Day: June 21, 2023

Ellie Colegate spent five years studying French at a school in Kent, England. However, she chose not to pursue it beyond Year 9. According to her, language education failed to appeal to her because it was purely academic, and her teacher only made her copy and complete exercises from books. Despite being a top set French class, her teacher never spoke the language much, and only a few of the best...

A historic moment is set to occur as the University of Cambridge's Jesus College will return one of the Benin bronzes to Nigeria, making it the first British institution to do so. The Okukor, a royal ancestral heirloom, was taken from the kingdom of Benin during a punitive expedition in 1897 by British forces. The return of the bronze is expected to spark further repatriation ceremonies, bringing...

David Hale, my father, dedicated his life to imparting knowledge of mathematics. He began his career in 1959 at Thomas Bennett School in Crawley, Sussex, which had newly opened at the time. He remained loyal to state education throughout his professional journey. After teaching mathematics for a few years in Crawley, he moved to Glossop School in Derbyshire, where he served as head of...

In the heart of the Malawi wilderness, where lions and hyenas roam free, one can easily envision the ruins of the Kamuzu Academy. Clocktowers collapsing, Romanesque arches crumbling, and wrought-iron gates rusting and bending. The man behind the grand plan was Hastings Kamuzu Banda, known as Ngwazi, or conqueror and chief of chiefs, bore a name derived from a little root plant. Though, beyond his...

John Penfold, my father, passed away at the age of 89. He devoted over 30 years to training teachers in craft, design, and technology after initially teaching the subject at secondary schools. Born to Edwin, an accountant, and Alice (nee Rogers) in Edgware, North London, he attended Orange Hill grammar school in Burnt Oak before enrolling in Shoreditch teacher training college in East London....

According to the shadow education secretary, Angela Rayner, white working-class children need to be motivated to become more aspirational at school and learn to "push themselves" like their peers from other backgrounds. In an interview with the Spectator, Rayner expressed her belief that the educational system's focus on women and minority ethnic groups may have had an unintended...

A recent report has revealed that civil liberties in the UK have been eroded over the last decade. David Davis MP criticised the government for disregarding civil liberties. However, the report was not created by seasoned campaigners, but by students from the University College London Student Human Rights Programme, set up just two years ago. The programme has already published five monthly...

John Kohutanycz, a sports teacher at a high school with vast playing fields so large that he needs a golf cart to get around them, expresses incredulity at the notion of school playing fields being sold. "I have never heard of anything like that here, ever. Wow. That's scary," he exclaims. This is in reference to the controversial practice of selling school playing fields which caused...

The National Association of Head Teachers (NAHT) and the Principals Professional Council (PPC) are set to merge in line with government reforms to education for students aged 14 to 19. This is to ensure that the two organisations represent educational leaders across the entire lifespan and safeguard the strides made in recognising the significance of further education. The PPC is currently...

Roy Parker, a respected social work and social administration professor, has passed away at the age of 85. Appointed by Bristol University in 1969, he was a pioneer in his field, quickly transforming his department into one with an impressive national and international reputation for research and teaching. Parker made noteworthy contributions to a range of essential social policy initiatives,...