Minouche Shafik appeared beleaguered as House members grilled her over reported upsurge in antisemitism on campus The head of a prestigious US university clashed with members of Congress today in highly charged hearings over a reported upsurge in antisemitism on campus in the wake of Israel’s war in Gaza. Minouche Shafik, the president of Columbia University, appeared beleaguered and uncertain as one Congress member after another assailed her over her institution’s supposed inaction to stop it becoming what one called “a hotbed of antisemitism and hatred”. This article was amended on 17 April ..read more

Some say more schools may ban organised prayer after court ruling but others say judgment was based on unique circumstances The ruling on a prayer ban at a top London school has created a “classic English policy muddle” that has divided school leaders over its implications, with some experts predicting that more schools could ban organised prayers as a result. The warning came after a high court judge upheld the ban at Michaela community school in Brent, north-west London, dismissing a challenge by a Muslim pupil who claimed it was discriminatory and breached her right to religious freedom ..read more

My husband, Mick Ryan, who has died aged 82, was emeritus professor of penal politics at the University of Greenwich, in London. Mick joined what was then Thames Polytechnic in 1973 to teach politics. After some early collaborative work on London Docklands regeneration and parliamentary scrutiny of European legislation, he became interested in the organisation Radical Alternatives to Prison (RAP) and published his first book, The Acceptable Pressure Group, about it and the Howard League, in 1978 ..read more

Charity that uses football to help pupils build relationships found to improve happiness in Greater Manchester project Intensive mentoring for troubled schoolchildren using football kickabouts can significantly enhance wellbeing, increasing happiness equivalent to an unemployed adult getting a job, a study has found. A project involving more than 2,000 pupils in dozens of secondary schools in Greater Manchester showed that instead of wellbeing declining among pupils at risk of exclusion who had behavioural issues and special educational needs, their happiness scores increased ..read more

How one teacher wrestles meaning and relevance from classics of English literature It is a truth universally acknowledged that the books you studied at school are the ones that stick with you for ever. In my case it was Pride and Prejudice, but for you it might have been Macbeth or Malorie Blackman’s Noughts and Crosses. These are the texts you know by heart because, once upon a time, you spent two years annotating them using different coloured pens and consigning chunks to memory. But what broader, deeper kinds of learning might be available to teenagers studying English litera ..read more

But truancy and illness-related absences can be reversed with good sleeping habits and strong family ties, study suggests Young people who spend too much time online are more likely to miss school through illness or truancy, a study has suggested. Teenage girls appear to be more likely than teenage boys to score highly on excessive internet use, the findings indicate. But a good amount of sleep and exercise and a trusting relationship with their parents appear to go some way to reducing the effects of extreme web use on classroom absences ..read more

Muslim pupil loses case against Michaela community school, run by former government social mobility tsar Katharine Birbalsingh A high court decision to uphold a prayer ban at one of the highest performing state schools in England has been welcomed by Rishi Sunak and Kemi Badenoch, who described it as a “victory against activists trying to subvert our public institutions”. The case against Michaela community school in Brent, north-west London, which is famous for its strict discipline code, was brought by a Muslim pupil, known only as TTT in court proceedings, who claimed the ban was discrimina ..read more

The Beaks are among the families in England and Wales who have faced fines over health-related school absences Chloe Beak lives with chronic, debilitating migraines that leave her unable to attend school for days at a time. But instead of receiving support from her school, her parents have been fined by the local authority for her truancy. The family’s current fix is to send their daughter in with a migraine until she gets sent home, meaning her absences are registered as authorised. If they do not, the school will consider her a truant as it believes she has emotionally based school avoidance ..read more

John Bercow says the early years programme was a crucial life enhancer for millions of children and could be a key election battleground. Plus letters from Prof Gary Craig, Deborah Hayter, Keith Reed and Ian Wrigglesworth As a sinner who long ago repenteth, may I echo the call by Gordon Brown and the three former Labour education secretaries for an election pledge by Labour to revive the Sure Start programme (Senior Labour figures call for ‘life-transforming’ Sure Start policy, 9 April)? Newly elected as a Conservative MP in 1997, I followed my then party in opposing the programme, before ..read more

In a historic achievement, Benard McKinley, 39, was accepted to Northwestern Pritzker School of Law in Chicago Since leaving prison in December 2023, Benard McKinley, 39, has been busy preparing for huge next steps. Between working and visits from friends and family, McKinley is getting ready for his first year of study at the prestigious Northwestern Pritzker School of Law in Chicago, a historic achievement ..read more