Tag: Department for Education

The press release issued by the Department for Education on 13 May 2011.

Sir,

It is true that we are only selecting the very best applications from groups who want to run new, taxpayer-funded free schools (‘Most applicants to run free schools are turned down’, 11 May 2011).

The fact that we have had such a strong response to free schools and academies shows a clear demand for more good local schools, where heads have control – not bureaucrats or ministers. Figures released this week show that more than 1,000 schools have applied to become academies, and nearly a fifth of all secondary schools now enjoy academy freedoms.

Children from the poorest backgrounds have been let down the most by inequalities in our schools system. So I am delighted that excellent new free schools will be set up in disadvantaged areas like inner-city Bradford and Edmonton, London.

Our reforms are about creating a generation of brilliant schools, free from meddling and prescription, that provide more children with the type of education previously reserved for the rich.

Lord Hill of Oareford

Parliamentary Under Secretary of State for Schools

The press release issued by the Department for Education on 12 May 2011.

The government today announced plans to ensure that more young people leave school or college with a good grasp of English and maths.

It means that those who have failed to get a C or better in GCSE English or maths will study the subjects until they get good qualifications.

The move will address concerns that standards of literacy and numeracy among young people are not good enough.

This year’s annual skills survey from the CBI found that more than two-fifths of firms are not satisfied with the basic literacy of school and college leavers. More than a third are unhappy with levels of numeracy. In 2010 only 55% of young people managed a C or better in GCSE English and maths.

The recommendation was among those proposed by Professor Alison Wolf when she published her review of vocational education in March.

All her recommendations were today accepted by Education Secretary Michael Gove as the government published its response to the review. Professor Wolf has agreed to take a formal role within the government to help implement them.

In her report Professor Wolf proposed a package of radical reforms designed to overhaul the current flawed system. She said that:

• thousands of 14- to 16-year-olds are on vocational courses which the league table system encourages but which do not help children progress
• more than 300,000 16- to 19-year-olds are on courses which do not lead to higher education or good jobs
• high-quality apprenticeships are rare and an increasing proportion are not offered to those aged 16 to 18
• the current funding system should be revamped because it offers perverse incentives that work against young people’s best interests
• too many young people leave school or college without good English and maths

Education Secretary Michael Gove said today that the Government will:

• ensure all young people study maths and English to age 18 until they get a good qualification in those subjects. Ideally this will be a C or better at GCSE but high-quality alternatives will be identified following a consultation this summer
• reform league tables and funding rules to remove the perverse incentives that have devalued vocational education. This will mean more young people take the high-quality qualifications that lead to university and good jobs
• consult with employers, schools, colleges, universities and Ofqual this summer to define the criteria that the best vocational qualifications must meet
• introduce a new measure to assess the performance of both higher- and lower-attaining pupils. This will ensure schools and college do not focus only on students on the C/D grade borderline
• consider paying businesses which take young people on to high-quality apprenticeships. Apprenticeships will also be simplified and made easier to offer
• support 14- to 16-year-olds enrolling in colleges so they can benefit from the excellent vocational training available there
• offer training to maths teachers so they continue improving and learning once qualified. This will be in place by this autumn.

When Prof Wolf published her review, the government immediately accepted 4 recommendations:

• to allow qualified further education lecturers to teach in school classrooms on the same basis as qualified school teachers. This requires a change in the law
• to clarify the rules on allowing industry professionals to teach in schools. This will be ready for the coming academic year
• to allow any vocational qualification offered by a regulated awarding body to be taken by 14- to 19-year-olds
• to allow established high-quality vocational qualifications that have not been accredited to be offered in schools and colleges in September 2011.

Michael Gove said:

The weaknesses in our current system were laid bare by Professor Wolf’s incisive and far-reaching review. The changes we will implement as a result of her report will take time but will transform the lives of young people. I am pleased Professor Wolf has agreed to work with us to implement them.

For too long the vocational education system has been devalued by attempts to pretend that all qualifications are intrinsically the same. Young people have taken courses that have led nowhere.

Good qualifications in English and maths are what employers demand before all others. Young people must be able to demonstrate their understanding of these subjects.

