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Education News

• Phillipson accuses lawyers of exploiting parents of children with special needs March 13, 2026
  Education secretary claims lawyers’ criticisms of her department’s policy changes are motivated by profitLawyers have been accused of exploiting parents of children with special needs by the education secretary, Bridget Phillipson, who said their criticisms of the government’s policy changes were motivated by profit.Speaking at the Association of School and College Leaders (ASCL) annual conference, […]
  Richard Adams Education editor
• ‘It’s like a giant book club’: how schools are getting children excited about reading again March 13, 2026
  In the National Year of Reading, teachers say a culture of enthusiasm, from dress-up days, story time and book clubs, can reverse a national declineAjmal, 7, is an avid fan of the InvestiGators comic books. They feature two crime-busting alligator secret agents called Mango and Brash. “It’s really funny,” he says, then outlines the plot […]
  Sally Weale Education correspondent
• AI toys for young children must be more tightly regulated, say researchers March 13, 2026
  University of Cambridge study finds AI-powered toys can misread emotions and respond inappropriately to childrenIt was all going well. Charlotte, five, was chatting with an AI soft toy called Gabbo at a London play centre about her family, her drawing of a heart to represent them and what makes her happy. She even offered a […]
  Robert Booth UK technology editor
• Short tempers and legal threats: UK teachers report rise in problem parents March 13, 2026
  Rudeness, social media posts and AI-generated complaints among issues harming staff wellbeing, union survey findsTeachers are used to outbreaks of rudeness and defiance from their pupils, but are now saying parents are some of the worst offenders and affecting staff mental health, according to a headteachers’ union.More than 90% of headteachers and other senior leaders […]
  Richard Adams Education editor
• MPs launch student loans inquiry amid ‘perfect storm’ for young people in UK March 12, 2026
  Influential Treasury committee chair Meg Hillier says review follows growing concern over graduate debtUK firms struggling to hire young people amid cost pressures, MPs toldYoung adults in the UK face a “perfect storm” of economic challenges, the head of the influential Treasury select committee has warned as it launches an inquiry into student loans.The cross-party […]
  Heather Stewart
• ‘I wish I could push ChatGPT off a cliff’: professors scramble to save critical thinking in an age of AI March 10, 2026
  As AI has upended the way students learn, academics worry about the future of the humanities – and society at largeLea Pao, a professor of literature at Stanford University, has been experimenting with ways to get her students to learn offline. She has them memorize poems, perform at recitation events, look at art in the […]
  Alice Speri
• ‘Charismatic and extremely confident’: how to recognise – and handle – a psychopath March 10, 2026
  Psychologist Leanne ten Brinke has spent decades studying toxic personality traits. What are the red flags to look out for among workmates, politicians and potential partners?Coming face to face with a probable psychopath was enough to make Dr Leanne ten Brinke rethink her career choices. Early in her 20s, while studying forensic psychology in Halifax, […]
  Emine Saner
• The Guardian view on schools: Send reforms aside, the government’s white paper lacks focus | Editorial March 2, 2026
  Plans to resurrect the children’s services decimated by austerity are appealing. But schools also need attentionHeavily trailed reforms to special educational needs and disabilities (Send) education dominated coverage of last week’s schools white paper. But Bridget Phillipson’s policy of in-sourcing special provision, creating a new tier of support and making mainstream settings more inclusive, is […]
  Editorial