How Black children in England’s schools are made to feel like the way they speak is wrong: Monkey Business Images/Shutterstock Whiteness is an invention of the modern, colonial age. It refers to the racialisation of white people and the disproportionate privilege – social, linguistic, economic, political – that comes with this. Crucially, as an invention, …
More ethnic minority teachers are needed in UK schools – but teaching can affect their mental health and wellbeing: wavebreakmedia/Shutterstock There is a major shortage of new teachers in England, and this includes teachers from ethnic minority backgrounds. Research from 2020 found that 46% of schools in England had no Black or ethnic minority teaching …
Teachers go on strike: the challenges facing the schools sector: On February 1 2023, teachers in England and Wales joined their Scottish counterparts by going on strike, resulting in widespread school closures. Teachers made up part of an estimated half a million workers on strike across the UK. They are striking for improved pay and …
What the autumn statement means for financially struggling schools: Monkey Business Images/Shutterstock The cost-of-living crisis and new staffing costs have been pushing schools in England into financial trouble. So school leaders were relieved to hear of an increase to their budget in the government’s autumn statement, delivered on November 17. However, now that teachers and …
Ebola: Uganda’s schools were closed for two years during COVID, now they face more closures — something must change: Extended school closures during the pandemic set Ugandan children far behind their peers. BADRU KATUMBA/AFP via Getty Images Children in Uganda missed out on more school because of the COVID pandemic than their peers anywhere else …
LGBTIQ learners at risk in South Africa as conservative Christian groups fight plans for safer schools: Viacheslav Chernobrovin/Getty Images, CC BY-SA Advocacy groups in South Africa are intensifying their efforts to prevent the country’s education department from creating safer environments for children of diverse gender identities and sexual orientations. Some of the advocacy groups have …
Schools in England are facing bankruptcy – here’s what the government could do to help: Monkey Business Images/Shutterstock We have barely reached the autumn half term and school leaders are already beginning to worry about what the academic year beginning in September 2023 will hold. The combined effect of the cost of living crisis with …
Check out this WordPress image: Presentation Schools Mullingar – 5KM Road Race, Fun Run and Walks 2015 Image by Peter Mooney This is a photograph from the annual Presentation Schools Mullingar 5KM Road Race, Fun Run and walk which took place at Mullingar Canal Harbour, Mullingar, Co. Westmeath, Ireland on Wednesday 17th June 2015 at …
The cost of living crisis will hit schools hard: Monkey Business Images/Shutterstock Schools, like homes and businesses, are facing a financial squeeze over coming months. Spiralling inflation and rising staff costs are set to threaten England’s schools just as they are getting back to an even keel after the pandemic. Unlike businesses, schools have no …
Bilingual education can work in South African schools: here’s how: Schools need assistance to develop language policies that support multilingual education. Shutterstock From the fourth year of schooling, the majority of South African schools teach all subjects in English only. The devastating learning consequences of this for children who speak African languages at home have …
Mexico: new research shows the link between opening schools and falling murder rates: In Mexico an average of 94 people were murdered every day in 2021, an increase of 76% since 2015, demonstrating a rapid rise in killings across the country. Understandably, researchers and government officials are urgently looking for ways to bring down this …
Why the hijab controversy persists in Nigeria’s public schools: Muslim and Christian schoolgirls at a public school in Zamfara state, northwest Nigeria. Pius Utomi Ekpei/AFP via GettyImages Hijab use in Nigeria’s public schools has become highly controversial, in some cases leading to riots, fatalities, the destruction of school property and the closure of schools. Adeyemi …
Schools can be a great resource for mental health in South Africa: Children and adolescents’ mental well-being is deeply rooted in the environments they live in, particularly the schools they attend. GettyImages In the face of deep inequality, unemployment, high rates of crime and violence, and the social and economic fallout from the COVID-19 pandemic, …
The public cost of private schools: rising fees and luxury facilities raise questions about charitable status: Eton College, founded in 1440, is the largest boarding school in England. Shutterstock Some UK private schools appear to be taking advantage of their charitable status and the lax legal definition of “public benefit” by charging fees that are …
The school Cat Stevens built: how Conservative politicians opposed funding for Muslim schools in England: When Yusuf Islam – the artist formerly known as Cat Stevens – had his first child, he wrote her a song. Her name was Hasanah and the song was a kind of ABC of the Muslim faith: A is for …
For schools, accepting student mobile phone use may be a better approach than banning them: Rido/Shutterstock Most children in the UK own their own phone by the age of 11. In China children get their first phone at an even younger age, with 88% of first to third-grade pupils (aged six to nine) reported to …
Five ways the new sustainability and climate change strategy for schools in England doesn’t match up to what young people actually want: Youth protestors in London in 2019. Ben Gingell/Shutterstock The UK government has introduced a new sustainability and climate change strategy for schools. However, our research shows that it does not go far enough …
Elitism affects schools across the globe: it needs to be kept in check: Klaus Vedfelt/Gettyimages There is no shortage of themes to address in schools and universities: wellbeing; climate change; diversity; equity and social justice; assessment; 21st century learning; the list goes on. But, are there some challenges that stand out above the others? The …