Goldsmiths, University of London, is to allow students to cite cases of racial trauma as having affected their studies, becoming the first UK university to recognise the damaging effects of racism on academic progress.

The move comes after a campaign by the university’s student union to include racial trauma in the categories of “serious life events” that require a student extra time for submitting coursework or assessments.

The warden of Goldsmiths, Frances Corner said: “This change relates to our extenuating circumstances policy, which enables students to ask us to take into account serious life events when assessing their progress with their studies.

“Self-certification for this kind of support is common at universities and students are entitled to proper support when the need arises.

“A student must submit a detailed statement which is carefully considered by academic departments, who then decide an appropriate response.

“Applications are considered on a case-by-case basis, with the college committed to providing the best possible support to each of our students.”

Goldsmiths’ student union said the move was “great news and a step in the right direction”, and was the result of campaigning by the union’s officers.

The college said that its academic board has “noted the intention to include racial trauma” as one of the examples of trauma for which students may apply as extenuating circumstances affecting their work.

Universities allow students to cite extenuating circumstances including personal trauma and mental health issues in applications to extend course deadlines or to delay or replace exams or other assessments.

Official data shows that the number of children in England receiving free school meals soared to more than 1.7 million, including more than 1 million aged between four and 11.

Figures from the annual school census show a rise from 1.44 million children, or 17.3% of all pupils, in January last year to 1.74 million, nearly 21%, in January this year.

More than 100,000 of the increase came between October and January, confirming the concerns of headteachers that schools would miss out on more than £100m in extra funding through the pupil premium because of the government’s decision to shift the cut-off date for eligibility.

The premium of about £1,000 per child is linked to the number of pupils on free school meals. The Department for Education (DfE) switched to using its October figures to determine pupil premium support rather than the January census, missing out 100,000 newly eligible pupils.

A senior economist at the National Foundation for Educational Research, Jenna Julius, said these latest statistics confirm that recent government changes to how pupil premium funding is allocated will leave many schools with less funding to support their low-income pupils from April of this year.

Pupils are eligible for free meals if their parents or carers are receiving universal credit with a household income of less than £7,400 a year, or receiving similar benefits.

General secretary of the Association of School and College Leaders, Geoff Barton, said the change in pupil premium dates was “nothing short of shameful”.

Barton said child poverty was already a terrible blight on the society prior to coronavirus. The situation is now even worse and tackling this issue simply has to be a top priority for the government.

The shadow minister for children, Tulip Siddiq said: “Thousands more families are reliant on free school meals to stop children going hungry, yet the Conservative government is offering food on just 16 of 30 weekdays this summer holiday.”

The DfE figures show considerable regional variation, with about one in four pupils on free school meals in the north-east and West Midlands, compared with fewer than one in six in the south-east.

The census showed a slight increase in the number of children at schools in England, now totalling 8.9 million, with rising numbers in secondary schools.

Separate figures on school admissions showed the number of applications for primary school places fell by 5% in the space of a year.

The DfE said several local authorities had advised that a larger than usual number of applications were submitted late and so were not included in the figures. Councils said some parents missed the deadline because it fell in January during the lockdown.

The pandemic may have led to more teachers staying on last year. The total number of teachers employed in state schools in England rose by 7,000 compared with 2019, to more than 460,000. The number leaving the profession fell by 17% to 34,000.

The state school workforce including support staff and teaching assistants, increased by 17,000 to 963,000 in total.

Over five hundred (500) college/university graduates are to benefit from an employment program through the Liberia Chamber of Commerce (LCC).

Under the Special Employment Scheme, successful candidates shall be initially placed on a definite employment contract for six months to one year, with a probational period of three months in accordance with the Decent Work Act (DWA), reviewable biannually by the employer to ascertain performance to the satisfaction of the employer.

To kickstart the program the LCC, has concluded a Landmark Tripartite Agreement between the Government of Liberia (GOL), the Business Community and the LCC to create employment opportunities for deserving young Liberian men and women.

A Memorandum of Understanding (MOU), signed on Tuesday 2nd June 2021 under the signature of the Minister of Labor, Hon. Charles H. Gibson and the President of the Chamber, Cllr. N. Oswald Tweh; the Chamber, through its membership, will endeavor to create a minimum of five hundred (500) vacancies for qualified Liberian college/university graduates to be employed by members of the Chamber within sixty (60) days after the signing of this MOU.

This joint initiative is aimed at ensuring that qualified Liberians are given first preference to vacancies and employment opportunities by the business community.

The Teachers Service Commission in Kenya appears to have backed down from its earlier recommendation to scrap the Bachelor of Education (B.Ed) degree programme from September this year.

The commission, in a presentation to deans of schools of education in universities, had recommended that teacher trainees undertake either a three-year Bachelor of Arts (BA) or Bachelor of Science (B.Sc) degree, study three teaching subjects and later study for a post-graduate diploma in education.

Currently, B.Ed students specialise in two teaching subjects in addition to education units studied from the first year

Since information went out about the proposal, there has been heated debated from stakeholders in the education sector. It also caused concern among trained but jobless teachers that they could be left out of employment.

Education Cabinet Secretary George Magoha has already supported the recommendation to change teacher training.

