The Centre for Education and Youth

📢 Our letter to the Chancellor Recent interventions are welcome, such as the Child Poverty Taskforce which will make real and lasting change.     But as the Budget and Spending Review approaches, we have a vital opportunity to advocate for our young people. We are calling for additional funding for schools serving the most disadvantaged communities to drastically help every child fulfil their potential.    ✍️ View our letter from sector leaders and share to show your support for prioritising education and breaking down the barriers to opportunity: https://lnkd.in/eTuiPUmC Russell Hobby CBE, our CEO  Nick Harrison, CEO at The Sutton Trust  Lee Elliot-Major OBE, Professor of Social Mobility at University of Exeter  Sarah Atkinson CEO at The Social Mobility Foundation  Dame Alison Peacock DL, DLitt, CEO at Chartered College of Teaching  Graihagh Crawshaw-Sadler, CEO at Now Teach  Frank Norris MBE FCCT, Education and Skills Advisor to The Northern Powerhouse Partnership  Róisín Killick and Terry Boyce, Co-CEOs at The Centre for Education and Youth  Gina Cicerone, CEO at the Fair Education Alliance  Dan Lawes and Melisha John, Co-CEOs at My Life My Say  Kiran Gill, CEO and Founder at The Difference  Vanessa Longley, CEO at Chance UK

Last year CfEY worked with University of Warwick on a project for the Education Endowment Foundation (EEF) on Post-16 Resits in English and Maths. You can find the report here 👉 https://lnkd.in/dRMfN4jn For the next stage of the project, we are working with Warwick to try to connect the research with practice around resits, to look at the role of policy and the wider issues which need attention. To do this Warwick have launched a Policy Perspectives Survey. We're keen to hear from teachers and leaders working in schools and colleges who experience the resit policy firsthand. The consultation is very open-ended – you can provide as much or as little detail as you like. Whether you wish to share a quick thought, link to a report or blog post, or provide more in-depth responses, we welcome it all. Every contribution counts! Take the GCSE Resits Policy Perspectives Survey by clicking the link below 👇 https://lnkd.in/em9etN7a Thank you in advance for your valuable insights. Your input will help us map the current policy debates and contribute to our public report on the future of post-16 resits policy.

🗓️ Come join us at the Immersive Learning Festival! 🎭 Taking place across four days, this festival will be a valuable resource for stakeholders across education and creative arts to discover more about Punchdrunk Enrichment and their innovate approach to learning in primary schools. We will be presenting our field notes and findings on Monday 4th November along with researchers, academics, practitioners and creatives on the enjoyment and impact of immersive learning. Read more below and sign up using the QR code, or you can follow this link: 🖱️https://lnkd.in/eCrJqjWT We look forward to seeing you there 👋

📢 The enjoyment & impact of immersive learning 🎭 As creative education gets continually squeezed out of the curriculum, local arts organisations like Punchdrunk Enrichment are ensuring that students and teachers still get the opportunity to learn in the most engaging and imaginative ways. Over the past 3-4 years, they have rolled out their suite of immersive learning programmes across London; and after some thorough research evaluation, we are ready to present the findings and recommendations... That's what I'm going to be speaking about on Monday 4th November for The Centre for Education and Youth, alongside the practitioners, researchers and experts who have all contributed to immersive learning's impact. To all you educators, creatives, practitioners, arts advocates, facilitators, policymakers... if you're interested in joining us, please follow the link below to sign up and I look forward to seeing you there 🫵 📝 https://lnkd.in/eTK2PwRw

How has your local area shaped your life? We're looking for young people aged 16+ who live in Greater Manchester and want to make things better for other people in their community. Get paid to come along to a workshop this weekend and help shape change! More information below 👇

Single-word Ofsted judgments have finally been ditched. While many of us have anticipated this change for a while, it still feels like a significant moment. It marks the start of what, I hope, is a longer journey - away from the top-down, high-stakes, high-pressure era of accountability and towards a more collaborative and supportive approach. An approach that supports education professionals to learn from each other and develop new ways to ensure all children secure excellent outcomes, in all senses. We know from previous CfEY research on topics including social and emotional learning, oracy, and enrichment, that young people need much more than good exam results as they transition into adulthood, especially those who are most disadvantaged. Supporting schools to meet this breadth of need should be a core part of accountability reform.  Ofsted’s Big Listen consultation, published yesterday, gives an insight into what further changes are on the cards. The clear commitment to act on lessons learned through the consultation is promising and, for me, three areas in particular stand out: 1. The creation of an inspection framework for inclusion  2. The commitment to mental health training for all inspectors 3. The ongoing intention to improve the experience of inspections for practitioners, supporting them in tackling the challenges they face However, intentions are one thing. Tangible developments in this academic year, and how the perspectives of accountability system shift amongst practitioners, parents and young people, will really demonstrate whether improvements are being made. Ofsted needs to ensure that the inclusive approach taken during the Big Listen is sustained over time, as plans are translated into action. 

