The latter days of Michael Gove’s time at the Department for Education were dominated by the Trojan Horse extremism plot in Birmingham. But in his four years as secretary of state, there were recurring…
There is a political consensus around putting children into sets according to their ability: that politicians believe they know what is best for schools. Michael Gove, when he was opposition spokesman…
Inequality and its rise across many developed societies poses threats of alienation and marginalisation and has been a feature of numbers of recent publications. Now research led by Simon Burgess at the…
The Easter holidays have arrived, heralding the start of teacher union conference season. These are always important events, not least because according to research commissioned by the government, 97…
With a heavy feeling of déjà vu, here we are again with another round of introspection on the OECD’s international Program for International Student Assessment (PISA) rankings and the mediocre education…
Demonstrating her considerable skills as a teacher, in a recent lecture at the University of Birmingham, Estelle Morris posed a question that reminded her audience of the start of a children’s book. “Where…
Anne West, London School of Economics and Political Science
School-based education is undergoing significant changes across much of the developed world with private providers increasingly taking over the delivery of education from public providers. In both England…
There has been constant criticism levelled against Ofsted, England’s schools inspectorate, since its inception in 1992, most recently in a report from the think-tank Policy Exchange. Almost everyone in…
As September approaches, primary schools up and down the country are preparing to roll out universal free school lunches for all children in reception, year 1 and year 2. But if all meals are free, what…
In The Importance of Teaching white paper in 2010, the government committed itself to developing a “self-improving system of schools”. Four years on there is a risk that a two-tier system will emerge in…
From September, state-funded infant and primary schools in England will have a legal duty to offer free meals at lunchtime to all pupils in reception, year 1 and year 2. A decision championed by deputy…
Philip Noden, London School of Economics and Political Science
As parents across England wait nervously for news of where their children have been allocated a secondary school place, new admissions policies of banding and ballots have come under scrutiny. The recent…