Read on Twitter
Interesting that when concerns were raised for a decade that real term budget cuts and costs of marketisation were leading to larger class sizes the gov told us class sizes didn't make a difference to outcomes, and TA cuts wouldnt have an impact
1/
#edutwitter #r4today https://twitter.com/SchoolsWeek/status/1273752604955328514
1/
#edutwitter #r4today https://twitter.com/SchoolsWeek/status/1273752604955328514
However now they are saying that working in small groups is the way to close the Covid attainment gap.
Also interesting that there is £350m to subsidize tutoring, so sounds like schools will have to use their additional funding to pay £12 an hour for these sessions.
2/
Also interesting that there is £350m to subsidize tutoring, so sounds like schools will have to use their additional funding to pay £12 an hour for these sessions.
2/
£12 per hour is more than a TAs average hourly wage. I also know that one of the tutoring companies that has been lobbying government for this for weeks has been recruiting volunteers for their tutoring service. So why is gov being charged £48 per hour?
3/
3/
They were pushing this for quite some time. At the same time as asking for money from government they the EEF were the ones that created the quote that 'a decade of gains for the most disadvantaged have been wiped out' in 6 weeks.
4/ https://schoolsweek.co.uk/charities-in-talks-with-ministers-over-tuition-pilot/
4/ https://schoolsweek.co.uk/charities-in-talks-with-ministers-over-tuition-pilot/
With real terms funding cuts of £14b the extra money for education will be appreciated, however early years and FE are not included, and SEND parents are concerned they might not get the support they havent been receiving for years, Heads need profesional freedom to spend this
5/
5/
So the devil will be in the details, let's hope their hands aren't tied. I suspect a portion of the money will be ring fenced for spending on these subsidized tutoring sessions.
Although there are good tutors, students and volunteers arent the same as trained specialists.
6/
Although there are good tutors, students and volunteers arent the same as trained specialists.
6/
Interesting the groups that are involved in lobbying and organising this initiative.
Lots of charities funded by private equity. For instance the EEF was set up by Gove with government money
7/
Lots of charities funded by private equity. For instance the EEF was set up by Gove with government money
7/
EEF have been described as a charity in little more than name, bringing in big government grants for essentially conservative education policies, selling programmes to schools targeted at the disadvantaged
8/
8/
Challenge the Gap has been shown to show no noticeable impact on student outcomes. However I have seen them being quoted quite a lot lately as advising gov on most effective methods
9/ https://www.beib.org.uk/2017/08/evaluation-challenge-gap/
9/ https://www.beib.org.uk/2017/08/evaluation-challenge-gap/
So it looks like it £350m will go to the tutoring companies and then a slice of the additional funding will then go to buying the tutoring, so that might be another £80-£90million going to the tutoring companies, with the subsidies being reduced in later years.
10/
10/
Is it just me or does this feel like rather than investing in permanent qualified professional staff, reducing class size and workload the crisis is being used as a way of a few chosen suppliers to expand and corner the market on tutoring long term?
11/
11/
Oh look, they are cutting the current catch up premium, for schools in the most disadvantaged areas this can be around £25k a year. Many schools will use this to pay for a specialist support staff member, so theyre diverting money to pay for their tutoring scheme
12/
12/
Impetus are another group involved in lobbying the gov for the tutoring scheme they will be involved in
13/
13/
Let's take a look at those private equity firms KKR, $558b in investments through strategic partnerships with hedge funds
14/
14/
There's some books about how KKR operates with some interesting titles
15/
15/
Terra Firma the other company responsible for the private equity that went into Impetus
16/
16/
Impetus created with Goves initiative that is the EEF the WWC and then got £200m to run the DfEs WWC youth offending prevention programme.
As with the tutoring scheme, whatever happened to the idea of a tendering process?
17/
As with the tutoring scheme, whatever happened to the idea of a tendering process?
17/
Fascinating, when Unions ask for more funding to prevent staff redundancies (since 2012 theres been 15k support staff job losses,many will have supported the most vulnerable and disadvantaged in small groups) we get ignored or accused of scaremongering/playing politics
18/
18/
Yet charities set up by hedge funds/private equity etc seem to get cosy conversations with government that see £100s of millions released to them with almost no scrutiny. Schools and teachers get excessive accountability measures forcing more staff out, while these
19/
19/
Initiatives seem to not have regular review periods with tangible targets to consider if they provide value for funding compared to just investing back into essential services with proven track records ike CAHMS, Sure Start or just more staff in schools.
20/
20/
Will the £650b be distributed evenly? If so then when combined with the cuts to the Year 7 grant it will see schools in more affluent areas gain more funding. The govs proposed funding formulae is already set to deepen the divide
21/
21/
