ISC Daily News Summary

A survey by the Education Endowment Foundation has found that "secondary school teachers would need, on average, a 13 per cent higher salary to consider working in schools serving the most disadvantaged communities". The research, which aims to understand which job attributes make teaching roles more attractive to teachers, found that increasing salaries is the most effective way to boost recruitment. However, the study also found that teachers value concrete offers such as protected PPA (planning, preparation and assessment) time, smaller class sizes and free healthcare – when mentioned in job adverts, these had effects comparable to a 10 per cent salary increase. By Cerys Turner, Tes.

Writing to The Times, John Dunston, former head of Leighton Park School, criticises the Department for Education's decision to cut funding for the International Baccalaureate (IB) in state schools. Highlighting the benefits of the IB curriculum, he argues: "To deprive pupils in maintained schools of access to the IB's educational and employment benefits is sadly utilitarian and staggeringly short-sighted."

In a separate letter, Peter Inson from East Mersea, Essex, writes that he helped an international school adopt the IB because it "offered a reliable and much-respected curriculum for our sixth form". He adds: "It is to teachers that parents entrust their children, not politicians, and it is teachers and parents who should do their best to stay with the IB." 

Both letters can be found a quarter of the way down the page.

On Monday afternoon, MPs debated a petition calling for parents to be allowed to take children out of school for up to 10 days without a fine. Conservative MP Robbie Moore, who introduced the petition, said travel price hikes mean many families cannot afford to take holidays during school breaks. In response, schools minister Georgia Gould said: "Absence is one of the biggest barriers to opportunity, damaging learning, health and wellbeing, future earnings and employment, and each day of lost learning can do serious harm. And that is why we won't allow pupils to miss 10 days of school without good reason." Tes.

According to a report by the charity Mind, nearly half of young people say their mental health affects their attendance at school or college. On the importance of early intervention hubs and crisis support, Minesh Patel, associate director of policy and influencing at Mind, said: "Not needing a referral is crucial. It can break down the stigma around mental health by not having to go through your GP or through a healthcare professional." By Anjum Peerbacos, Sky News.