General
Green and pleasant land; quality time; teenagers at home in the summer and all that…
I don’t know if the summer holiday in your household is any similar to mine? I’m beginning to get that familiar feeling, that “the anticipation of the summer is sometimes better than the reality of the actual summer”. This is not about the weather in the UK at present, so I’ll do my best not…
Read MoreShould teenagers follow their passion when choosing subjects or a degree course? Yes, but….
For me, yesterday was one of those days when events turned out differently than I had planned. I won’t say it is a wasted day necessarily, but I had to invest my time differently from the way I had anticipated, as I decided to go to a university open day with my seventeen-year old son.…
Read MoreIt’s all about university application at present – or is it?
We are at that time of the year when 18-year-olds are preoccupied with their application to university. They are busy getting their personal statement finished, hoping for a recommendation in support of their application from the head of sixth form or whichever teacher is going to write in support of their application to the university…
Read MorePost-Sixteen qualifications – A-level subjects and courses option after GCSE
The GCSE exam results are released today, with fewer top grades of 7, 8 and 9 (A and A*) being awarded in comparison to last year, but higher than in 2019. Although A-level grades are the main determining criterion for admission into the top universities, GCSEs still matter and there are two reasons for this.…
Read MoreRepercussion from last year’s A-level grade misallocation being felt by bright young people
A seventeen-year-old, with a national swimming award, and predicted grades of A*A*A has been rejected by Liverpool University and this is just one of many. According to The Guardian newspaper’s education website: “… Eve could have expected a string of top university offers in an ordinary year.” There is nothing ordinary about 2020, as COVID-19…
Read MoreLegal action over A-level grade misallocation
Here is a short story of Charlie, who was awarded A and B in Maths and Further Maths, respectively, in his A-levels by his teachers in 2020. His actual predicted grade in these two subjects was A* A*, so he not only missed out on gaining admission to Warwick University but has to carry these…
Read MoreThere is light at the end of the tunnel for GCSE and A-level students
Many young people who are in their final GCSE and A-level years have been studying diligently over the Easter break, and they are doing this in preparation for teacher assessment in the next couple of weeks or so. In most good schools where students achieve top grades year in year out, the headteacher and staff…
Read MoreIs Online Learning the future for school children?
Is Online Learning the future? Closure of schools, caused by the lockdown as a result of the pandemic has forced society to learn how to utilise technology in solving a very big problem – loss of learning by children. However, before we get too excited about how brilliant online teaching technology is, and start thinking…
Read MoreThe Magic of High Expectations – how some inner-city schools are outperforming top private schools…
There was a rather surprising set of statistics in the Parent Power guide for primary schools that was published by the Sunday Times yesterday. The top state primary school scored 346 out of 360 (96%) in the SATS result for Reading, Writing and Maths. This score by Mayflower School in the East End of London…
Read MoreCan I afford a tutor?
Can I afford a tutor? How about, can you afford not to get a tutor? Here, I challenge you with the million pound question – is there really such a thing as value for money’, affordable tuition? However, that begs the question, if we don’t invest those extra pennies in our child’s educational prospects, can…
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