Longer school year pros and cons

Donald Trump is still scheduled to speak at an NRA meeting in Houston, Texas, just days after a mass shooting in the state left 19 children and two adults dead. The former president is set to join fellow Republicans , including Texas Governor Greg Abbott , Senator Ted Cruz , and Congressman Dan Crenshaw, at the annual NRA Institute for Legislative Action Leadership Forum over the weekend. The pro-gun lobbyist group is still intending on holding on the meeting at the George R. Brown Convention Center from Friday to Sunday, despite the massacre at the Robb Elementary School in Uvalde. Michael Heckman, CEO of Houston First, the government corporation that oversees the convention center, said he was not aware of any plans to cancel the event or change the schedule in the wake of the school shooting. "From entertainment to special events, it's all happening in Houston over Memorial Day weekend," the NRA's website detailing the event states. "Make plans now to join fellow … [Read more...] about Donald Trump to speak at Texas NRA meeting 3 days after school shooting

SNP MP tears into 'little Englanders' in Union flag fury Sign up for our news briefing, including a daily special Russia-Ukraine edition SUBSCRIBE Invalid email We use your sign-up to provide content in ways you've consented to and to improve our understanding of you. This may include adverts from us and 3rd parties based on our understanding. You can unsubscribe at any time. More info A leading education expert described the factsheets as “seriously misleading”. The booklet was designed for S1 pupils and contains 16 photos of Scotland’s first minister and other SNP politicians. It even includes illustrations of two completed ballot papers, each with the boxes ticked for pro- independence parties. Related articles Nicola Sturgeon warned over 'risky' second referendum court battle Ian Blackford: How much is the SNP Commons Leader worth? Meanwhile, the booklet features just one picture of Labour MSP Monica … [Read more...] about ‘Outrageous!’ Pro-independence ‘propaganda’ circulates in Scottish school factsheets

Primary school was easy for my daughter Emily* – she was outgoing, sociable, and loved her drama classes. Secondary school started well too: new friends, good grades. She seemed positive, and I couldn’t have been prouder. Then, in Year 8 – when she was 12 – things started going wrong. First came the odd detention. Then there were repeated warnings in class, calls home, and meetings about her behaviour. It was things like not listening, talking in class, ignoring warnings. I didn’t understand then that much of this was her trying to save face when she didn’t understand something. This was all pre-pandemic. Emily was going to school, but she was finding it increasingly difficult. She couldn’t explain why. I tried to talk about it but she would react aggressively or become silent and down. She just said she hated school. We stumbled on until the first lockdown and school closure in March 2020. At home, Emily became withdrawn. She was engaging less with friends. She … [Read more...] about My 13-year-old daughter refused to go to school after lockdown ended

By Bethan Lewis Published 4 hours ago Share close Share page Copy link About sharing Fines for parents of children who miss school should be used with caution, the children's commissioner has said. Rocio Cifuentes said it had been a difficult time due to Covid and some children would need support going back. Education Minister Jeremy Miles said fixed penalty notices could be issued in "the most extreme cases" after they were discouraged when the pandemic hit. It comes as part of a "step up" in messaging about the importance of going to school amid concern over absences. Truancy fines for parents to return in Wales Longer school day: Wales pupils learn new skills One head teacher said children needed to be in school to "achieve, do well and be supported". At Mary Immaculate High School in Cardiff, the attendance at the moment is about 90% - in line with the … [Read more...] about Schools: Caution urged on fines for children’s absences

Boris Johnson has been urged to bring back grammar schools under a new campaign by Tory MPs to “level up” education. The MPs - led by Jonathan Gullis, a former teacher - are demanding that the Prime Minister lifts the current ban on new free schools being selective , to enable grammar education to spread out of its strongholds in London and the south-east of England. Mr Gullis, MP for Stoke on Trent , said wealthy areas of the country have a monopoly on selective education, denying its benefits to children in more disadvantaged areas. Half of the country’s 163 grammar schools are in the south-east or London. He said this had been “codified” in a white paper by Nadhim Zahawi, the Education Secretary, which had only committed to “protecting” grammar schools, rather than expanding them. Some 200 Tory MPs - more than half the parliamentary party - are thought likely to back such a demand, according to grammar school campaigners. They said it was “absurd” for a Conservative … [Read more...] about Bring back grammar schools, Tory MPs urge Boris Johnson

