ISC Daily News Summary

TES

A clarification has been printed in today's TES in relation to the article 'Fee-fixing victims still wait for cash', published on Friday 25th January 2008. The clarification states that 'it was not our intention to suggest that Westminster School was in dispute with a former parent regarding compensation. We are happy to set the record straight'.

Westminster School (TES not online)

TES magazine

Norwich High School for Girls and Clifton High School are referred to in a TES magazine feature on state school teachers who chose to send their children to independent schools. Today's TES magazine also includes a photo of Wisbech Grammar School teacher, Alice Sloan.

Private matters (TES magazine)
Picture Perfect (TES magazine not online)

TES

The TES also includes a brief article on 16 independent schools that have been excluded from a British Council competition for pupils studying Chinese and an article on a study into the language used by female independent school pupils.

Chinese checkout (TES not online)
Such a posh rebellion (TES not online)

Guardian

Author David Kynaston discusses independent schools in a Guardian comment piece. Reference is made to ISC's Annual Universities Survey.

The road to meritocracy is blocked by private schools (Guardian)

Daily Telegraph, Guardian, Daily Mail, BBC News Online, Times, Evening Standard

An independent security review into the government's planned ContactPoint database, conducted by consultancy firm Deloitte, has called for tighter security to be put in place for the £224million system, which is due to be introduced later this year. Deloitte's executive summary notes that 'there will always be a risk of data security incidents occurring'. Ministers have come under fire from the Liberal Democrats and Conservatives for refusing to publish the full report.

Child database 'will never be fully secure' (Daily Telegraph)
More security for child database needed, says review (Guardian)
Children's database 'insecure' (Daily Mail)
Call to scrap children's database (BBC News Online)
Now kiddies, don't trip on the red tape (Times)
Boys are twice as likely to be killed on the roads as girls (Times)
Smokers to be banned from lighting up in playgrounds (Evening Standard)

Times, Guardian, Independent, Daily Telegraph, Daily Mail, TES, BBC News Online

The first Qualifications and Curriculum Authority (QCA) study into the demands of various academic subjects has found that some GCSEs and A-levels, such as media studies, are easier than others. However, the QCA report concludes that subjects are broadly in line, and no immediate action is needed to even things out.

A-level media studies is soft option for students, exam watchdog reports (Times)
Report on exams reveals the 'dumbed down' subjects (Guardian)
Exam watchdog: media studies is easiest A-level (Independent)
‘Softer' A-levels award common sense with top marks (Daily Telegraph)
Easiest A-levels to be made harder (Daily Mail)
Soft A-levels? Now that's a hard one (TES)
Some exams 'harder than others' (BBC News Online)

Independent, Guardian, Daily Telegraph, Daily Mail

The University of Nottingham has launched a Master's degree in 'Hollywood studies'. There is also further coverage today of university drop-out rates.

Hollywood degree course launched (Independent)
A university drop-out is a sign of a wider failure (Independent)
University fees are not deterring people from poorer families (Guardian)
Short-term targets lead to university drop-outs (Daily Telegraph letters)
My son says he's not going to bother with university. I try to be angry but the trouble is, he's got a point (Daily Mail)

TES

A feature in the TES on the positive aspects of universities getting involved with academies.

University links boost academies (TES not online)

Scotsman, Herald

Dundee University has announced that staff cutbacks will have to be made as it seeks to find more than £3million of savings over the next two years as a direct result of the Scottish government's 'poor' financial settlement. The Scotsman and Herald both report that, under the government's Curriculum for Excellence, the increasing use of 'text speak' by pupils in English lessons is to be addressed as part of wider moves to put basic literacy at the heart of the school curriculum.

First university posts go after Budget fiasco (Scotsman)
Txts, blogs and Facebook - the new literacy (Scotsman)
Teachers to spell out when pupils can use 'text speak' (Herald)

Daily Telegraph, Times, Guardian, Daily Mail, Sun, Daily Mirror, BBC News Online

Widespread coverage of the latest figures published as part of the National Childhood Obesity Database (NCOD).

Third of 10-year-olds are overweight or obese (Daily Telegraph)
A third of 10-year olds are now overweight (Times)
Obesity rates start badly and get worse at primary school (Guardian)
One in four infant school children is overweight (Daily Mail)
1 in 3 kids is fat (Sun not online)
Too fat by 5 (Daily Mirror)
Child obesity 'a major problem' (BBC News Online)

Times, Daily Telegraph, Scotsman, Daily Mail, Daily Express

'The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe' by C. S. Lewis has been voted the best children's book of all time.

Narnia sums up the magic of childhood for readers too old for Harry Potter (Times)
Narnia triumphs over Harry Potter (Daily Telegraph)
Old favourites the leading reads in top 5 children's books (Scotsman)
Harry Potter straggles in a 'disappointing' sixth in children's books poll (Daily Mail)
Narnia's the best ever tale for children (Daily Express not online)

Today's TES also includes articles on Ofsted inspections, the scrapping of the Fast Track teacher training scheme and glamour models who want to be role models. Today's Times Higher Education (THE) includes an article on university managers and an interview with co-author of this week's published study into the success privileged pupils in comprehensive schools, David James.

Memories of saintly teachers and a secondary modern education (Independent letters)
Je suis très stressed (Times letters)
Leave the language teaching to the teachers (Daily Mail letters not online)

Guardian

The President of Turkmenistan has fired 30 employees from the country's main state TV channel after discovering that a cockroach had gone unnoticed on the desk of the station's evening news programme.

And finally...how the march of a lone cockroach put 30 people out of work (Guardian)