At The Centre for Education and Youth (CfEY), we're glad to see the government's decision to leave single-word Ofsted grades for schools behind. Here is a word from our Co-CEO Róisín Killick on the issue:

As students across the country collect 2024 GCSE results, news outlets are reporting that pass rates have fallen for the 3rd year running. The proportion of young people achieving grade 4 and above in English and maths is down, meaning more will need to continue studying the subjects. There has been a marked drop in the pass rate for English language in particular, mostly driven by results of candidates aged 17+ who were already resitting the qualification. Gaining a ‘good’ pass in GCSE English and maths is widely viewed as crucial in supporting young people’s academic/career opportunities and future life outcomes. Those who don't manage grade 4 are required to either resit or take another recognised qualification. In 2022-23, as a response to the lack of evidence around ‘what works’ to support GCSE resit practitioners and students, CfEY worked with the University of Warwick to carry out a practice review for the Education Endowment Foundation (EEF). This brought together literature and fieldwork with practitioners and young people to identify challenges and areas for improvement. We found a need for more post-16 interventions which consider the impact of contextual and practical factors that both young people and the sector are facing. For example, 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗮𝗯𝗶𝗹𝗶𝘁𝘆 𝗼𝗳 𝗙𝗘 𝗶𝗻𝘀𝘁𝗶𝘁𝘂𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻𝘀 𝘁𝗼 𝗿𝗲𝗰𝗿𝘂𝗶𝘁, 𝗿𝗲𝘁𝗮𝗶𝗻 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗱𝗲𝘃𝗲𝗹𝗼𝗽 𝗮 𝗵𝗶𝗴𝗵𝗹𝘆 𝘀𝗸𝗶𝗹𝗹𝗲𝗱 𝘄𝗼𝗿𝗸𝗳𝗼𝗿𝗰𝗲 𝘄𝗮𝘀 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗯𝗶𝗴𝗴𝗲𝘀𝘁 𝗯𝗮𝗿𝗿𝗶𝗲𝗿 𝘁𝗼 𝗲𝗻𝘀𝘂𝗿𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘁𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝘀𝘁𝘂𝗱𝗲𝗻𝘁𝘀 𝗿𝗲𝗰𝗲𝗶𝘃𝗲 𝗵𝗶𝗴𝗵-𝗾𝘂𝗮𝗹𝗶𝘁𝘆 𝘁𝗲𝗮𝗰𝗵𝗶𝗻𝗴. Good CPD was seen by many interviewees as vital in bridging this gap. The review also pointed to the need for more support for students with adverse prior experiences of learning. 𝗦𝘂𝗰𝗰𝗲𝘀𝘀 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝗽𝗼𝘀𝘁-𝟭𝟲 𝗿𝗲𝘀𝗶𝘁𝘀, 𝗽𝗲𝗿𝗵𝗮𝗽𝘀 𝘁𝗼 𝗮 𝗴𝗿𝗲𝗮𝘁𝗲𝗿 𝗱𝗲𝗴𝗿𝗲𝗲 𝘁𝗵𝗮𝗻 𝗶𝗻 𝗞𝗦𝟰 𝘁𝗲𝗮𝗰𝗵𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗹𝗲𝗮𝗿𝗻𝗶𝗻𝗴, 𝗿𝗲𝗾𝘂𝗶𝗿𝗲𝘀 𝗲𝗳𝗳𝗲𝗰𝘁𝗶𝘃𝗲 𝗶𝗻𝘁𝗲𝗴𝗿𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝗼𝗳 𝗯𝗼𝘁𝗵 𝗮𝗰𝗮𝗱𝗲𝗺𝗶𝗰 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝘀𝗼𝗰𝗶𝗼-𝗲𝗺𝗼𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻𝗮𝗹 𝗮𝗽𝗽𝗿𝗼𝗮𝗰𝗵𝗲𝘀. The report made recommendations in 3 areas: 1. 𝗠𝗼𝗿𝗲 𝗿𝗲𝘀𝗲𝗮𝗿𝗰𝗵 to better understand the context and conditions of teaching and learning for lower-attaining post-16 students, including looking at how to create more effective transitions from secondary school. 2. 𝗜𝗻𝘁𝗲𝗿𝘃𝗲𝗻𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝗱𝗲𝘃𝗲𝗹𝗼𝗽𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁𝘀 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝘁𝗿𝗶𝗮𝗹𝘀 to generate a more robust evidence base about the impact of particular practices and interventions, including collaborative, place-based approaches. 3. 𝗦𝘂𝗽𝗽𝗼𝗿𝘁 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗿𝗲𝘀𝗼𝘂𝗿𝗰𝗲𝘀 to improve the generation and use of evidence among post-16 practitioners and institutions, including support to extend and adapt the EEF teaching and learning toolkit for a post-16 context. 𝗬𝗼𝘂 𝗰𝗮𝗻 𝗿𝗲𝗮𝗱 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗳𝘂𝗹𝗹 𝗿𝗲𝗽𝗼𝗿𝘁 𝗵𝗲𝗿𝗲 👇 If you're interested in further research into GCSE exams/resits do get in touch on [email protected] ✉ https://lnkd.in/dRMfN4jn

Exam results days can feel like the be all and end all when you've been working hard for a long time, but they're really just one step on a lifelong journey 👣 If you're getting A-Level, T-Level or BTEC results today and they haven't quite turned out how you hoped - don't panic! There are so many positive options out there for you, you don't have to have it all worked out 🙂 If you or someone you care about is feeling unsure about what to do next, check out this super helpful BBC News guide, which has info on lots of different pathways to try out. You can also find some handy advice from The Centre for Education and Youth's Abi Angus on getting into Youth Social Action, which can be a great way to figure out what you really enjoy doing and further develop your skills. Check it out here: https://bit.ly/4fJITh4

Exam results days can feel like the be all and end all when you've been working hard for a long time, but they're really just one step on a lifelong journey 👣 If you're getting A-Level, T-Level or BTEC results today and they haven't quite turned out how you hoped - don't panic! There are so many positive options out there for you, you don't have to have it all worked out 🙂 If you or someone you care about is feeling unsure about what to do next, check out this super helpful BBC News guide, which has info on lots of different pathways to try out. You can also find some handy advice from The Centre for Education and Youth's Abi Angus on getting into Youth Social Action, which can be a great way to figure out what you really enjoy doing and further develop your skills. Check it out here: https://bit.ly/4fJITh4