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In my latest podcast, @lukesibieta.bsky.social from @theifs.bsky.social explained how England's stable score for reading in the latest PISA tests comes against a backdrop of very concerning developments at a global level. Listen to the full episode here: insideyoured.com

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Tom Richmond @tom-richmond.com · 29/09/2026

Great panel. Great topic: making vocational qualifications work for 14 to 16 year olds. Great work @edupolicyinst.bsky.social and OCR.

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Tom Richmond @tom-richmond.com · 29/09/2026

Super @suttontrust.bsky.social panel on apprenticeships at Labour conference this morning. Great combination of a government minister, an apprentice, an employer and a policy expert!

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Tom Richmond @tom-richmond.com · 28/09/2026

@lucympowell.bsky.social and @juliemcculloch.bsky.social kicking off tonight's reception on 'skills for the future'. Lucy committed to not taking an ideological approach to reforms. Amen to that.

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Tom Richmond @tom-richmond.com · 28/09/2026

Expert hosting by @iaindale.bsky.social at the @plmr.co.uk policy hub, discussing how to help young people earn, learn and progress courtesy of Emily Rock and the St Martins Group. So refreshing to skip the long speeches from panellists and just dive into a discussion!

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Tom Richmond @tom-richmond.com · 28/09/2026

@lucympowell.bsky.social right to say at this morning's @edupolicyinst.bsky.social event that tackling persistent disadvantage requires a 0-19 approach and will need to extend well beyond the school gates.

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Tom Richmond @tom-richmond.com · 27/09/2026

Minister in charge of apprenticeships listening to apprentices. Great stuff at my first event at Labour conference from Jacqui Smith and St Martins Group.

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Tom Richmond @tom-richmond.com · 27/09/2026

India's education system is a disaster at both ends. At the top, only 7% of graduates find a formal job within a year. At the bottom, frightening numbers of children cannot read, write or count. No wonder India - the world's most populous country - steers clear of PISA. (via the Economist)

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Tom Richmond @tom-richmond.com · 25/09/2026

In the Australian state of Victoria, the Liberal (what we'd call Conservative) opposition is promising to establish more selective state schools if they win November's election. Will we see the same in England soon? educationhq.com/news/a-level...

educationhq.com

‘A level playing field’: three new select-entry high schools for Vic under Coalition

Thousands of high-achieving Victorian students are missing out on securing a place at a selective school, the Liberal opposition says, as it unveils a plan to build three new select-entry high schools...

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Tom Richmond @tom-richmond.com · 24/09/2026

So, Vocational GCSEs, eh? If you think that something about this announcement feels eerily familiar, you're in good company. Time for a quick history lesson.... My new post on LinkedIn: lnkd.in/p/eJVMzP-S

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Tom Richmond @tom-richmond.com · 22/09/2026

England's performance in the latest round of PISA tests was brilliant....... wasn't it? I mean, we rose up the rankings in maths, reading and science, so everything is going well....... isn't it? My new post on LinkedIn: lnkd.in/p/e9hJCK5n

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Luke Sibieta @lukesibieta.bsky.social · 22/09/2026

I was delighted to chat with @tom-richmond.com again on his Inside Your Ed podcast. We talked all things PISA, why most countries are seeing declines in results and why England seems to be bucking that trend @theifs.bsky.social

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Tom Richmond @tom-richmond.com · 22/09/2026

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Tom Richmond @tom-richmond.com · 21/09/2026

All three sentences from Stephen are spot on.

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Tom Richmond @tom-richmond.com · 21/09/2026

🚨NEW PODCAST🚨 What did we learn from England's latest PISA results? @lukesibieta.bsky.social from @theifs.bsky.social joins me to discuss whether England fared better or worse than 90 other countries in maths, reading and science. Listen here: insideyoured.com

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Tom Richmond @tom-richmond.com · 20/09/2026

"The option receiving the greatest support was a transition towards an all-ability comprehensive system" Northern Ireland's grammar schools still have supporters, but that doesn't mean reform is off the table by any means. www.belfasttelegraph.co.uk/news/norther...

belfasttelegraph.co.uk

New QUB study finds NI academic selection process poses ‘educational inequalities’

New QUB research exposes how NI grammar school entrance tests fuel educational inequality and stress, and outlines evidence-based options for reform.

