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Schools

Leading article: Homework does benefit children

Published: 01 February 2007

The debate over whether schools should set homework has resurfaced with the imminent publication of a book by the American academic Alfie Kohn, which suggests that homework turns children off education and provokes family rows. He suggests there should be none. "Kids should have the chance to relax after a full day at school," he argues. It is nearly nine years since the Department for Education and Skills - then under David Blunkett - produced its first ever guidelines on homework for schools.

Education Quandary

Published: 01 February 2007

'How can people with no experience of teaching possibly be considered as good candidates to run a school?'

The Jewish school where half the pupils are Muslim

Published: 01 February 2007

King David, in Birmingham, is a state primary where the children learn Hebrew, recite Jewish prayers, eat kosher food and wave Israeli flags. So how come the majority of pupils are followers of Islam? Jonathan Margolis investigates

Leading article: Is compulsion really the answer?

Published: 25 January 2007

The latest research from the Learning and Skills Council, the Government quango responsible for funding education after the age of 16, reveals that 41 per cent of teenage drop-outs ultimately return to school or college.

Education Quandary

Published: 25 January 2007

'My daughter loves science, but says she doesn't want to study with "only boys" in the sixth form'

Head teacher: The job no one wants

Published: 25 January 2007

Schools are having to advertise five or six times to find a head teacher. Peter Stanford finds out why

Leading article: Ruth Kelly made the right decision

Published: 18 January 2007

Ruth Kelly has had an almost entirely unsympathetic press about her decision to pull her dyslexic son out of a state primary and send him to a private school that specialises in the condition.

Bahram Bekhradnia: There is no bias against vocational A-levels

Published: 18 January 2007

Addressing the 2004 annual meeting of the Higher Education Funding Council, its then chief executive Sir Howard Newby said that the low level of participation in higher education by those taking vocational qualifications "really isn't good enough".

Education Quandary

Published: 18 January 2007

'I'm a new teacher. I'm not coping, and I feel desperate. Please don't tell me to talk to someone'

How state schools are failing dyslexics

Published: 18 January 2007

Peel the politics from the row over Ruth Kelly going private, and what's left is a system that consistently lets down some of our most vulnerable children. Karen Gold reports

Leading article: Beating cheating

Published: 11 January 2007

This year, GCSE and A-level examination papers set by Edexcel will be fitted with a tracking device so that any thieves can be caught. The box in which the papers are stored will also be fitted with a timing device to ensure that it doesn't open before the morning of the exam in question. In case all of this fails, a humidity detector will be fitted to the box to show whether it has been opened by someone while it was stored in the school safe. All in all, it seems that 2007 will not be a good year for any student or teacher attempting to cheat.

Education Quandary

Published: 11 January 2007

'Will more spending on schools really make much difference to educational standards? If not, what will?'

Can the IB promise ever be realised?

Published: 11 January 2007

Tony Blair wants to give all sixth-formers the chance to take the International Baccalaureate. But critics say his pledge is misguided - and that demand will far outstrip places. James Morrison reports

Leading article: Thanks Gordon; we'll do the maths

Published: 14 December 2006

You could almost hear a whoop of delight from Hamilton House, the headquarters of the National Union of Teachers, as Gordon Brown announced his £36bn windfall last week to refurbish the nation's schools over four years. The union is not noted for being close to the Government, but Steve Sinnott, the general secretary, described it as the best announcement Labour had made since coming to power in 1997.

Education Quandary

Published: 14 December 2006

'Our daughter has asked for a good book on parenting. She seems to be struggling with the demands on her'

Prue Leith: Revolution is on my school-meals menu

Published: 14 December 2006

Chairing a Government quango gives rise to some predictable responses: "How can you stand the bureaucracy?", "Talking-shop is it?", "You'll never achieve anything. It's just a fig-leaf," and so on.

How music can transform school life

Published: 14 December 2006

Singing is at the heart of learning at one south London school. It feeds into every aspect of children's education - even science and maths lessons - and is especially important at Christmas. Hilary Wilce reports

The Bett Event 2007: The latest technology gizmos and gadgets

Published: 07 December 2006

From podcasting to games, the Bett show brings your ICT know-how bang up to date, says Nick Jackson

Alan Smithers: How can we clear up Blair's education legacy?

Published: 07 December 2006

Tony Blair's valedictory education speech last week epitomises his 10 years in charge. Heart in the right place, but going off in all directions.

Leading article: Exam techno-cheats must be defeated

Published: 07 December 2006

This week's research by Nottingham Trent University for the Qualifications and Curriculum Authority, the exams watchdog, shows that today's students have become so ingenious at devising ways of cheating that drastic measures are required.

Education Quandary

Published: 07 December 2006

'More and more private schools are doing international GCSEs. If they are so good, will children, like mine, at state schools miss out?

British teachers building a future for African children

Published: 07 December 2006

Getting an education is a battle in Kwa-Zulu Natal, South Africa's poorest province. But a group of visiting British teachers have vowed to help. Richard Garner reports

Leading article: A stronger case for A-level reform

Published: 30 November 2006

We welcome the news that ministers have, with some qualifications, been converted to the International Baccalaureate.

Mike Ullmann: Let's put an Olympian effort into languages

Published: 30 November 2006

Next week Lord Dearing will publish his interim report on the state of languages in Britain. I sincerely hope that there will be an immediate recommendation to reverse the misguided decision by the former education secretary, Estelle Morris, to make languages optional from ages 14 to 16.

Education Quandary

Published: 30 November 2006

'Are state boarding schools the answer for deprived and troubled children? Wouldn't schools need special skills to handle them?'
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