Emergency remote learning in the UK: A comparison of March 2020 and January 2021

The Covid-19 pandemic has severely impacted everyday life around the world. In the UK, lockdowns have resulted in the closure of schools to most children for two prolonged periods: March to summer...

Classical subjects in English schools: Confronting inequalities of access

Public enthusiasm for classics and ancient history is currently high thanks to a number of high-profile classicists on TV and radio: Mary Beard, Edith Hall, Natalie Haynes, Tom Holland and Bettany...

The new model music curriculum: A step far enough?

In the foreword to the new model music curriculum, schools minister Nick Gibb states that it ‘is designed to assist rather than to prescribe’ (DfE, 2021, p. 2). Notably, there is much detail...

The role of schools in the mental health of children & young people

This report presents a comprehensive review of the existing evidence on school-based approaches to mental health. It covers what is meant by mental health and wellbeing, and why this is...

Improving the connectivity of research on teaching assistants: Creating a new space for researchers

The international drive towards the inclusion of pupils with special educational needs (SEN) in mainstream schools has become contingent on the creation and utilisation of a paraprofessional...

The reawakening of the old idea of children doing AI programming

Artificial intelligence in educational research and practice

In the recently published British Journal of Educational Technology article, ‘Constructionism and AI: A history and possible futures’, Niall Winters and I examine the 50-year history of...

‘Why can’t I use this voucher?’ The impact of Covid-19 on access and (in)effective support of the school food voucher scheme

The Food Foundation (2020) has found since lockdown started that 5 million people in the UK living in households with children under 18 have experienced food insecurity. A minority (1.8 million)...

Identity building as a pathway to children and young people’s wellbeing in schools

For decades now, there has been a looming child and youth mental health crisis in many developed nations globally (WHO, 2020). Nations have varied in policy responses to the issue, but what many...

Towards developing an education continuity plan: Supporting schools in times of crisis

Education & Covid-19: BERA Small Grants Fund research reports

This report considers how educational continuity plans (ECPs) can better support schools in times of crisis, specifically from the perspective of headteachers, whose experiences, challenges and...

Environmental protest & education: ‘Something’s gone wrong somewhere’

According to the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, the combustion of fossil fuels is the main contributor to rising atmospheric carbon dioxide concentrations. Young people in England...

Editorial: Wellbeing and being outdoors

Over the past year, as we have been forced to slow down and restrict our activities because of the Covid-19 pandemic, it is has become apparent just how important it is for our health and...

A positive attitude isn’t enough: Finding a balance with assessment

Reasons for the incorporation of literature into second language/foreign language (L2/FL) curricula are abundant. The most salient rationale is the promotion of a more humanistic education that...