All posts tagged: schools

The book fueling a movement against screens in schools

The book fueling a movement against screens in schools

Published by Sam Flores

Parents hand out copies of the book at school board meetings. Administrators are relying on it for guidance on how to reduce the use of technology in their schools. Actor Hugh Grant promoted it and wrote a blurb for the cover. Subscribe to read this story ad-free Get unlimited access to ad-free articles and exclusive content. Practically overnight, Jared Cooney Horvath went from a relatively unknown educational consultant to the intellectual guide of a grassroots movement to limit screen time in schools, thanks to his self-published book “The Digital Delusion.” The book, which he released last December, ties the yearslong downward trend in standardized test scores among American children to the rise of schools giving every child a laptop or tablet. With citations to academic research, Horvath argues students learn better on paper and through discussion, and schools are harming children by sticking them behind a screen. Since releasing “The Digital Delusion,” Horvath has testified before the U.S. Senate and state legislatures as a growing number of states weigh screen time limits in schools. Local …

School’s out. But do children still need a strict bedtime during the summer?

School’s out. But do children still need a strict bedtime during the summer?

Published by Daniella Wilson

Get the Well Enough newsletter with Harry Bullmore for tips on living a healthier, happier and longer life Get the Well Enough email with Harry Bullmore Get the Well Enough email with Harry Bullmore School is finally out for many kids across the U.S. and the sun is up in the sky later and later. But doctors say that shouldn’t mean there’s no bedtime. Sleep is incredibly important for developing brains and bodies, and federal guidance says children aged 12 and below need 9-12 hours a night. Getting enough sleep also protects from the risk of developing chronic disease, suffering from mental illness and being injured. That’s why it’s crucial for kids participating in sports and other activities to have a bedtime even during the break, Cleveland Clinic sleep specialist Dr. Brian Chen said Friday. This way, parents will know their kids are getting the sleep they need. School’s out and it’s time for summer camps for kids across the U.S. Here’s why experts say you might not want to push their bedtime (Getty Images/iStock) …

The 25 Best Drama Schools in the World, 2026

The 25 Best Drama Schools in the World, 2026

Published by Daniella Wilson

Amid a changing arts environment, drama schools are continuing to evolve to meet the moment. That means adding more courses on how actors can create their own work (i.e., generate employment opportunities), how to prepare for the realities of AI as well as building into curriculums’ increased industry outreach to give students as many inroads to a career as possible. While the training remains stellar, students choosing schools also are increasingly considering the cost of an education and how much debt they’ll be carrying coming out of it, particularly with the ups and downs of an acting career. THR spoke with educators and industry insiders to determine their ranking of the best schools for an acting degree, while weighing overall training, cost, facilities, alumni success, industry connections and more. Please note: Tuition is listed on an annualized basis for the upcoming year and does not include housing and other fees. Juilliard NEW YORK Viola Davis, Jessica Chastain, Adam Driver, Danielle Brooks, Oscar Isaac and many more stars have trained at this prestigious institution in the …

UK needs to urgently install air conditioning in schools and care homes, climate campaigners say | Extreme heat

UK needs to urgently install air conditioning in schools and care homes, climate campaigners say | Extreme heat

Published by Jenni Sidey

As the country baked in record May temperatures, climate campaigners have said the UK government needs to urgently start installing air conditioning units in schools, care homes and places where vulnerable people live. In 2022, when temperatures spiked above 40C (104F), about 3,000 people in Britain died of causes associated with heat. Studies show air conditioning can cut heat related deaths by 75%. The world has warmed by about 1.5C relative to the preindustrial average, but Europe has warmed faster than any other continent. And the UK is ill-prepared; the majority of English homes overheat during the summer. The overheating of British homes is likely to become a political problem, with pressure mounting for ministers to act. People are taking matters into their own hands, with an estimated 4m homes in the UK now having air conditioning, double the figure from three years ago. Sam Alvis, associate director at the Institute for Public Policy Research, said: “Extreme weather is a growing political problem in the UK. As we’ve seen in Valencia, Los Angeles and elsewhere, …

Catholic academy trust expansion sparks warning over religious control of state schools – Humanists UK

Catholic academy trust expansion sparks warning over religious control of state schools – Humanists UK

Published by Sam Flores

Humanists UK has warned that the proposed expansion of large faith-based academy trusts, St Joseph Catholic Multi Academy Trust, risks entrenching religious control over state-funded education, after reports that a government-backed Catholic turnaround trust is set to become one of England’s largest.  Humanists UK said the case reflects a concern it has long raised: that academisation is opening the way for religious bodies to consolidate control over state-funded schools. In 2021, Humanists UK warned that government funding for Church academy trusts, including a Catholic ‘turnaround trust’, would extend religious influence across the school system. Expanding faith-based control of the school system risks increasing segregation of children on grounds of faith or belief, and undermines cohesion among pupils of different backgrounds. Furthermore, taxpayers’ money should not be used to fund trusts or schools that do so. The concern is especially acute in Liverpool, where Humanists UK has previously highlighted that the high proportion of religiously selective schools can leave non-religious and minority-faith families with little genuine access to inclusive local schools. In Liverpool almost 50% of …

