BRIT schoolkids will be offered 100million hours of extra tuition over the course of the next three years as part of Boris Johnson’s back-to-school blitz.
The PM will announce a range of measures in a bid to make up for lost time – and face-to-face tutoring is a cornerstone of his plan to help pupils catch up.
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Education chiefs also want to make sure millions of the UK’s most vulnerable youngsters get more time learning to ensure everyone has the same opportunities after the crisis.
And in total, 100million hours of catch-up time will be offered to get youngsters back on the path to success.
Westminster insiders say Mr Johnson sees one-on-one tuition as the key to helping ‘Generation Covid’ catch up, with one source dubbing it “the PM’s big idea”.
The Government has announced:
- A £1bn for national tutoring, which will see up to 100m tutoring hours for children and young people in England
- Further investment of over £250m to help give 500,000 teachers world-leading training
- Six million 15-hour tutoring courses for disadvantaged school children
- All ages between two and 19 will be covered by the package of support
- But there’s no word yet on whether school holidays could be slashed or classroom time extended
Mr Johnson will today unveil hulking plans to pump a staggering £1billion into intensive tutoring for youngsters
It means that for the first time ever, tutors will be something every school child will have access to – rather than just the wealthiest.
The bulk of the extra cash doled out by the Government will go on funding up to six million 15-hour tutoring courses for disadvantaged school children.
It will also see the 16-19 tuition fund expanded and extra lessons targeted at the core subjects of maths and English.
Meanwhile, 500,000 teachers will get extra training.
And sixth form students will be offered the opportunity to repeat their final year – to make up for classes missed as a result of lockdown chaos.
Schools and colleges will be handed cash to allow year 13 students the option to repeat their final years if needed.
The decision was made after exams were cancelled for a second time in 2021.
Officials said all those “particularly badly-affected” will be able to repeat if they choose.
Meanwhile, it’s reported that the school day will get longer, with kids facing 35-hour weeks in class in a bid to catch them up.
The Prime Minister says its vital that British schoolchildren don’t get “left behind” as a result of the pandemic.
“Young people have sacrificed so much over the last year and as we build back from the pandemic, we must make sure that no child is left behind,” he said.
“This next step in our long-term catch up plan should give parents confidence that we will do everything we can to support children who have fallen behind, and that every child will have the skills and knowledge they need to fulfil their potential.”
It’s understood the school day will be extended by an extra half-hour – or two-and-a-half hours a week – as part of a £15bn rescue plan.
But while Mr Johnson is said to have given his backing to the plan by education tsar Sir Kevan Collins, who has been tasked with sorting out kids’ missed learning, no final decision has yet been made.
Proposals to slash the six-week summer break have also not yet been given a firm ‘yes’ or ‘no’.
The newly-wed PM will today unveil the plans to revive learning.
Kids across the UK – as well as their embattled parents – have faced a challenging time during the pandemic.
It was last month suggested that more than 200,000 pupils may be leaving primary school without basic reading and writing.
An extra 30,000 kids are also struggling with literacy in just the past year.
And in February, Trending In The News revealed kids had missed nearly a billion days of school as a result of the crisis.
Sir Kevan said: “The pandemic has caused a huge disruption to the lives of England’s children.
“Supporting every child to get back on track will require a sustained and comprehensive programme of support.
“The investments in teaching quality and tutoring announced today offer evidence-based support to a significant number of our children and teachers.”
However, he warned measures given the green light so far are unlikely to be enough.
“More will be needed to meet the scale of the challenge,” he said.
