Posts by Idris Musty
Good Teachers are Worth their Weight in Gold!
A Good Teacher is Worth their Weight in Gold! There is a saying that goes “a good teacher is like a candle, it consumes itself to light the way of others” – a quote from Mustafa Kemal Atatürk. The difference a teacher can make to the life of a child cannot be overemphasised. Every adult…
Read MoreThere are many reasons for optimism about our children’s education and future; but there are hidden truths…
Much has been said about how many children have lost teaching and socialising time as a result of lockdown, which is true and, sadly, may be even worse than we thought. It is reassuring to see that the economic impact of the pandemic is turning out not to be as bad as it was previously…
Read MoreWhy St Andrews is so successful; you can do it, irrespective of which university!
One of the factors attributed to the success of St Andrews is their teaching, especially the way they reacted to lockdown. Yes, like other universities, they moved their teaching online as a result of COVID-19, but they did small group teaching in a way that their students feel is better than other top universities. At…
Read MoreThe Top University in the UK is not Oxford or Cambridge
In its almost 30-year history of ranking universities in the UK, The Sunday Times has placed a university that is neither Oxford nor Cambridge at the very top. You should be forgiven for thinking it may be a Russell Group university, but it is not one, and it is not even in England. The top…
Read MoreThe Number One Question asked by Parents of Teenagers… Answered
a conversation with a caring parent – written in August 2021 Dear Caring Parent I trust you and your family are making the best of the summer and that your son/daughter is looking forward to the start of the new academic year in September. I know we are only in the first few weeks of…
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 MoreTesting Blogs
This is just to test if this is working OK….
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