Today our blog looks at further coverage on our early years workforce announcement, as well as a new Universities UK report on BAME attainment.
Early Years Workforce
Last week, the Children and Families Minister Nadhim Zahawi announced a £30,000 grant to support the project run by the Fatherhood Institute to get more men into early years education.
Following this, Dad Blog UK has today published a Q&A with David Wright of Paint Pots nurseries in Southampton. In his answers, David speaks about the importance of children having a diversity of role models, and men having the courage to challenge stereotypes.
David Wright said:
I have been working with the Department for Education for the last three years to try and raise the issue more widely and for it to become a policy item. I chaired a Task and Finish group of experts and we produced a report for the Government. The recent announcement of funding for the Fatherhood Institute to produce resources and organise a national conference in London this September, is the outcome of this work. I see it as a positive step forward.
FQ Magazine has also run a piece on the announcement and the importance of increasing the visibility of men in early years settings.
BAME Attainment
Today, Thursday 2 May, Universities UK and the National Union of Students (NUS) published a report on black, Asian and minority ethnic (BAME) student attainment. This was covered by the Times and BBC Online.
The report makes a number of recommendations for universities to improve BAME student outcomes, based on the key finding that 81% of white graduates received a first or 2:1 in 2017, compared to 68% of BAME graduates.
Education Secretary Damian Hinds said:
We have introduced reforms to make sure that higher education is open to everyone who has the talent and potential – and there is a record rate of disadvantaged 18-year-olds going to university, but whilst we have made huge strides on access we now need to make sure that students are successfully participating in and completing their studies.
Through the new regulator we are asking every university to draw up an access and participation plan for 2020-21 and I expect every institution to ask themselves what they can do to drive forward progress in improving both access and successful participation for students from disadvantaged and underrepresented backgrounds.
Alongside this work from the sector, the government is also working to tackle the large gaps that still remain through the Race Disparity Unit, which is working to improve outcomes for ethnic minority students in higher education, including by making better information available and gathering evidence on what works to improve access and attainment for ethnic minority students.
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