Newsround

What’s been in the news lately?

• The GMB Union report that “since May 2010, a total of 215 school playing fields have been flogged across the country.”
• The BBC report that a head teacher has said she will have to cut school hours from next term to save money.
• The government is consulting on plans to launch a new register of children in England who are being educated at home.
• Ghanaian teacher Sackey Percy encourages his students to dance in order to break down barriers and forge closer relationships. Watch his video here.
• Mark Simmons, assistant commissioner of London’s Metropolitan Police, says pupils should be stopped and searched in schools in areas with knife crime problems.
• Emily Coxhead is the creator of the Happy Newspaper which includes only positive news stories. Her publication, which subscribers get every three months.

• The State of Play – a review of music education in England 2019 by the Musicians’ Union tells us that music education is in crisis. Here are some of its key recommendations:

* Music must remain a core part of the national curriculum. The principle of a music education built upon the interrelated processes of performing, composing, listening, reviewing, and evaluating must be maintained.
* Schools not offering music as part of the national curriculum should be held to account.
* Schools should not be classified as outstanding by OFSTED unless they offer a broad and balanced curriculum, including a music and arts programme.

Primary schools that do not provide the leadership for music education, the timetabled space, or resources should be challenged by OFSTED and steps taken to improve their students’ access and entitlement to a high-quality music education.