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Tom Richmond @tom-richmond.com · 17/09/2026

"More than one in four Finnish pupils now perform below the basic proficiency level in reading....Nearly one in three Finnish pupils now fall into the low-performing group in mathematics." Does anyone still think England should be more like Finland? I hope not. www.helsinkitimes.fi/themes/theme...

helsinkitimes.fi

Finland’s PISA scores fall again in reading and maths

Finland’s 2025 PISA results show further declines in reading and mathematics, while science performance remains above the OECD average. More than one in four Finnish pupils now fall below the basic re...

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Tom Richmond @tom-richmond.com · 17/09/2026

In my latest podcast, Sam Gibbs explained why she thinks little progress will be made on improving teacher retention unless fundamental changes are made to teachers' daily lived experiences. Listen to the full episode here: insideyoured.com

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Tom Richmond @tom-richmond.com · 16/09/2026

Taxing private education is highly unusual by international standards. I think the UK and New Zealand are the only ones that charge VAT or equivalent on fees. But wait... is Moldova about to join the club? They are proposing to abolish tax relief for private schools. logos-pres.md/en/news/the-...

logos-pres.md

Moldova Proposes Equal Tax Rules for Private Schools

Private schools could face a 12% profit tax, while tax benefits for parents paying for their children’s education would remain.

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Tom Richmond @tom-richmond.com · 15/09/2026

In my latest podcast, Dr Haili Hughes said that there needs to be a greater focus on retaining experienced teachers, given the impact that their departure can have on pupils and schools. Listen to the full episode here: insideyoured.com

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Tom Richmond @tom-richmond.com · 11/09/2026

As Chinese university graduates face increasingly bleak employment prospects, some of them have apparently decided that the best solution to their job woes is to start an apprenticeship. In Germany. www.scmp.com/economy/glob...

scmp.com

China’s youth job crisis drives graduates to German vocational apprenticeships

Facing bleak employment prospects at home, some young Chinese workers are pursuing technical training abroad, but not all make it through.

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Tom Richmond @tom-richmond.com · 09/09/2026

Here is the graph from the PISA 2025 results that AI companies don't want you to see. It shows pupils' mean score in the PISA science test versus the frequency of pupils' AI use for schoolwork. The pattern could hardly be clearer. My new post on LinkedIn: lnkd.in/p/eJrXYvkQ

lnkd.in

#pisa | Tom Richmond

Here is the graph from the #PISA 2025 results that AI companies don't want you to see. It shows pupils' mean score in the PISA science test versus the frequency of pupils' AI use for schoolwork. The...

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Tom Richmond @tom-richmond.com · 09/09/2026

As @nicolawoolcock.bsky.social and @georgiamay.bsky.social show in today's Times, England's PISA results really do stand out. Germany fell to a new low, leaving them barely above the OECD average, while France recorded its worst results since PISA began in 2000. www.thetimes.com/article/8a98...

thetimes.com

English pupils in top ten for key subjects — but Scotland and Wales slump

New Pisa education rankings come amid a battle over Labour’s planned curriculum reforms

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Tom Richmond @tom-richmond.com · 08/09/2026

@lukesibieta.bsky.social has been following the divergence of education systems across the UK for a long time. His observations from the latest PISA data are very troubling.

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Tom Richmond @tom-richmond.com · 08/09/2026

They'll be a lot of chatter about England's PISA results this morning, but we need to talk just as much about Wales. They rejected phonics and knowledge-rich curricula in favour of 'areas of learning', 'skills suites' and barely any testing. Wales is now 40 points below England in every domain.

