ISC Daily News Summary

Queen Anne’s School in Caversham has spent five years working with neuroscientists to understand how teenage brains work and have created a "neuroscience” revision guide. The article quotes Julia Harrington, headteacher at Queen Anne’s. By Nicola Woolcock, The Times.

John Harris, a columnist for The Guardian, argues Britain's independent schools and their "domination of our power structures" are to blame for the Brexit crisis. He also said there should be "a demand, via legislation" that Russell Group universities offer places to pupils from independent and state schools in line with the population.

In an interview with The Times, Liz Truss, chief secretary to the Treasury, has suggested Oxbridge automatically offers places to '100 top state school students from each region'.

The former director of corporate strategy at Ofsted has said school inspections should assess how many children are privately tutored before judging a school in a middle-class area. By Nicola Woolcock, The Times.

Karen Yossman writes in The Times discussing her first job 'helping the wealthy get in to Oxford'.

The Government will encourage overseas students to apply to study at UK universities in a bid to boost the post-Brexit economy. By Richard Vaughan, iNews.

Magnus Bashaarat, head of Bedales School in Hampshire, argues GCSEs and A-levels should be replaced by a diploma to help "embed vocational education in our schools". The Tes.

According to Geoff Barton, general secretary of the Association of School and College Leaders, the current GCSE system sets pupils up to feel disappointed and forces them to undertake a series of mandatory resits. By Eleanor Busby, The Independent.

According to The Times, parents are using freedom of information (FOI) requests to understand why their child failed to gain a place at Oxbridge. By Nicola Woolcock and Rosemary Bennett. The article quotes Helen Pike, master of Magdalen College School.

One of Britain's leading surgeons has written to ministers calling for new guidance on the potential dangers of e-cigarettes. According to the Mail on Sunday, the amount of teenagers now vaping has caused many school heads to write to parents about the issue. The article quotes Amy Sellars, assistant headteacher at Latymer Upper School, who has warned parents of a “new craze" for the devices. By Stephen Adams and Michael Powell.

Charley Thomas, a 10-year-old pupil at Wycliffe Preparatory School, has recited Pi to 220 decimal places during his school assembly - and is thought to be the youngest Briton to do so. The article quotes Wycliffe head, Adrian Palmer.