We will reform league tables, the funding system and regulation so children are given honest information and take the right courses. We will make sure that employers are more involved in the system. We will encourage them to offer more high-quality apprenticeships.

Our reforms will ensure that vocational education is again given the high status it deserves.

Professor Alison Wolf said:

For 20 years we have toyed around with vocational education but succeeded only in creating a bureaucratic and expensive system that limits the life chances of too many young people.

There are many excellent vocational qualifications, teachers and institutions – they are the examples that should be the norm. They prove that vocational education is a great choice for many young people.

I am delighted that the government has agreed to implement the changes I have proposed. They must be made if vocational education is to be a great choice for all young people, as it is in so many other countries, and I look forward to working with the government in taking them forward.

Skills Minister John Hayes said:

Vocational education matters because it enriches lives, inspires ambition and builds economic prosperity. But, as Alison Wolf has detailed, many qualifications offered to young people fail to provide progression to higher learning or employment.

Today we have outlined how we will take forward key recommendations in her report; spreading opportunity by encouraging and supporting all that is excellent in vocational education, including apprenticeships, helping us produce a new generation of craftsmen and women capable of building Britain’s future.

The press release issued by the Department for Education on 9 May 2011.

The CBI has today published their annual Education & Skills survey 2011, which shows that many employers are concerned with the basic skills levels of school and college leavers.

Responding to the survey, a Department spokesman said:

The CBI is absolutely right to raise concerns about the standards of English and maths of so many of our young people.

45 per cent of young people did not get a C or better in GCSE English and maths at 16. And just 4% of those who fail then go on to achieve this from 16 to 19.

Yet it is good qualifications in these key subjects that employers demand before all others – that’s why we are prioritising them.

The recruitment of specialist maths teachers, introducing a phonics-based reading test for 6-year-olds and restoring the rigour of GCSE and A level exams are all part of the overall package to raise participation across the board.

The press release issued by the Department for Education on 28 April 2011.

The Department for Education is looking at the induction arrangements for newly qualified teachers to see how they can be refined, improved and updated to better meet the needs of teachers and schools.

Qualified teachers who are employed in maintained schools in England must, by law, have completed an induction period after their initial training. The induction period usually lasts for 3 terms.

The current regulations and guidance on statutory induction were last updated in 2008, run to more than 70 pages and are based on the needs of the school system in 1999. Some schools say that current process is bureaucratic and can be a barrier to recruiting and retaining good teachers.

The department will informally consult with key stakeholders such as headteachers, induction co-ordinators and newly qualified teachers.

It will consider things like:

• how induction can support and challenge newly qualified teachers to improve their confidence and quality of teaching in their first year of practice;
• the level of regulation needed in induction and whether schools should play a greater role in induction arrangements than they currently do;
• the role of new teaching schools in future induction arrangements;
• how quality assurance of new teachers can be secured for all schools including academies, free schools and independent schools.

Schools Minister Nick Gibb said:

The countries that provide the best education are those that value teachers most highly and train them to the highest standard. We have some of the best teachers in the world, but it is vital that their training and development keeps pace with what schools and pupils need.

Our schools white paper ‘The Importance of Teaching’ sets out how we will do this by reforming initial teacher training, creating new teaching schools and improving professional development.

This is the first step towards a less bureaucratic and more fit for purpose induction programme for our newest teachers, to set them on the path to a successful career.

The department will formally consult on new regulations for the statutory induction period in the autumn term. The consultation will run for 12 weeks. We expect that new arrangements will come into force by September 2012, along with the revised Teachers’ Standards.

The changes to induction arrangements will apply to maintained schools in England. They will also apply to independent schools, academies, free schools and other settings that wish to provide statutory induction for their newly qualified teachers.

The press release issued by the Department for Education on 21 April 2011.

Following a number of stories in the media about public sector pensions, a government spokesperson said:

Former Work and Pensions Secretary Lord Hutton has made it clear that change is needed. People are living longer – in the early 1970s life expectancy of a 60-year-old was around 18 years: now it is around 28 years. This has meant that the value of public service pensions has increased, with most of these costs falling to employers and taxpayers. The Government has accepted Lord Hutton’s recommendations as a basis for consultation with public sector workers and will set out proposals by the autumn that are affordable, sustainable, and fair to both the public sector workforce and taxpayers.

