📘 Weekly Education Roundup for UK STEM Teachers
Dates Covered: 14th–20th May 2025
Curated by Voxscript
🧪 1. Behaviour, Safety, and Student Wellbeing in the Spotlight
🔪 Knife Crime in Schools: An Escalating Concern
Sky News highlights a worrying trend in pupil safety, with multiple stories revealing the prevalence of knife possession in schools and attacks on staff. A teacher who was stabbed during a lesson spoke out about the urgent need for systemic reform, as nearly one in five teachers report having witnessed a student with a knife.
➡️ Read the story
🚨 Pupils and Teachers Want Police Presence Back
Amid safety concerns, many schools lament the removal of specialist police officers, particularly in London. Staff and students expressed fear about increased violence.
➡️ More here
🧬 2. SEND and Inclusion: Funding Pressures and Parental Challenges
⚖️ Tribunal Fines Loom Over SEND Decisions
Schools Week reports that schools could now face fines for failing in SEND tribunals, raising the stakes on support provision.
➡️ Full report
📉 Disadvantaged Families Left Behind
Multiple outlets report growing concern around housing insecurity and childcare deserts, especially for vulnerable families. These challenges are tied to school-readiness and attainment outcomes.
➡️ Sky’s coverage
➡️ BBC: Britain's Nursery Problem
🧠 3. Mental Health and Behaviour Trends
😡 Teacher Abuse and Burnout
Sky News highlights that four in five headteachers experience abuse from pupils' parents, including physical attacks. Stress and mental health issues among school leaders are on the rise.
➡️ Survey findings
📉 Year 7 Engagement 'Dips'
TES and Schools Week both reported that pupil engagement sharply declines in Year 7, a transition period that seems under-supported.
➡️ TES: School engagement plummets
💷 4. Cost of Education and Inequality
💸 Hidden Costs in State Schooling
Sky News reveals that the cost of attending state school has risen by over £500 in just three years, excluding uniforms and activities.
➡️ Full story
🏫 Private School Fees Soar
BBC reports a 22% increase in private school fees, fuelling discussions on access and privilege.
➡️ BBC story
🧪 5. STEM Focus: Teaching Support and Experiments
🧪 Experiments that Work
TES published an excellent guide on how GCSE science experiments can enhance memory retention and revision quality.
➡️ Read article
🧰 Teaching Assistants: A Strategic Role
EEF released a timely update on effective deployment of teaching assistants, essential in practical STEM learning environments.
➡️ EEF guidance
🏗️ 6. Infrastructure and Digital Access
🧃 Breakfast Clubs Cut Corners
BBC and TES reported on breakfast clubs diluting juice and reducing fruit offerings due to funding shortages.
➡️ TES version
➡️ BBC version
🖥️ GCSE Results to Go Digital
In a government pilot, GCSE results will be released digitally, with implications for digital access and equity.
➡️ Read more
🏛️ 7. Policy and Leadership
📜 Ofsted Faces Legal Challenge
Sky News reports a legal battle against Ofsted’s proposed inspection changes, amid sector-wide resistance.
➡️ Sky’s coverage
🏛️ New MAT Merger and CEO Moves
TES and Schools Week covered a major MAT merger between Compass Partnership and Eko Trust, potentially forming a 25-school trust.
➡️ TES piece
➡️ Schools Week piece
🧭 Reflections for STEM Teachers
1. Engagement Strategies for Year 7 STEM Pupils
How might science or maths departments address the Year 7 engagement dip? Could bridging units or cross-curricular projects help?
2. TA Deployment in Labs
With EEF’s updated guidance, could your department restructure TA roles to better support hands-on science or computer science lessons?
3. Safety and Behaviour in Classrooms
How safe do your colleagues feel teaching practical subjects with equipment? What strategies are in place to de-escalate behavioural issues?
4. Digital Disparities in Results and Learning
With GCSEs going digital, how are you preparing students with limited home tech access? What contingency plans exist?