TES writers pick up education journalism gongs
Journalists at TES and its Scottish sister paper TESS have scooped a series of top national journalism awards. TES reporter Stephen Exley won the Outstanding National Education Journalism Award, as well as the Outstanding Apprenticeship and Skills Journalism Award, at the CIPR Educational Journalism Awards. Meanwhile, Julia Belgutay of TESS won the Outstanding Further Education Journalism Award at the ceremony at the House of Commons last week, and Henry Hepburn of TESS was named runner-up in the outstanding schools journalism category.
Work takes up head space at Christmas
Almost half of school leaders expect to be more concerned with teaching than turkey on Christmas Day, a survey shows. Research by school support website The Key reveals that 47 per cent of respondents said they were “likely” or “very likely” to spend time on 25 December working on or thinking about school issues. More than half of the 866 school leaders surveyed (58 per cent) said they had spent time working on Christmas Day in previous years. Of those, 10 per cent said they had clocked up several hours’ work on Christmas Day in the past.
Praying for a school place
One in 10 parents with professional jobs in England admit that they have attended church services purely so their child could attend the local church school, a survey reveals. The report from UK social mobility charity the Sutton Trust shows that nearly a third of professional parents said they had moved to an area with better schools. More dubious tactics admitted to by parents included citing a relative’s address on a school application or buying a second home within the catchment area of a school.
Music wake-up call from Yes man
Musician and songwriter Rick Wakeman has claimed that music “doesn’t exist” in some schools. The former Yes keyboardist told a radio interview: “I do find it disappointing when I go into schools and it doesn’t exist any more. It’s such a great shame because music and drama are a way for children and pupils to express themselves.who perhaps can’t express themselves well in academic ways.” His comments come after a report from schools inspectorate Ofsted found that quality music education only reached a minority of students in England.
Schools drops KKK leader’s name after 50 years
A Florida school named after a key Ku Klux Klan leader is set to change its name after campaigners lodged a petition. The Nathan B Forrest High School in Jacksonville opened in 1959, named after a lieutenant general in the Confederate Army during the American Civil War. But Forrest was also the first “grand wizard” of white supremacist group the Ku Klux Klan, which was responsible for years of intimidation and violence against black communities. The Duval County Public School Board this month voted unanimously to change the name. The move followed a petition by Jacksonville resident Omotayo Richmond, which garnered more than 160,000 signatures in support.
