Last updated 08/06/2007
EDUCATION - FURTHER EDUCATION
Spend it wisely
The Guardian
29/05/2007
Colleges told they must stop awarding contracts without getting several quotes from rival firms.
EDUCATION - HIGHER EDUCATION
Aptitude tests could help pick best students
The Guardian
05/06/2007
Universities should adopt US-style aptitude tests to help them decide between equally qualified potential students, according to a new government report.
Australia targets UK students
The Guardian
05/06/2007
If the fee cap here is lifted the ripple of young people heading for sun, surf and study could become a wave.
Behind the web of lies
The Times Higher Education Supplement
01/06/2007
Blaming the Internet and IT for the rise in plagiarism does not address the root cause for students' disregard of scholarly endeavour. Fear of failure, lack of effort on the part of tutors and increasing preoccupation with gaining credentials are all factors contributing to plagiarism. The rise may also be down to better detection due to widespread use of turnitin.com by universities.
Blair promises to improve teaching of Islamic studies
The Guardian
05/06/2007
As a report calls for more UK-trained Muslim clerics Tony Blair has pledged to spend £1m improving the teaching of Islamic studies at universities.
Israeli ministers discuss British boycott threats amid plans for retaliatory action
The Guardian
04/06/2007
Israelis have reacted angrily to proposals by the University and College Union and Unison to boycott Israel in protest at its treatment of Palestinians. The proposals follow a similar resolution passed by the National Union of Journalists earlier this year.
Legal star will 'ruin' supporters of boycott
The Times Higher Education Supplement
01/06/2007
Alan Dershowitz, one of America's leading lawyers, has promised he will personally visit legal and financial ruin on any UK academic supporting a boycott of Israeli academe.
London arts alliance set to unlock potential
The Times Higher Education Supplement
01/06/2007
The three smallest colleges of the University of the Arts London are to boost their links by forming a new strategic alliance.
EDUCATION - SCHOOLS
758,000 places lie empty as parents fight for popular schools
The Guardian
05/06/2007
The equivalent of 2,000 primary schools and 250 secondaries are lying empty in England because of a rise in the number of unfilled places, despite concerns that thousands of parents are struggling to find a good school.
Call for controls on school fingerprinting
The Guardian
04/06/2007
The government was criticised today for not setting clear guidelines for fingerprinting pupils after figures showed that nearly 300 schools in England were using some form of biometric system.
Fee-fixing fines to fund student grants
The Times
01/06/2007
Up to 40,000 privately educated students can apply for grants of up to GBP 1,500 in a payback over the public schools price-fixing scandal. In 2006, 50 independent schools were found guilty of operating a fee-fixing cartel and ordered to pay penalties totalling GBP 3.5 million. Students must have been pupils at one of the schools after September 2001 and be engaged in further education to apply for grants under the Schools Competition Act Settlement Trust. Further details are available from http://www.scast.org.uk
New search power to keep schools safe
DfES Press Release
31/05/2007
Teachers now have the power to search pupils for knives and offensive weapons without consent as part of the Government's drive to ensure schools continue to be safe and secure places to learn.
