What will it take to meet the government’s ambition for 90% of pupils to achieve the expected standard in Year 1 phonics?
80% of pupils currently achieve the phonics standard by the end of Year 1. We look at how challenging it will be to reach 90%.
Has gender balance in A-Level physics improved?
We look at whether A-Level physics is becoming more popular with female students.
Making sense of school performance data in 2025
This year's published secondary school performance data shows why Progress 8 (or something like it) is needed, despite its flaws
How many pupils really are severely absent?
Is it right to say that there were over 170 thousand children who were severely absent in 2023/24?
What will be the impact of the Curriculum and Assessment Review on subject take-up at Key Stage 4?
With the publication of the Curriculum and Assessment Review imminent, we look at the extent to which schools offer different subjects at Key Stage 4, and how entry patterns have been changing in the last few years
Why does England lose so many promising young mathematicians from disadvantaged socio-economic backgrounds?
A look at the leaky pipeline for pupils who show potential in maths at age eleven but don't go on to pursue the subject.
How many pupils resit English and maths?
Although it is a requirement that pupils who do not achieve grade 4 in English (or maths) at GCSE continue to study English (or maths) post-16 by no means all of them enter a qualification.
Is the start of term critical for tackling persistent absence?
Absence at the start of term is no more predictive of persistent absence than at any other time of year.
The pupils who leave school without passes in GCSE English and mathematics
Post-COVID there has been a rise in the percentage of pupils leaving school without a pass (9-1) in GCSE English and a similar figure in maths. Most of these pupils were not entered for examinations.