In addition, when addressing the ATL Union Conference on 20 April 2011, Schools Minister Nick Gibb said about pensions:

…We have already been clear that we don’t want to see a race to the bottom in pension provision – and that public service pensions should remain a gold standard.

A good pension has long been an important part of the overall reward package that teachers expect.

Our priority is to ensure that continues to be the case. Opt out rates from the Teachers Pension Scheme are extremely low and we want to keep them that way. But we won’t be able to achieve all of this if we ignore the realities of the cost pressures that all pension schemes are facing as life expectancy increases.

The combination of more teacher pensioners and the increase in their life expectancy has meant that the cost of teachers’ pensions increases every year. In 2005 to 2006, the cost of paying teachers’ pensions was around £5 billion. By 2015 to 2016, the cost is forecast to rise to almost £10 billion.

This is why long term reform of public service schemes is needed – and why teachers and other public service scheme members are being asked to pay a higher pension contribution from April 2012.

From the start, the Government has made its commitment to protecting accrued rights absolutely clear. All the benefits that have been built up in a teacher’s pension will not be affected by any reforms recommended by Hutton. This means there is absolutely nothing to be gained by teachers seeking to retire earlier than they have planned.

The Government has accepted Lord Hutton’s recommendations as the basis for discussions with all the trades unions. There have already been some constructive discussions between the TUC and the Government. The aim is to agree a package of principles for pensions reform by the end of June. I fully understand the strength of feeling here in this room – but I strongly urge the ATL to wait for the outcome of those discussions before deciding on whether to take further action…

The press release issued by the Department for Education on 12 April 2011.

Schools Minister Lord Hill today congratulated the winners of the National Governors’ Association’s ‘Outstanding School Governance Awards 2011’.

Governing bodies are responsible for schools, their standards and their conduct. Governors aim to ensure that children are attending schools which provide them with a good education and support their well-being. Over the past decade the responsibilities of governing bodies have grown, and this continues with the increasing autonomy the Government is giving to schools.

There were two awards presented: one for outstanding governing bodies and one for outstanding clerks to governing bodies.

Lord Hill said:

“Many school governors and clerks make an outstanding contribution to the job of running their own school and of helping to set the standards for all governing bodies. Today’s winners highlight some of the best and I am delighted to have the chance to congratulate and thank them.

Governing bodies should be the key strategic body for a school. We want to attract more excellent school governors and have more effective governing bodies supported by trained clerks. That is why we are making it easier for schools to choose more flexible governing bodies made up of people equipped with the right mix of skills to suit the needs of their particular school.”

The press release issued by the Department for Education on 8 April 2011.

Sebastian James, Group Operations Director at Dixons Retail plc, today published his independent Capital review.

The report, along with a letter from Sebastian James to Secretary of State for Education Michael Gove, can be found in the associated resources section in the right-hand column of this page.

Welcoming the report, Michael Gove MP said:

I thank Sebastian James and his review team for their incredibly hard work and Partnerships for Schools for their help with the review. I welcome this independent report and we will respond soon. The system we inherited had profound problems. We must have a system for school building which is much simpler, less bureaucratic, and which targets priority projects.

The Capital review team is made up of a panel of experts led by Sebastian James – Group Operations Director of Dixons Retail plc. The other members of the team are:

• Kevin Grace, Tesco; Director of Property Services
• Barry Quirk; Chief Executive of Lewisham
• John Hood; former Vice-Chancellor of University of Oxford
• Sir John Egan; former Chief Executive of Jaguar and BAA
• Ben Gordon; Chief Executive of Mothercare plc.

Education Secretary Michael Gove announced on 5 July 2010 the Capital Review under the chairmanship of Sebastian James.

The press release issued by the Department for Education on 8 April 2011.

The government today launched a review of cultural education, to be led Classic FM Managing Director Darren Henley.