More schools get condition improvement fund (CIF) cash

More schools get condition improvement fund (CIF) cash

Published by skeptic

More schools have been given a share of a £450 million pot for vital repairs, halting a six-year slide that saw the number of successful bidders more than halve. But government figures, published this morning, show one region received just 1 per cent of funding through the multi-million-pound capital programme, called the condition improvement fund (CIF). CIF is only available to standalone academies or trusts with fewer than five schools wanting to keep a building “safe and in good working order”. Larger academy chains and council schools get capital funding allocated automatically through a separate route. Here’s what you need to know about this year’s funding round… 1. More successful schools Overall, 684 schools were awarded CIF grants for 813 projects. The number of successful schools and applications were both up slightly on 12 months ago. This is the first time the figures have risen since 2020, when 1,685 schools were given cash for over 2,100 projects. The average amount awarded per project also dropped for the first time in years. It now stands at …

Parents Told To Send Letters To Schools To Get Kids’ Images Removed Online

Parents Told To Send Letters To Schools To Get Kids’ Images Removed Online

Published by Sam Flores

An online harms expert and therapist has urged parents to contact their children’s schools to get any images of them removed online. Catherine Knibbs shared earlier in the week that cyber criminals are taking photos of children from school websites and social media, and then manipulating them with AI to make child sexual abuse material (CSAM). Schools are then being blackmailed to send money to stop the images from being shared. “I’ve personally worked on cases like this as a child trauma and online harms expert – and the cases are sickening,” said Knibbs at the time. And she warned it’s not just photos uploaded to school websites that are at risk of being taken and manipulated, it’s family photos shared on social media, too. Her warning came after the National Crime Agency issued an alert in late April to hundreds of thouss of teachers over a “considerable increase” in financially motivated sexual extortion (sextortion). After her first video was viewed over six million times, Knibbs shared an update urging parents not to wait for …

More than a dozen arrested in France schools abuse scandal

More than a dozen arrested in France schools abuse scandal

Published by Sam Flores

The French capital has been shaken for over a year by a series of abuse cases involving staff at after-school programs. Now, 16 people have been arrested, suspected of physical and sexual assaults on children at one pre-school. But this is far from an isolated incident – Paris investigators have been looking into allegations at over 100 pre-schools and primary schools. Source link

New nurseries less likely to be in deprived schools

New nurseries less likely to be in deprived schools

Published by skeptic

Nurseries opened in empty classrooms under a government programme are less likely to be in more deprived schools than pre-existing provision, despite an aim to widen access in poorer areas. The school-based nurseries capital programme allows primary schools to bid for funding to repurpose disused space into early years provision. A report examining the programme, based on research by the Sutton Trust and the Social Market Foundation, was published today. It found the nurseries were around a third less likely to be in schools serving disadvantaged areas compared to pre-existing nurseries. This is despite the second phase of the project aiming to target those disadvantaged communities. Carl Cullinane, director of research and policy at the Sutton Trust, said the programme was “now facing a reality check”, and that “there’s still a mountain to climb in creating new places, and targeting them in the right areas”. He added that the government needed to provide more financial support and guidance to schools. The scheme also needs to be “far better targeted where it can make the most …

Lawsuit Accuses Massachusetts Schools of Segregating Students of Color in Low-Opportunity Districts

Lawsuit Accuses Massachusetts Schools of Segregating Students of Color in Low-Opportunity Districts

Published by Sam Flores

A lawsuit filed Wednesday on behalf of students and community organizations in Massachusetts argues the state is illegally maintaining schools that are racially segregated, concentrating Black and Latino students in high-poverty districts with fewer opportunities. The lawsuit challenges the state’s practice of assigning students to schools based solely on where they live, which can lead to patterns of housing segregation being replicated in school systems. The case is the latest example of efforts to address segregation and funding inequities through state-level litigation. Even before the Trump administration began taking steps to release districts in the Deep South from court-ordered desegregation efforts, integration efforts had fallen far from their peak decades ago when the federal government intervened in school systems around the U.S. The plaintiffs include nine students and four community organizations from segregated school districts across Massachusetts, including Springfield, Holyoke, Boston, Lawrence, Brockton, Lynn, and Worcester. The districts border more affluent, predominantly white districts where the plaintiffs are unable to enroll. In response to the lawsuit, the Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education said …