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Tom Richmond @tom-richmond.com · 07/09/2026

🚨NEW PODCAST🚨 Should we shift the focus from teacher recruitment to teacher retention? Dr Haili Hughes and Sam Gibbs join me to discuss their new book that outlines a new approach to keeping more teachers and senior leaders in the profession. Listen here: insideyoured.com

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Tom Richmond @tom-richmond.com · 05/09/2026

MIT is facing a $300 million shortfall. Harvard has a $365 million structural deficit. Trump's attacks are clearly not helping, but growing questions about the value of even the most prestigious degrees are starting to bite hard. www.bostonmagazine.com/news/2026/09...

bostonmagazine.com

Is College in Boston Still Worth It?

No American city has more riding on what happens next in higher ed.

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Tom Richmond @tom-richmond.com · 04/09/2026

If you think private schools in the UK have had a rough ride, just wait till you see what President Trump has in store for private schools on the other side of the Atlantic. If those schools lose their tax-exempt status, they will surely be in serious trouble. www.independent.co.uk/news/world/a...

independent.co.uk

IRS wants to strip private schools’ tax-exempt status for using race in admissions

Under a proposed rule, schools would lose their tax-exempt status if they considered race in schools programs such as admissions, scholarships, athletics and more

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Tom Richmond @tom-richmond.com · 02/09/2026

"these technologies can produce credible solutions and provide reasonable responses to almost any written assignment ...including essays, math and science problems, proofs, and coding" A new report from MIT tells it like it is on AI. cc @benjaminjriley.bsky.social aiandeducation.mit.edu/report/

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Tom Richmond @tom-richmond.com · 01/09/2026

'The American Dream' - 2026 version: "The most accomplished high school graduates - who tend to come from higher-income families - make up the vast majority of students enrolled at the nation’s best resourced, selective public and private institutions" www.insidehighered.com/news/admissi...

insidehighered.com

New Paper Takes Aim at “Meritocratic” Admissions Policies

Wealthy students with high standardized test scores make up the majority of students at the most selective universities, which also spend far more on student instruction than less selective institutio...

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Tom Richmond @tom-richmond.com · 24/08/2026

Exam season may be over for another year in England, but one country has recently decided that their students' final exams are going to look very different in future - and I think they're onto something big. My new post on LinkedIn: lnkd.in/p/efafDF4h

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Tom Richmond @tom-richmond.com · 18/08/2026

"Sure, a robot can lift 600 pounds much more easily than I can – but that doesn’t much help me if I’m trying to work out.” What a wonderful quote from a recent US student who is all too aware of the damage that AI can do to your learning and 'thinking muscles'.

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Tom Richmond @tom-richmond.com · 17/08/2026

“You come out of care, you’re already disadvantaged, then you’ve got no one to call, no one to rely on. ...You can’t just throw an 18-year-old into the world and say, ‘Make it on your own.’ ” Some very powerful personal accounts from care leavers in The Times. www.thetimes.com/article/a679...

thetimes.com

No parents, no home, no job: what happens when kids in care turn 18

Every year thousands of young people leave the care system with no home and little support. Caroline Scott meets the resilient twentysomethings facing adulthood alone

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Tom Richmond @tom-richmond.com · 14/08/2026

"New South Wales will prohibit unsupervised take-home assignments [for final year school students] ...in a sweeping overhaul aimed at stopping widespread artificial intelligence abuse in final exams." Slowly, the cogs are turning.... journalarta.com/en/2026/08/0...

journalarta.com

NSW Bans Take-Home Exams as AI Cheating Hits 1,000 Cases — JournalArta Global

New South Wales will prohibit unsupervised take-home assignments for year 12 students in a sweeping overhaul aimed at stopping widespread artificial intellig...

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Tom Richmond @tom-richmond.com · 11/08/2026

Rising costs. Rising geopolitical tensions. Rising concerns about the value of a foreign education. Super graph from the Economist showing how Chinese students - once the bedrock of international student recruitment - are increasingly turning down the chance to study abroad.

