ISC Daily News Summary

Schoolchildren speak to The Guardian about what the COP26 summit means to them and how they feel about the crucial years that lie ahead. By Joanna Moorhead.

Liz Laybourn, the head of Burgess Hill Girls, writes for Independent Education Today on the importance of providing sixth formers with opportunities to grow soft skills. Ms Laybourn suggests that soft skills like leadership and independent thinking are critical to getting into university in the post-COVID era.

Writing in The Times, Sir Anthony Seldon, a member of the newspaper's Education Commission, calls for reform to the education system. He claims the national school system "intentionally bakes in failure for a third of students who do not achieve at least a grade 4 in both GCSE English and maths".

Headteachers have pushed back against new Ofsted plans to relaunch inspections of "outstanding" schools that have not been examined for over a decade. The Association of School and College Leaders has written to Ofsted asking for the inspections to be paused because many schools are still struggling to get back on their feet after the pandemic. By Izzy Lyons, The Telegraph.

According to Schools Week, the Government's plan to extend inspections to three days is still on the cards and Ofsted is expecting further announcements to be made “in due course”. By James Carr.

Schools Week takes a closer look at Now Teach, a recruitment programme aimed at persuading high-flying professionals to change career and retrain as teachers. The programme has now secured £3 million in Government funding to expand nationwide. By Samantha Booth.

The Times features an interview with Alex Gerko, the founder of an electronic trading firm, who has warned that Britain's approach to maths means talent risks going to waste. Mr Gerko has financially backed the Protect Pure Maths campaign and has also sponsored specialist maths schools in the UK. By James Hurley.

Eva Wiseman writes for The Guardian about the need to reform sex education in schools. She argues that fertility lessons should be taught to both boys and girls to address the declining birth rate in Britain.

The Guardian speaks to some of the people behind Rekindle, a new supplementary school set to open in Manchester next January. By Maya Wolfe-Robinson.