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The chief inspector of Ofsted, England’s schools regulator, has expressed concern over the “alarming” level of children being absent from school, stating that it has become a “stubborn and damaging issue”. Sir Martyn Oliver has also raised an issue with the rising trend of “flexi-schooling,” where parents conduct home education with their children for part of the week. However, it is not clear how many children are being taught in this manner. The Department for Education has reassured that it is making education a priority once again by launching a series of initiatives in that regard.
According to the Ofsted annual report, attendance issues have intensified since the pandemic outbreak. It further stated that approximately 158,000 children missed at least 50% of their scheduled classes during the autumn and spring terms of the previous academic year, citing the most current information from the Department for Education. The report also highlights that certain regions like Knowsley, Blackpool, and Bradford listed a high percentage of pupils regarded as persistently absent.
The report from Ofsted has also raised the issue of education becoming “fractured and fragmented” for several children. It discovered that a “small number of schools” allow children to be flexi-schooled, but it’s not clear how many students this applies to since it is often noted as an authorized absence. The report stated that a hybrid model of education is slowly becoming more popular among children with ‘Special Educational Needs and Disabilities (SEND), or those with behavioral or health needs.
Although many home-educated kids receive a good education, the report emphasizes that they are still part of a significant number who have “been opted out of more orthodox patterns of education.” In this regard, Julian Frances, a parent from north London, expressed concerns about the narrow-minded curriculums, which limit his daughter’s qualifications.
Education Secretary, Bridget Phillipson, recently announced £740m to increase the number of places for pupils with SEND in mainstream schools. On BBC Radio 5 Live, she remarked: “We just need to look afresh at the system as it stands. Parents have lost confidence, the outcomes for children are not good, and sadly we are spending ever-rising amounts.
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