In the news

Ofsted

ASCL featured strongly in the coverage of the new Ofsted framework in mid June, with comment in the Independent, Guardian, Yorkshire Post and Daily Telegraph and John Dunford appearing on BBC News 24 and Radio 5's Breakfast programme. John said: "I am extremely concerned that Ofsted is again raising the bar and making it harder to get good and outstanding grades. It's like telling athletes running a four minute mile that they need to do a mile and quarter in the same time.

"The increased emphasis on raw results will make it more difficult for schools in challenging circumstances. Inspection has always been disproportionately stacked against these schools and this will make their tough job even harder."

California dreaming

John Dunford was on Radio 4's Today programme on 9 June explaining why Arnold Schwarzenegger's plan to get rid of textbooks in California is a bad idea. Brian Lightman made the same points on BBC's Good Evening Wales.

KS2 tests

The Conservative Party stepped into the debate on Key Stage 2 assessment by suggesting that national tests could be carried out by secondary schools at the beginning of year 7.

In the Daily Telegraph, John Dunford was quoted as saying: "The Conservative idea has merit in removing some of the problems from year 6 of primary school and may make the transition to secondary school smoother.

"However, the administration and marking of the tests would produce considerable additional workload for secondary schools, which are already feeling burdened by the weight of other initiatives."

ASCL was also quoted in the Times, Financial Times and SecEd.