UK

UK – Twenty-four free schools have been set up in record time to meet the urgent demand of UK parents for a different type of education to benefit local children.

Seventeen primary schools, five secondary schools and two all-age free schools will open throughout this month – just 10 to 15 months after submitting initial plans to the Department for Education.

UK – The first round of applications for Free Schools in the UK has been approved last week, the Department for Education reports.

Of the 323 proposals received, 41 were approved to move to business case and plan stage or beyond.

UK – A new electronic weapon in the war against exam cheats was unveiled in the UK last week, The TES reports.

From this summer, pupils and schools who try to con their way through GCSEs and A-levels will face detection by software developed by Cambridge Assessment.

UK – Schools in the UK will find it easier to employ overseas teachers from New Zealand, Australia, USA, and Canada under plans set out last month, the UK Department for Education reports.

Despite having undertaken training to achieve equivalent teacher training qualifications, qualified teachers from the four countries still have to undertake further training and assessment before they are deemed ready to teach in schools in this country.

U.K. – Thousands of pupils who fail to achieve a good General Certificate of Secondary Education (GCSE) in English and maths will be made to study the subjects for another two years or take high-quality alternative qualifications until they leave school at 18, The Guardian reports.

U.K. – The Government announced a new $277 million NZD bursary scheme to help the most vulnerable 16-19 years-olds continue in full-time education, the U.K. Department for Education reports.

The scheme is made up of two parts – a guaranteed payment to a small group of the most vulnerable, and a discretionary fund for schools and colleges to distribute.

UK – Ministers are considering giving state schools the freedom to bypass the General Certificate of Secondary Education (GCSE) and fast-track bright pupils straight to A-levels, The TES reports.

New performance measures are also proposed, including an “advanced Bac” GCSE benchmark - building on the controversial English Baccalaureate (EBac) - and an“accelerated Bac” to reward schools that skip GCSEs.

UK - Reading standards among children are in sharp decline as pupils increasingly opt for easy books in school and at home, The Telegraph reports. 

Research found that by the end of primary school, students begin to shun relatively difficult texts in favour of more straightforward alternatives suitable for younger children.

UK – Teenagers will be expected to stay at school for nine hours a day in order to master basic English, maths and train for a trade or craft, The Telegraph reports.

Tens of thousands of pupils will be sent to colleges and a new breed of technical schools from the age of 14, where they will work “business hours” and attend classes for an extra two weeks a year. 

UK – Former members of the armed forces will become mentors to young people in schools across England following a $3.24 million NZD grant to the charity SkillForce, Education Secretary, Michael Gove, announced today.