Join the Tes news team as we pore over a consultation document launched by the DfE and Ofqual this afternoon into how GCSE and A level grades should be awarded this summer.

It asks whether external papers should be used to assist teachers in awarding grades, and suggests there may be guidance for teachers to create the papers themselves. 

We also discuss Ofsted’s U-turn in reversing its decision to resume face-to-face inspections in schools from next week following pressure from its own inspectors.

And we ask whether education secretary Gavin Williamson gave a good account of himself when he appeared before MPs in the Commons’ Education Committee this week - despite being accused of “making a claim that simply wasn’t true” when he said the DfE hadn’t been aware of the spread of the new Covid variant when issuing a legal direction to Greenwich council before Christmas to keep schools open.

We also talk about our story that schools are again reporting issues with ordering free school meal vouchers from private contractor Edenred. And we discuss how public health directors in some areas are advising schools not use rapid lateral flow tests as part of their mass testing plans.

We end on the question of why teachers might as well jump to Van Halen?