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The Education Act (Butler) 1944
The Education Act of 1944 was steered through Parliament by the Education Minister, R.A. Butler. The Act provided free secondary education for all pupils and replaced all previous education law. The act also introduced a three-tiered system for secondary state schooling. Grammar schools, secondary modern schools and technical schools. Also further education was introduced through county colleges for school-leavers to 18 years of age. Meanwhile, the school leaving age is raised to 15. -
USA - 1946 - The President's Commission on Higher Education
The Truman Commission Report, called for several significant changes in post-secondary education. A network of public community colleges, would become free of charge for all youth who can profit from this form of education. The commission helped popularise the phrase "community college" in the late 1940's and helped shape the future of two-year degree institutions in the U.S. The report also calls for increased Federal spending in the form of scholarships, fellowships, and general aid. -
1951 - General Certificate of Education (GCE, O-Levels) and A-levels introduced.
These new certificates were introduced replacing the School Certificate and the Higher School Certificate, however at the time these were primarily grammar school exams. Some education authorities established their own leaving examinations for youngsters not taking GCEs. The GCE was composed of three levels: O-Level, A-Level and A1/As-Level. -
1963 - The Robbins Report
The Report recommended an expansion in university provision to allow all suitably qualified candidates an opportunity for higher education should they wish it. It proposed this be initiated by the founding of six new universities and by raising a number of existing colleges to university status. It also suggested raising the status of teacher training colleges by encouraging partnerships with universities and introducing a teaching qualification with degree status. -
Labour Voted In
Harold Wilson's newly-elected Labour government promises to set up comprehensive schools, combining pupils of all ability levels. Source: http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/education/3499119.stm -
1965 - Introduction of the CSE
The CSE was introduced for secondary modern pupils to cater for those not sitting O-levels. Before the introduction of the CSE, the majority of schoolchildren at secondary modern schools did not take an externally set end of school examination, and so left school without any nationally recognised qualification. The range of courses for CSE was wider than that for the O-level and included many vocational subjects. -
USA - 1965 - Higher Education Act
President Johnson articulated the need for more higher education opportunities for lower and middle income families, program assistance for small and less developed colleges,
additional and improved library resources at higher education institutions, and utilisation of college and university
resources to help deal with national problems like poverty and community development. The HEA created grants, loans, scholarships and other programs to help students acquire education beyond secondary school -
1967 - The Plowden Report “Children and their Primary schools”
The Plowden Report focuses on a curriculum based on children’s individual needs and interests and that play should be an integral part for children to learn. It emphasise's that children have an inherent instinct to explore and discover so early years and primary school children should be engaged in the projects and activities they choose and discover things in the areas of their own interests. Any planned activities and lessons should be child-centred and focusing on individual learning. -
1972 USA - Title IX
No person in the United States shall, on the basis of sex, be excluded from participation in, be denied the benefits of, or be subjected to discrimination under any education program or activity receiving Federal financial assistance -
1973 - School Leaving Age Raised to 16
School leaving age is raised to 16. -
1976 - Education Act
This particular education act compels local education authorities to introduce comprehensive education. It proved to be the high-point of the Comprehensive movement. Many grammar schools were either closed or changed to comprehensive status. Some local authorities, including Sandwell and Dudley in the West Midlands, changed all of its state secondary schools to comprehensive schools during the 1970s. -
1979 - Education Act
Margaret Thatchers Conservative party repealed the obligation on LEAs to make plans for comprehensivisation of secondary schools, which allowed LEAs to retain selective secondary schools. -
1980 - Education Act
Assisted places allowed ‘bright’ pupils from the maintained education sector to transfer to private schools with all or part of their fees paid by government. It also gave parents greater powers on governing bodies and over admissions meaning parents were now given right to choose the school they wanted for their child. However LEA's could refuse on certain grounds. -
1981 - The Rampton Report
West Indian Children in our Schools - Revealed racism in society schools ad worked towards steps to eradicate it. -
Swann Report 1985 - Education for All
The Swann Report was the first major government report to look at issues affecting the educational attainment of ethnic minority pupils. The report urged for ‘Education for All’, a new approach where a multicultural curriculum is offered to reflect the multiracial nature of British society. -
1986 - GCSE's are born!
O-levels and CSEs abolished, replaced by General Certificate of Secondary Education (GCSE). The National Council for Vocational Qualifications was also established. -
1987 - The National Curriculum
In 1987, Mr Baker created a 10-subject national curriculum, despite the fact that his Prime Minister, Margaret Thatcher, wanted just three subjects: maths, English, and science.