The review will look at how children can experience a wide variety of high quality cultural experiences, both inside and outside of school.

Darren Henley is today issuing an open invitation to anyone who wants to contribute to the consultation and feed into his review. He will aim to create a definition of what a solid cultural education should comprise of and how to make sure that all young people benefit from it.

Culture Minister Ed Vaizey said:

Learning about culture and having opportunities to take part offers huge rewards to young people. Our culture brings audiences from across the world and we are particularly adept at producing world-leading performers and artists. To remain in such a strong position we need to be sure that we are giving children the best start in their cultural education. This should not just be an optional extra, but an essential part of every child’s school life.

Darren Henley did a fantastic job with his review of music education and is perfectly positioned to lead this review.

Secretary of State for Education, Michael Gove, said:

Every child should be exposed to rich cultural opportunities. Too often, this is a privilege reserved for the wealthy few. This must change.

In order for our young people to succeed in higher education and employment we must provide them with a rigorous, well-rounded education. The best schools are already doing this.

This important review will play a key role in ensuring that children from all backgrounds can reap the benefits of our culture and heritage.

The press release issued by the Department for Education on 7 April 2011.

This month 162 schools have become academies and a further 473 are in the pipeline. Responding to increasing demand from headteachers the government is also opening the programme up to even more schools from today.

For parents and pupils this means more schools that can focus solely on the priorities of pupils and parents, rather than those of local officials and politicians.

As of today:

• 357 schools have converted into academies since September 2010
• 473 more have applied and are waiting to convert
• 547 secondary schools are now academies – 16.5% of all secondary schools
• half a million pupils now go to academies

In total there are now 629 academies open, compared to 203 in May 2010.

Until now only schools which Ofsted judged Outstanding or Good with Outstanding features have been allowed to apply to convert in their own right. Other schools have had to apply as part of wider chains, working with strong schools.

However, many other mainstream and special schools have said they should be allowed to become stand-alone academies. Responding to this demand the government will, from today, consider applications from any school, including special schools, that can make a compelling case for academy status – looking in particular at:

• exam performance over the last 3 years
• comparison with local and national exam performance
• latest Ofsted reports with a specific focus on ‘capacity to improve’, ‘outcomes’, and ‘leadership and management’
• for special schools, in addition to the above, other success in supporting the learning of pupils with special educational needs
• any other matters that the school may rely on in order to demonstrate that it is performing well

Lord Hill, Minister for Schools, said today:

I am delighted that so many schools have decided to become academies. As academies they can decide what is best for their pupils, parents and the local community, free from red-tape and politicians.

By setting good schools free and improving performance in weak schools we will raise standards for all children no matter their background.

Heads of new academies welcomed their new freedoms:

Liz Cresswell, Headteacher, Brighouse Academy, Calderdale, West Yorkshire, said:

Brighouse High School focuses relentlessly on driving up standards for pupils of all levels of ability. As an academy we intend to continue with this mission and to take advantage of the freedoms to widen opportunity and support raising achievement even further. The freedom from bureaucracy, especially in terms of budgets, will allow us to target spending on the pupils, on reinforcing high standards of teaching and on maintaining a high quality learning environment.

It is our intention to continue to promote the excellent ethos of our school and to continue to serve the community of Brighouse. Academy freedoms will enable us to achieve our aims even more effectively.

Roy Hepplestone, Head Teacher, Whitehill Community Academy Calderdale in West Yorkshire, said:

We are delighted to become an independent state-funded primary academy and look forward to being able to innovate and make a difference within our educational community. In particular we relish the opportunity to be creative with our new freedoms with regards to funding, curriculum development and systems leadership with the added opportunity to support, develop and improve another school.

The future is a bright one for the Whitehill Community Academy.

David Hermitt, Head Teacher, Congleton High School in Cheshire, said:

The academy freedoms are already reaping benefits for the school and allowing more resources to be directed at school improvement.

Kevin Hollins, Principal of Knutsford High School in Cheshire welcomed the decision to let more schools apply:

We are delighted to hear of the government’s intention to expand the Academy programme to schools such as ours. The new arrangements enable schools such as ours to demonstrate their capacity to exploit the potential of academy status and add a great deal to the programme.

