The government has pledged to open 500 free schools before 2020. The Church of England is reportedly aiming to open a quarter of these. This proportion of new schools would maintain the current ratio of one in four free schools in England that are C of E. Over a million children in the UK attend the 4,417 primary and 209 C of E secondary schools in England. Stephen Conway, the Bishop of Ely is quoted…
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Figures from Pulse, obtained under freedom of information legislation, have been released. Data from 15 mental health trusts in the UK has revealed the number of under 18s, referred for help from child and adolescent mental health services (CAMHS), who are not receiving it. The data has highlighted the lack of treatment that young people and children are receiving for mental health problems. Across England 61% of under 18 year olds referred for help from…
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The Education Endowment Foundation has commissioned a project that seeks to examine the effect of teaching growth mindset to 10 and 11 year olds in the UK. The term “growth mindset” was coined by American Psychologist Carol Dweck, and is the belief that “intelligence is not a fixed characteristic and can be increased through effort.” It focuses on attainment, self-management and the process of learning from one’s own mistakes. Academic Sherria Hoskins explains “Expectations change…
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There are a growing number of schools and universities offering dog therapy to stressed-out students and teachers. In the US, retired professor Mary Jalongo and her Indiana-based therapy dog group started their crusade three years ago at her old university. She is now leading a team of therapy dog handlers as they travel from campus to campus to try and lower students’ anxiety levels. For teenagers in the UK, the charity Dogs Helping Kids (DHK)…
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Last week Dr John Vallance, principal of highly acclaimed Sydney Grammar School, spoke out against the use of technology in schools. He describes the use of laptops and tablets in class as a ‘scandalous waste of money’ which only benefit giant US tech companies. Dr Vallance is a highly respected educationalist. Born and educated in Australia, he went on to complete his MPhil and PhD at the University of Cambridge where he subsequently taught Classics…
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A new study has looked at whether eating peanuts as a young child effects the likelihood of being allergic to them later on. 640 infants with severe eczema, an egg allergy, or both were split into two groups. Some of the infants also tested positive for peanut allergy. The infants, aged 4-11 months at the start of the research were either given peanut snacks or asked to avoid peanuts until they were 5 years old….
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Across the United States the average age of first time mothers has increased across all races and ethnicities. Over the past four decades the average age of first time mothers has increased from 21 years old in 1970 to 26 years old in 2014. According to the National Centre for Health Statistics this can be attributed to a decline in teenage pregnancies and an increase in women having children over the age of 30. Mothers…
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A literary poll of favourite children’s novel characters was conducted by National Book Tokens in honour of upcoming World Book Day on 3 March. Over 7,000 people took part in the poll in which they identified their favourite heroes/heroines and villains. The top hero and villain were both male, and both from the Harry Potter books. Harry Potter and Lord Voldemort respectively took the top spots. Of the heroes and heroines, girls took 6 of…
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The UK Centre for Economics and Business Research has released research calculating the estimated cost of raising a child born this year to the age of 21. The figure has increased since 2003 by 65% to £231,843. Unsurprisingly this figure rises to £373,000 with the inclusion of private schooling and is even higher for boarding school children. Break-downs of the estimated costs include: £70,466 for childcare and babysitting, £74,430 for education and £19,004 for food….
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LEGO has released its first mini-figure in a wheelchair after a Change.org petition launched last year called #ToyLikeMe received over 20,000 signatures. Journalist Rebecca Atkinson, co-founder of the petition, argued that LEGO was excluding ‘150 million disabled children worldwide by failing to positively represent them in its products’. The figure was spotted at the Nuremburg and London toy fairs wearing a beanie, hoodie and with a small dog. Australian academic Katie Ellis stressed the importance…
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