Yvonne Williams

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Articles

It's time all exam marking came with annotations

Oct 16, 2024 | tes.com | Yvonne Williams

Certainly, as a recent piece for Tes noted, an exam mark can be changed only if a challenge is made - and the fact that so many are not challenged means the scale of the issue is unclear. But even the process of requesting a script to see how and why a grade was given opens up another overlooked aspect of exams - the lack of a clear expectation for markers to annotate students’ exam papers.
Teachers want to influence education policy - so why ignore them?

Oct 2, 2024 | tes.com | Yvonne Williams

The latest report on the working lives of teachers and leaders, which found that most have lower wellbeing than the wider adult population, makes for depressing reading. It is perhaps not surprising, though. It’s been 10 years since the Workload Challenge attempted to battle teachers’ excessive workload - yet clearly little has changed, considering that 80 per cent of teachers leaving the state sector now cite this as a reason.
Reading lessons: the books we read at school, the conversations they spark and why they matter

Sep 19, 2024 | tandfonline.com | Carol Atherton |Yvonne Williams

Advanced search English in Education Research Journal of the National Association for the Teaching of English Latest Articles Submit an article Journal homepage Full Article Figures & data References Citations Metrics Reprints & Permissions Read this article /doi/full/10.1080/04250494.2024.2398901?needAccess=true Click to increase image sizeClick to decrease image size Disclosure statement No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s). Log in via your institution Access...
Exam results: What to do if you think part of an exam paper not marked

Aug 5, 2024 | tes.com | Yvonne Williams

For most students, A-level or GCSE results day is a celebration of their achievements. But, as every subject leader knows, there are those baffling grades that fall short of their - and your - expectations. These require immediate investigation and further action - especially when university places are at stake. This will often lead to a review of marking and all that entails.
Exam grade appeals: Ofqual must reform the system

Jan 11, 2024 | tes.com | Yvonne Williams

While much of the focus of the new year has been on the new Ofsted chief inspector Sir Martyn Oliver, it is worth noting that there is also a new team at Ofqual - chair Frances Wadsworth and chief regulator Sir Ian Bauckham. While they will have many new projects to tackle - such as the rise in online assessments that examining bodies want to introduce - the issue of inconsistent and inaccurate marking that still affects our assessment system will hopefully be on their radar too.
Migraines: Staff need support, not sanctions

Sep 20, 2023 | tes.com | Yvonne Williams

The resignation of levelling-up minister Dehenna Davison owing to chronic migraines is a powerful example of how unbearable this condition can be. I know from experience what migraines can be like. Mine were linked to hormones, so I suffered one headache a month, sometimes two. They could last three to five days, during which time I ate very little but tried to remain hydrated.
GCSE and A-level results days: A guide for school heads of department

Aug 15, 2023 | tes.com | Yvonne Williams

As A-level and GCSE results days loom, subject leaders are preparing themselves for more difficult outcomes than usual as students await results that we know will be down on the past three years. This will make for a tricky day perhaps, not least with any students whose expectations exceed their likely result or those who fall just short of a required grade and face an anxious wait on a university place.
Tackling the teacher retention crisis: how could we change teacher pay and career paths?

Jul 20, 2023 | tes.com | Yvonne Williams

Last week we learned about a number of possible strategies to address the crisis in teacher retention and recruitment.
Where is the policy to retain the ‘forgotten middle’ teachers?

Jul 8, 2023 | tes.com | Yvonne Williams

Labour’s confidence that it can recruit more teachers and retain more is seriously misplaced if the only things it has to offer are more training and a strategy of paying a bonus of £2,400 to teachers who have completed the Early Career Framework. Quite rightly, the Chartered College for Teaching has called for plans to retain teachers at other stages of their careers.
Teacher workload: Why we should reconsider 1,256-hour rule

Jun 19, 2023 | tes.com | Yvonne Williams

As teacher recruitment and retention rates reach alarming levels, much is being made of how the sector can boost both areas through more flexible working. Unfortunately, the ability to work flexibly will only get you so far if, when you return to school from a day off in term time or from doing some planning, preparation and assessment at home, you face an insurmountable mountain of work. Workload remains a thorn in the side of education, yet there has been no effective resolution.