plus a user guide and the Children's services statistical neighbour … Continue reading Local authority interactive tool (LAIT)
Alignment between inspection grades and headline data measures
A new data commentary from Ofsted looks at the degree of alignment between a school’s performance data and their Ofsted inspection judgement. It also explains why alignment is not always helpful and should not be an end in itself. Oftsed says its inspections are designed to get ‘under the bonnet’ of a school; to really … Continue reading Alignment between inspection grades and headline data measures
Is “traditional” schooling best?
An article in Schools Week (Has Nick Gibb won the education battle?, 10 Novemeber 2023) discusses the long debated issue of whether "traditional" style schooling is best. It highlights some recent data that seems to support this, with exemplar "traditional" schools like Michaela Community School in west London and Mercia School in Sheffield scoring very … Continue reading Is “traditional” schooling best?
Briefing on school attendance in England
The Children’s Commissioner talked to hundreds of children who are regularly absent from school. Children aren’t absent from school because they don’t want to learn. They are desperate to learn yet everyday thousands of children find themselves without the support that they need to engage in education. Last year, over 1 in 5 children were … Continue reading Briefing on school attendance in England
Parental Engagement Report 2023
The new Edurio Parental Engagement Report has just been published. It looks into the feedback from 38,000 parents and carers from 266 schools across 30 trusts in the 2022/2023 school year. Additionally, by reviewing the feedback of 86,000 parents from the past 4 years, the report uncovers how they really feel about efforts to engage … Continue reading Parental Engagement Report 2023
Online Safety Act 2023
The Bill to make provision for and in connection with the regulation by OFCOM of certain internet services; for and in connection with communications offences; and for connected purposes has become law (as of 26 October 2023). The government feels that UK children and adults to be safer online as a result of this Act. … Continue reading Online Safety Act 2023
New support for teachers powered by Artificial Intelligence
AI is with us to stay, like it or not, with ChatGPT and Google Bard blazing a trail of (currently) text-based AI systems that can enhance (or plagiarise?) study and research. No surprise, then, especially after the recent chat between Rishi Sunak and Elon Musk, that the government has announced up to £2 million funding … Continue reading New support for teachers powered by Artificial Intelligence
A review of current practice focusing on the strategies used to manage teacher workload in English schools
The Education Endowment Foundation has published a practice review on supporting the recruitment and retention of teachers in schools with high proportions of disadvantaged pupils: understanding current practice around managing teacher workload. The report is by Principal investigator Kerry Martin and Co-investigators: Caroline Sharp, Rachel Classick and Henry Faulkner-Ellis. You can download it from their … Continue reading A review of current practice focusing on the strategies used to manage teacher workload in English schools
Your Opinion is Important
We have updated the DSGA web site to include this new section, which we hope will be an area where members provide content - this can be opinion pieces, your own news items, etc. To submit a post, please head to the About DSGA > Add Your Thoughts and Ideas page where you will find … Continue reading Your Opinion is Important
The DfE’s NFF funding calculation error
Both Local Authorities and MATs support their schools’ budget planning by providing projections beyond the current academic year and for at least the following two financial years, as required by the government. The mistakes made by the DfE are to do with the projections they have provided to relevant bodies, such as Derbyshire County Council, … Continue reading The DfE’s NFF funding calculation error
New measures to protect children’s learning from strike action
On Friday 20 October the government announced Minimum Service Levels (MSLs) to "protect children and young people’s education", to be introduced in schools and colleges. The Education Secretary, Gillian Keegan, has written to union leaders inviting them to discuss proposals on a voluntary basis in the first instance. In her letter she is clear that … Continue reading New measures to protect children’s learning from strike action
The Advanced British Standard
At the Conservative Party Conference, one of the few new (i.e. previously unannouced) initiatives is the plan to scrap A and T Levels and create a new Advanced British Standard, a new Baccalaureate-style qualification for 16 to 19 year olds. The DfE have published a report "A world-class education system: The Advanced British Standard" that … Continue reading The Advanced British Standard
Is new government funding enough for schools?
New analysis by the Institute for Fiscal Studies (IFS) shows that although there is substantial extra funding for schools budgeted for the next few years, it is not enough to close the gap in the true costs experienced by schools. Luke Sibieta, Research Fellow at the IFS, published an article showing that Schools funding in … Continue reading Is new government funding enough for schools?
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