I do and I understand: half a century of curriculum development

This year marks the 50th anniversary of the Foundation's work in curriculum development. At a celebratory event last night, the Foundation's Director, Anthony Tomei, paid tribute to the work done by the many teachers, academics, scientists, civil servants, examiners, publishers, students and designers who have inspired and delivered Nuffield curriculum projects over the last 50 years.

A levels not equipping students with appropriate mathematical skills

New evidence shows that A-levels in a range of subjects fail to equip students with an appropriate level of mathematical skills. The amount and difficulty of mathematical content varies depending on exam board and student choice of questions. 

The findings have led leading learned societies and education experts to make recommendations for the upcoming A-level reform. 

Foundations could have more freedom than they think

A new report into the governance and financial management of endowed charitable foundations – charities that fund their activities mostly from investments – finds that foundations are thinking independently and creatively in today’s tough climate, but suggests that tackling common misconceptions could enable them to do even better.

Shareholders’ duties must be clarified to enable enlightened capitalism

FairPensions has called for legislative changes around fiduciary duties in its report, The Enlightened Shareholder: Clarifying investors' fiduciary duties, funded by the Nuffield Foundation. 

Sharon Witherspoon MBE appointed Director of the Nuffield Foundation

The Board of Trustees is delighted to announce the appointment of Sharon Witherspoon MBE as the new Director of the Nuffield Foundation.

Sharon currently holds the post of Deputy Director of the Foundation, and will take up her new position following the retirement of current Director Anthony Tomei this summer.  

Initiatives aimed at widening access to universities must start before age 18

Government pressure for university admissions reform is unlikely to trigger a marked increase in the number of 18-year-olds from poorer backgrounds going on to higher education, a new study has concluded.

Use of informal childcare has increased since 1998

A new report shows that a decade after the introduction of the National Childcare Strategy, a large number of families continue to use informal childcare, usually grandparents, to meet their childcare needs. Families often use informal care as part of a ‘package’ that includes both formal and informal care, particularly for preschool children. It is more likely than formal care to be used to cover non-standard work or study hours, and is used by families across the socio-economic spectrum and for children of all ages.

Parents need more than Ofsted grades to identify childcare quality

A new study by Daycare Trust, the University of Oxford, and A+ Education concludes that Ofsted grades are too broad to provide a detailed measure of quality in childcare settings, and are best used alongside other existing quality assessments. The research was funded by the Nuffield foundation and is published today alongside a new guide for parents on how to identify high quality childcare.

Children whose second language is English do not have a negative impact on education outcomes of native English speakers

We should not be concerned about the growing proportion of children in England’s primary schools for whom languages other than English are their mother tongue. That is the conclusion of new research from the Centre for Economic Performance (CEP) and funded by the Nuffield Foundation.

Nuffield Science Bursary student Kirtana Vallabhaneni named Young Scientist of the Year

Congratulations to Nuffield Science Bursary student Kirtana Vallabhaneni, who has won the Young Scientist of the Year competition. Winners of the competition were announced at the Big Bang Fair in Birmingham on Friday.