Daydream Believer - Does Success Really Demand Total Concentration in School?

Posted in: Cassidy's Comments on 26/05/2022 Research just published by Professor Teresa McCormack, Dr Agnieszka Graham and Jessica Cherry from QUB has said that daydreaming "can be reliably measured in children and is of educational significance". Their research carried out by the School of Psychology involved 97 children aged six to 11 year...

School Starting Age in Northern Ireland – Are We Out of Step with Best Practice Elsewhere?

Posted in: Cassidy's Comments on 15/03/2022 A bill which will allow parents more flexibility in deciding when their child starts school has been passed by the Northern Ireland Assembly. This follows a long campaign and subsequent consultation by The Department of Education which showed high levels of support for more flexibility in the schoo...

Where Would We Be Without Exams? New Arrangements for 2022 and Beyond

Posted in: Cassidy's Comments on 18/02/2022 The Chief Regulator of Ofqual, Dr Jo Saxton writing to school leaders on February 3rd, outlined her approach to how A Level and GCSE examinations should precede as we begin a third year of disrupted education for our young people. “It’s very clear to me that dealing with the impact of the pandemic ...

Should Discipline in our Schools be Stricter?

Posted in: Cassidy's Comments on 19/01/2022 During an interview on ITV’s flagship Good Morning show on January 10th Katharine Birbalsingh, Principal and founder of Michaela Community free school in North London defended her school’s very strict approach to discipline and called for parents to be more involved in pupil learning. She has face...

Social Media Abuse of School Staff by Pupils

Posted in: Cassidy's Comments on 13/12/2021 Recent news reports have revealed that schools across Northern Ireland have been targeted by bogus TikTok accounts in which pupils rate their teachers. Incidents have occurred where fake TikTok accounts for local schools were set up and then images posted of school staff with inappropriate comments...

Are School Uniforms Beyond their Sell-By-Date?

Posted in: Cassidy's Comments on 22/11/2021 The Children’s Society has reignited a debate about the value and role of school uniforms, as new statutory guidance is published by the Department for Education. These new directives will instruct schools in England to ensure their uniform is affordable. They will be expected to have taken steps t...

Placing Children In Schools – We Must Do Better

Posted in: Cassidy's Comments on 02/07/2021 We have all felt huge compassion for the plight of children who have not succeeded in getting into the school of their choice following the release of placements as a result of this year’s amended transfer process. Those involved in schools and education administration will have been well aware of ...

Avoiding the “Catch up Narrative” in Schools

Posted in: Cassidy's Comments on 19/03/2021 The Department of Education has issued guidance to schools to help deal with the issues of potential lost learning across the pupil population in Northern Ireland during the pandemic. It accepts the reality that the long-term effect of the current unprecedented disruption on learning is difficult ...

Education Recovery Plans - Time For A Rethink?

Posted in: Cassidy's Comments on 09/02/2021 There is a growing realisation that this pandemic has changed realities in the world of education. Previously untenable measures like remote learning have been introduced nationally and a radical adjustment to learning styles has had to take place, especially involving the role of technology and h...

“It’s My Party...” Young People and Effective Public Health Messaging

Posted in: Cassidy's Comments on 21/10/2020 The BBC have reported that The Principal of St Ronan’s College in Co Armagh, Ms Fiona Kane has written to parents to make them aware of a number of planned parties, including indoor house parties and other social gatherings potentially involving a number of their sixth form pupils. She wrote to the...