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Tom Richmond @tom-richmond.com · 09/08/2026

Back in 2023, shortly after ChatGPT was released, I published a major report called 'Examining Exams' that called for more oral exams to protect against AI-fuelled cheating. Well, Denmark has just decided to do exactly that for exactly this reason. Fantastic. www.theguardian.com/technology/2...

theguardian.com

Danish pupils will have to orally defend essays in attempt to combat AI cheating

Government introduces several measures, including monitoring of computers, for pupils aged 16 to 19

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Tom Richmond @tom-richmond.com · 07/08/2026

While we are debating the merits of selection at age 14 in this country, South Korea has just decided that maybe - just maybe - *4 year olds* being subjected to a rigorous competitive selection process is probably a bit much. evrimagaci.org/gpt/south-ko...

evrimagaci.org

South Korea Bans Pre Enrollment Tests For Young Children

On July 7, 2026, South Korea’s Ministry of Education made a decisive move to address mounting concerns over the early academic pressure placed on the nation’s youngest…

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Tom Richmond @tom-richmond.com · 06/08/2026

“Making sure young people stay connected to education, training and opportunity starts long before results day." Exactly. I've been saying for *years* that we need to treat the transition from education to employment as a process, not an event (hence my strong dislike of the cliff edge at age 16).

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Tom Richmond @tom-richmond.com · 06/08/2026

"only 26% of students in third grade or higher... met literacy standards, compared to 47% statewide" Amazing. I mean, who would have guessed that the hubris of Silicon Valley types would not translate into knowing how to run a school effectively? timesofindia.indiatimes.com/technology/t...

timesofindia.indiatimes.com

In 2016, Mark Zuckerberg's wife Priscilla Chan founded a school; 10 years later and after more than $125 million in funding, board voted to close it

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Tom Richmond @tom-richmond.com · 04/08/2026

Well, everyone seems to have a view on Andy Burnham and @lucympowell.bsky.social's education plans. Last night on LBC, I had my say. TL:DL - every big reform comes with opportunities + risks but bringing employers closer to schools / colleges would be a *huge* win. www.youtube.com/watch?v=6aU6...

youtube.com

LBC technical education August 2026

YouTube video by Tom R

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Tom Richmond @tom-richmond.com · 04/08/2026

youtube.com

LBC technical education August 2026

YouTube video by Tom R

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Tom Richmond @tom-richmond.com · 31/07/2026

In my latest podcast, Julian Gravatt OBE, Deputy CEO at @aoc-info.bsky.social, explained why devolving 16 to 19 funding to Mayors and strategic authorities could be a lengthy and complicated process. An unexpectedly timely observation....! Listen to the full episode here: insideyoured.com

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Tom Richmond @tom-richmond.com · 30/07/2026

In my latest podcast, Professor Diana Beech told me that she doesn't think Andy Burnham is 'anti university', but universities may still need to reconsider where they fit into the new Prime Minister's plans. Listen to the full episode here: insideyoured.com

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Tom Richmond @tom-richmond.com · 29/07/2026

This week's Economist shows that England is not the only country facing up to the (very expensive) reality that it seems to have too many university graduates for the available graduate jobs. Which might explain why, in a recent US poll, almost two-third of adults say a degree isn’t worth the cost.

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Tom Richmond @tom-richmond.com · 24/07/2026

"AI adoption increased homework scores by 18% and cut down completion time by 30%. However, within six months, monthly exam scores decreased by 20%, and college entrance examples fell by 18% to 24%" This should surprise no-one. We need GenAI out of our classrooms. Now. fortune.com/2026/07/21/g...

fortune.com

Study finds AI boosted homework scores 18%—then tanked exam results 20% | Fortune

There’s a massive debate over whether Gen Z is the first generation to be less cognitively capable than their parents. A study of 26,800 high school students suggests AI incentives only point in one d...

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