In 6 local authorities the majority of their secondary schools are now academies, representing a fundamental shift of control to schools. The six LAs are:

• Southwark
• Rutland
• Bromley
• Plymouth
• North East Lincolnshire
• Reading

The press release issued by the Department for Education on 6 April 2011.

Schools Minister Nick Gibb today announced a matched funding scheme to help primary schools teach systematic synthetic phonics and drive up reading standards.

Primary schools will be able to claim up to £3,000, if they match that funding, to spend on materials which meet the Department for Education’s criteria for an effective phonics programme.

A list of approved resources – including phonics products for teachers and pupils and training for teachers – will be published by the Department by September although some products and training will be available by the end of June. Schools will decide which of the resources will help them to deliver high-quality phonics teaching for their pupils and will be able to buy products and training with the match-funding any time up to March 2013.

The Government is introducing a new phonics-based screening check for six-year-olds so teachers can identify children not at the expected reading level and in need of extra support.

In last year’s primary school tests 15 per cent of pupils did not reach the standard expected at Key Stage 1 and 16 per cent were below the standard expected at Key Stage 2. England has slipped down the international table for reading in primary schools. The Progress in International Reading Literacy Study (PIRLS) of 10-year-olds saw England fall from third out of 35 countries in 2001 to 15th out of 40 countries in 2006.

Schools Minister Nick Gibb said:

This match-funding will mean all schools with six-year-old pupils will be able to buy approved products and training to help them teach high-quality systematic synthetic phonics.

There is more to reading than phonics. But high-quality academic evidence from across the world – from Scotland and Australia to the National Reading Panel in the US – shows that the systematic teaching of synthetic phonics is the best way to teach literacy to all children, and especially those aged five to seven.

Learning to read is a fundamental part of a child’s education and vital to their prospects in secondary school, further and higher education, and work. The new phonics check will ensure that children who need extra help are given the support they need to enable them to enjoy a lifetime’s love of reading.

The check will be piloted in a representative sample of about 300 schools in June. Evidence from the pilot and other policy advice will be considered before the assessment arrangements are finalised.

How phonics works

Phonics focuses on sounds rather than, for example, having children try to recognise whole words.

In analytic phonics, words are broken down into their beginning and end parts, such as ‘str-‘ and ‘eet’, with an emphasis on ‘seeing’ the words and analogy with other words.

In synthetic phonics, children start by sequencing the individual sounds in words – for example, ‘s-t-r-ee-t’, with an emphasis on blending them together.

Once they have learned all these, they progress to reading books.

The ‘synthetic’ part comes from the word ‘synthesise’, meaning to assemble or blend together.

Children who learn using synthetic phonics are able to have a go at new words working from sound alone, whereas those using analytic phonics are more dependent on having prior knowledge of families of words.

Research evidence

In Clackmannanshire, Scotland, a seven-year study of the teaching of synthetic phonics to 300 children found they made more progress in reading and spelling than other children their age.

A 2005 Australian report, Teaching Reading, found:

The incontrovertible finding from the extensive body of local and international evidence-based literacy research is that for children during the early years of schooling (and subsequently if needed) to be able to link their knowledge of spoken language to their knowledge of written language, they must first master the alphabetic code – the system of grapheme-phoneme correspondences that link written words to their pronunciations. Because these are both foundational and essential skills for the development of competence in reading, writing and spelling, they must be taught explicitly, systematically, early and well.

The US National Reading Panel report of 2006 said:

Systematic synthetic phonics instruction had a positive and significant effect on disabled readers’ reading skills. These children improved substantially in their ability to read words and showed significant, albeit small, gains in their ability to process text as a result of systematic synthetic phonics instruction. This type of phonics instruction benefits both students with learning disabilities and low-achieving students who are not disabled. Moreover, systematic synthetic phonics instruction was significantly more effective in improving low socio-economic status (SES) children’s alphabetic knowledge and word reading skills than instructional approaches that were less focused on these initial reading skills… Across all grade levels, systematic phonics instruction improved the ability of good readers to spell.