ISC Daily News Summary

Coronavirus: England's schools "severely hampered" by lack of access to testing

Child welfare

Headteachers have warned delays in coronavirus tests are creating "serious staff shortages", which could lead to the partial closure of some schools. By Sean Coughlan, BBC News.

Tes reports the Department for Health and Social Care is set to survey schools on how many staff and students have developed coronavirus symptoms, and how many home testing kits have been used since schools reopened. By John Roberts.

Education secretary Gavin Williamson has said the pandemic has presented an "opportunity to make the changes that need to be made" to the education system. By Freddie Whittaker, Schools Week.

An Oxford University study has found secondary school pupils felt happier and less worried during lockdown, while primary aged children increasingly experienced "emotional difficulties". By Camilla Turner, The Telegraph.

Linda Blair, a clinical psychologist, writes in The Telegraph offering advice on how to support children experiencing coronavirus-induced anxiety.

Malala Yousafzai, a Nobel laureate and co-founder of the Malala Fund, writes in The Guardian urging world leaders to work together to help girls across the world return to the classroom.

Ofqual acknowledges potential problems with online GCSE exams

Examinations

A spokesperson from Ofqual has said "a number of issues" would have to be resolved before pupils could sit online GCSE assessments in 2021, if exams cannot be sat in the usual way. By Catherine Lough, Tes.

• Tes

Teacher pay plans are "divisive and inadequate", unions warn

Recruitment and retention

Four teaching unions have written to Gavin Williamson criticising plans for teachers' pay, arguing: "Government needs to show it values teachers and school leaders by urgently restoring the value of their pay." By Catherine Lough, Tes.

• Tes

Aspiring barrister pledges free tutoring for disadvantaged pupils in exchange for crowdfunding donations

Social mobility

Mohamed Hussein Iman, an Oxford graduate hoping to become a barrister, has pledged to help underprivileged students with university admissions and their studies in return for donations to his crowdfunding campaign, where he is raising money to study a Graduate Diploma in Law. By Jasmine Andersson, iNews.

• iNews