In the wake of the mass shooting at an elementary school in Texas, a number of Republicans have suggested that the best way to prevent such tragedies occurring is to make it harder for gunmen to attack a school, rather than implement stricter gun control laws . On Tuesday, Salvador Ramos opened fire at the Robb Elementary School in Uvalde, killing 19 children and two adults. Ramos carried out the attack after legally purchasing two assault rifles soon after his 18th birthday under a new law Texas passed in September. The massacre, the deadliest school shooting since the 2012 Sandy Hook shooting in Newton, Connecticut which left 20 children and six adults dead, once again raised the debate around gun laws in the only country in the world where mass school shootings occur so regularly. However, a number of Texas officials have dismissed the idea that any kind of gun restriction in response to the shooting is needed, and instead argued that the best solution is to try take … [Read more...] about Republicans have a new answer to school shootings: “Harden these targets”

Teddington School, the scene of the incident (Image: Google ) Sign up for our news briefing, including a daily special Russia-Ukraine edition SUBSCRIBE Invalid email We use your sign-up to provide content in ways you've consented to and to improve our understanding of you. This may include adverts from us and 3rd parties based on our understanding. You can unsubscribe at any time. More info The shocking incident occurred outside Teddington School in Richmond upon Thames just after midday on Tuesday. Police officers rushed to the scene on Broom Road following reports that a teen boy had been stabbed. Early reports suggest the child was a Year-11 pupil at the school. Related articles Man detained over fatal stabbing as victim named and pictured Bristol horror: 14 vehicles set on fire in 'deliberate' arson rampage The teenage student was found with knife wounds outside the school gates upon officers arriving at the scene. Police … [Read more...] about Parents panic after boy stabbed at school gates in broad daylight attack in affluent area

CHILLING new details surrounding a suspected school shooter have surfaced including his alleged motive for massacring four teenagers. Ethan Crumbley , 15, wrote in his journal he hoped the shooting would get Joe Biden impeached, prosecutors told a court. The teen allegedly used Trump's "sleepy" nickname for Biden and chillingly predicted his massacre would be so big the president would have to apologize, the Detroit Free Press reported. Crumbley has been charged with four counts of murder following the shooting at Oxford High School, Michigan, in November 2021. The teen’s parents James and Jennifer are also facing involuntary manslaughter charges. Defense lawyers Shannon Smith and Mariell Lehman said Crumbley’s parents shouldn’t be found guilty or not guilty based on the political opinions of jurors. read more on ethan crumbley SHOCK PLAN Ethan Crumbley's book with 'shooting plan' found in school bathroom after attack … [Read more...] about Chilling new details surface about ‘school shooter’ Ethan Crumbley after his ‘secret motive for killing four’ emerges

FOUR years on from the devastating Parkland massacre, parents of students slain in the tragedy have recounted for The Sun the horrific moment they learned their children wouldn't be coming home. On Valentine's Day, 2018, 14 students and three faculty members at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School were murdered when a gunman armed with an AR-15 walked onto campus and opened fire inside a hallway. The culprit, later identified to be 19-year-old Nikolas Cruz, arrived at MSD's Parkland, Florida, campus via an Uber at 2.19pm, twenty-one minutes before classes were due to end for the day. A security worker noticed Cruz and radioed a colleague to report that he was walking "purposefully" towards Building 12. However, they made no attempt to pursue the suspect or declare a "Code Red", which would've initiated an immediate lockdown of the school. Cruz, a troubled teen who had been expelled from MSD two years earlier, entered the campus through an unmanned security gate, clutching a … [Read more...] about Parkland parents recount horrifying moment they learned kids weren’t coming home from school after massacre killed 17

While students across the country welcome the coming of summer, many public schools face the harsh reality that student enrollment has sharply declined and doesn’t appear to be returning to pre-pandemic numbers. Some schools are even reaching a financial crisis point. According to a recent national survey tracking such numbers since 2020, public schools in the U.S. have lost more than 1.2 million students. There are around 50 million students in the public school system across the country, so that’s about a 2% drop. This is everywhere, but if anything, the trend is concentrated in major urban areas. For example, the Los Angeles Unified School District ’s noncharter schools saw around 43,000 students leave over the past two academic years, and enrollment in Chicago schools has dropped by about 25,000 in that same time. Over the past two years, New York City has seen around 50,000 students leave the public school system. However, cities aren’t the only places … [Read more...] about More Than 1.2 Million Students Left Public Schools Since Pandemic: Report | The Daily Wire