Four years to ban teacher

The Herald

Scotland’s regulatory body for teachers has come under fire for taking nearly four years to ban a member of school staff whom it later admitted “simply could not teach”. The accusation came in the wake of a decision by the General Teaching Council for Scotland to strike off Janet Garner, a secondary maths teacher. She was removed from the register after a hearing found her guilty of serious professional incompetence while working at Alva Academy and Alloa Academy between 2003 and 2007.

Purple ties for gifted

The Guardian

Crown Woods secondary school in Greenwich, south London, has divided its students by ability, complete with different uniforms. “Gifted and talented” pupils wear purple ties, are taught in separate colour-co- ordinated buildings, play in fenced-off areas and eat lunch at separate times. At 11 years old, all pupils at the college are streamed according to ability in what headteacher Michael Murphy argues is the only way to survive in the new world of market-driven education.

Sex lessons `before 12’

The Herald

Most parents believe children should start learning about sex and relationships before they are 12. A new survey found half of parents felt lessons on the topic should begin between the ages of eight and 12. One in seven parents said youngsters should begin learning about sex and relationships between the ages of five and eight, and 4.1 per cent said under-fives should be given classes. One in eight said school sex education lessons would result in more children becoming sexually active when they were younger.

`Bullied’ girl seeks pound;100k

Daily Record

A teenager with cerebral palsy who claims bullies forced her out of two schools is battling a council to get pound;100,000 for specialist education. Rebecca Nicholson, 16, has been refused the funding by Highland Council but is now taking them to a tribunal. She hopes to attend Treloar College, a live-in facility in Hampshire.

Abertay’s King retires

The Scotsman

The row that has rocked Dundee’s Abertay University since the suspension of Professor Bernard King as university principal six months ago has finally been settled. The university announced his retirement had been “confirmed” - and that the library will be named after him.