However, the TSC Chief Executive Officer Nancy Macharia now says that a decision has not been made yet and that if changes to teacher training will be effected, they will not disadvantage past or present holders of the B.Ed degree.

She added that the mandate of the TSC is limited to reviewing and advising on the standards of education and training of persons entering the teaching service in Kenya.

Macharia explained that the new entry grades for teachers had originated from a report by a task force on the implementation of the competence based curriculum (CBC).

She added that such reforms will be implemented in a methodical, systematic and phased manner that will not disadvantage any past or present graduate of a valid education degree.

Macharia said a date of implementation will clearly be spelt out in a manner that will ensure a seamless transition from the 8-4-4 education system to the new competence based curriculum.

It has been revealed that the recommendations contained in a document titled, Framework on Entry Requirements in the Teaching Service, prepared by the director, Quality Assurance and Standards, Dr Reuben Nthamburi, even have timelines for implementation.

Deans of schools of education from 56 universities offering the B.Ed programme are finalising a joint response to the TSC proposal.

Last week, Kenyatta University Vice Chancellor, Paul Wainaina, strongly opposed the TSC recommendations.

In a response he presented to the Inter-Public University Council Consultative Forum and seen local media, he pokes holes into the plan to do away with the degree course, which has been taught in Kenyan universities since 1970.

Kenyatta University is the main trainer of secondary school teachers in the country.

The Ministry of Education last year phased out the training of certificate in primary teacher education (P1) and replaced it with a diploma in primary teacher education. The first intake was done last month, even though it attracted few applicants since most students did not meet the new entry requirements.

Macharia announced that TSC would advertise teaching jobs from next month, after the commission was allocated Sh2.5 billion for the recruitment of 5,000 teachers in the next financial year. 6,000 intern teachers will also be recruited at a cost of Sh1.2 billion.

The Salaries and Remuneration Commission (SRC) in Kenya have dannounced there would be no salary increments for all civil servants for two years beginning July

This announcement comes. amid admissions from the country’s National Treasury that it is struggling to get enough money to run government.

This decision sets the stage for a clash between the unions and the government, which may paralyse smooth running in key sectors. The suspension affects the workers’ basic salary, allowances and other benefits.

Civil servants, teachers and lecturers have rejected the government’s decision. Teachers and lecturers in public universities will also be affected by the decision.

The new move will hit public-sector workers hard, coming just months after the SRC directed all public institutions to ensure workers’ allowances do not exceed 40 per cent of their pay.

Implementation of the directive begins next month and will have the effect of reducing incomes earned by a majority of government workers who have been relying on allowances to make extra money

The SRC Thursday said the decision to suspend implementation of the third remuneration review cycle had been prompted by the difficult economic times the country finds itself in, largely due to the Covid-19 fiasco.

The commission said the government would save a substantial amount from the Sh82 billion it would have spent on implementation of the 2021/22 – 2024/25 remuneration review cycle.

SRC Chairperson Lyn Mengich said the commission considered the government’s financial constraints, the current wage bill and the need to release resources for investment to jumpstart a Covid-19-ravaged economy.

In line with the new directive, no additional funding will be provided for implementation of job evaluation results in the financial year 2021-2022 and 2022/2023.

The commission also stated that public-sector institutions will be required to fully implement the Allowances and Benefits Policy beginning July, which now requires that all the allowances government workers earn should not exceed 40 per cent of their total pay.

The United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) has announced the enrolment of over 500,000 girls in primary schools in Katsina State through its Girl’s Education Project (GEP 3) as part of efforts to reduce the spate of out-of-school children in the state.

The UNICEF Education Specialist, Kano Field Office, Muhammad Muntaqa, who disclosed this in Katsina at a one-day meeting with traditional institutions on establishing local community accountability system, said the organisation has surpassed its initial target of enrolling 207,000 girls in focus schools in the state.

GEP 3, funded by Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO) of the UK, is being implemented by UNICEF in six northern states in the country; Katsina, Bauchi, Niger, Zamfara, Sokoto and Kano to support girls’ enrolment, retention and transition in school.

He said the target was to ensure that there are 207,000 children but as of now, over 500,000 girls have been enrolled through GEP 3 project in focus schools in Katsina State. UNICEF is giving priority to girl-child education, quality teaching and learning in the state.

He added that UNICEF, through its female teachers training scholarship, have sponsored 500 rural girls for a three-year NCE programme in colleges of education in the state who have graduated and qualified to teach any where in Nigeria.

Muntaqa reiterated that UNICEF also trained 210 head teachers on instructional leadership to enable them support their teachers by giving them technical instructions to deliver quality learning to children in the state.

In his welcome remarks, the Executive Chairman of the State Universal Basic Education Board (SUBEB), Lawal Buhari, applauded UNICEF for improving girl-child education in the state.

Buhari, represented by the Board Secretary, Isa Mohammed Musa, added that the organisation has significantly reduced the disparity in the ratio of enrolment of boys and girls in school.

He said: “UNICEF has improved the enrolment of girls in primary schools across the state. The organisation has greatly supported the state government in improving the standard of girl-child education. It constructed latrines and boreholes across primary schools in the state.”

He explained that the board, in collaboration with the state government and other relevant non-governmental organisations, would ensure the sustainability of the UNICEF’s school enrolment drive campaign to ensure that girls remain in school and improve their learning achievements.