Attain: Reforming GCSE

Reform to GCSE is nothing new. Educators have been calling for changes for some time but the pandemic has not only increased the desire to look at things in a new light but also shown how quickly changes can happen.

For Sarah Fletcher, High Mistress of St Paul's Girls' School in London, GCSEs have simply not kept up with the pace of change in the last thirty years. "I think the fundamental problem is that the world is now very different to the one that existed back in the 1980s."

The Guardian: 'A community of equals': the private school with no fees, set up by a south London teacher

While most teachers express frustration about the education system in England, with its focus on Sats, GCSEs and league tables, what they don’t usually do is set up their own school instead. But that is exactly what Lucy Stephens did.

Stephens had been a primary teacher for six years but grew disillusioned and left. “I was just shoehorning kids through test papers,” she says. “Everything was so competitive. You’d find the headteacher in your room, looking through your books, checking on you. Behaviour managers can rule by fear, the staff as well as pupils. I’ve seen them scream at kids in front of the whole school, humiliating them.”

Stephens decided to resign and work for The Prince’s Trust charity, helping vulnerable young people. But now she is back teaching – this time in her very own school, where she writes the rules and sets the pace.

The Guardian: Covid hits exam-taking and poorer pupils worst, study finds

Survey of students in England reveals huge disparities in effects of lockdown and school closures.

Children studying for exams and those from disadvantaged families are the most likely to have suffered severe disruption to their learning and motivation during the pandemic, according to the largest published study of its impact on pupils in England.

The Times: Tencent: Tech giant backed by Beijing funded Cambridge research

Cambridge University received a “generous gift” from a Chinese software company with links to the communist regime to fund an engineering fellowship, The Times has learnt.

The Times: Royal Springboard scheme gives private school places to pupils in care

Children from troubled backgrounds will win places at prestigious private schools as part of a government-backed scheme aimed at transforming their life chances.

About £200,000 of public money is being given to a charity that helps match vulnerable children and those in care with top independent schools.