Baker said a national curriculum was needed because "we can no longer leave individual teachers, schools or local authorities to devise the curriculum that children should follow". -
1988 - Education Reform Act
This is the biggest act after the 1944 Butler act. This enabled the Education Secretary powers to prescribe a national curriculum for pupils to the age of 16 in maintained schools, set up the National Curriculum Council to oversee the content and assessment of the national curriculum. It also gave more freedom for parents to select the maintained school of their choice and it set up the mechanisms for the establishment of City Technology Colleges and staff appraisal schemes a legal requirement. -
1989 - Cox Report
This report formed the basis of the English component of the new National Curriculum. The report emphasised the subtlety of the process by which children (ages 5-16) acquire language and encouraged the use of English for a diversity of purposes. The role of wide reading and the centrality of literature in language development were also emphasised. -
1990 - Education (Student Loans) Act
This act introduced 'top-up' loans for higher education students and so began the diminution of student grants. The Student Loans Company (SLC) is a UK public sector organisation and was established to provide financial services (loans and grants) to over one million college and university students each year. The student loans scheme was introduced by the Education (Student Loans) Act 1990. -
1992 - Three Wise Men Report
The authors of this report were asked to review already existing, available evidence about the delivery of education in primary schools. And from this information make recommendations about curriculum organisation, teaching methods and classroom practice appropriate for the successful implementation of the National Curriculum, particularly at Key Stage 2. -
1992 - Education (Schools) Act
This act devised new arrangements for the inspection of schools which led to the creation of Ofsted (Office for Standards in Education). It was made that Ofsted were charged with identifying, training and registering teams of school inspectors. -
1993 - Education Act
This Education Act was the largest piece of legislation in the history of education. It had 6 main parts. -
1994 - Education Act
Established the Teacher Training Authority (TTA) and laid down new regulations relating to student unions. The TTA has the objective of "improving the quality and efficiency of all routes into the teaching profession". The act places responsibilities on the University's governing body in respect of student unions. -
1994 - Dearing Report
Was the first major review of the National Curriculum. It argued that the curriculum had become an unwieldy structure which was virtually impossible to implement and that the time spent on paperwork and testing was damaging good teaching and learning. -
1996 - Education & Schools Inspections Act
The Education act was another huge piece of legislation which mainly consolidated all previous education acts since 1944. As was the Schools Inspection act which also consolidated previous legislation on school inspections. -
1996 - St James Primary School
The year I started my education journey -
1997 - Dearing Report
The report identified that the provision of higher education should be expanded to allow for widening participation, particularly among women, ethnic minorities, and students with disabilities. -
1998 - Teaching and Higher Education Act
This act established the General Teaching Council (GTC), abolished student maintenance grants and required students to contribute towards tuition fees. -
1998 - School Standards and Framework Act
This act worked on several different categories. It insisted class sizes to be 30 maximum for infants, Education Action Zones to run by local authorities and business - raising standards was the aim. LEAs to draw up education development plans and early years development plans and have statutory duty to raise standards. And also the Government have powers to take over failing LEAs. -
2000 - Curriculum 2000
Curriculum 2000 divided the A-Level into 2 stages creating the AS qualification (Advanced Subsidiary) with an exam taken after the first year of an A-level course, which was equivalent to the first half of a full A level. -
2001 USA - Patriot Act
After the terrorist attack on the Twin Towers on the Patriot act was signed. Its goals are to strengthen domestic security and broaden the powers of law-enforcement agencies with regards to identifying and stopping terrorists. The Attorney General was ordered to implement and expand the foreign student monitoring program of the IIRIRA (Illegal Immigration Reform and Immigrant Responsibility). which records the date and port of entry of each foreign student. -
2002 - Academy Schools
First 3 Academy schools opened after David Blunkett announced in 2000, the government's intention to create a network of academies - effectively private schools paid for by the state. He said that their aim was "to improve pupil performance and break the cycle of low expectations." -
2003 - Hamstead Hall
The year I started secondary school. -
2007 - Green Paper Raising Expectations: staying in education and training post-16
This argued that all young people should stay in education or training up to the age of 18. -
2008 Education and Skills Act
This raised the education leaving age to 18; Key Stage 3 SATs effectively abolished. -
2008 - Ofqual
Ofqual (Office of the Qualifications and Examinations Regulator): launched led by Kathleen Tattersall. -
2010 - Academies Act
This Bill would enabled more schools in England to become academies. The Government expected a significant number of academies to open in September 2010, and for the number to continue to grow each year. The aim was for Academies to be funded at a comparable level to maintained schools but to also get their share of central funding that local authorities used to spend on their behalf. -
2011 - English Baccalaureate
Introduction of the English Baccalaureate as an additional measure in the performance tables published in January 2011. Pupils who achieve a GCSE grade C or better in English, maths, a language, history or geography, and two sciences achieve the EBacc. -
2011 - Wolf Report
This review considers how vocational education for 14- to 19-year-olds can be improved in order to promote successful progression into the labour market and into higher level education and training routes. It provides practical recommendations to help inform future policy direction, taking into account current financial constraints. -
2011 - Limestone Colege
The year I started University in USA, South Carolina. -
2012 - Teachers Standards
They define the minimum level of practice for trainees and teachers to achieve qualified teacher status. These were set to produce a clear baseline of expectations for the professional practice and conduct of teachers. -
2013 - Progress 8 & Attainment 8
In October 2013, DfE announced that a new secondary school accountability system will be implemented in 2016. It included 2 new headline measures, Attainment 8 and Progress 8. -
2014 - Graduation
The year I graduated from Limestone College -
2016 - Teacher Training
I started my PGCE at Wolverhampton University -
2016 - GCSE grades changed
GSCE grades changed from A* - U, to 9 - 1
