The Conservatives say that the school system in England is failing to close the gap between rich and poorer pupils.

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The schools secretary's decision to publish England's primary school results "beggars belief", head teachers say.

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Civil rights groups have begun a welcome attack on a House bill that would temporarily exempt the states from the all-important accountability requirements in the No Child Left Behind Act, which was signed into law in 2002. The attack, led by powerful groups like the Leadership Conference on Civil Rights, was unexpected, given that the nation’s two big teachers’ unions actually hold seats on the conference’s executive committee. Recent events suggest that the civil rights establishment generally is ready to break with the teachers’ unions and take an independent stand on education reform.

Despite innocuous packaging, the House bill looks very much like a stealth attempt to gut the national school accountability effort. Introduced by Representatives Sam Graves, a Missouri Republican, and Timothy Walz, a Democrat from Minnesota who is a former teacher, it is supported by the National Education Association, the influential teachers’ union that has been trying to kill off No Child Left Behind for years.

The bill, which is unlikely to pass, would permit the states to ignore the parts of the law that require them to pursue corrective actions at failing schools. That would encourage lassitude in states and districts that have already dragged their feet for too long. It would sap the energy of states that have shown clear progress since the law was passed and are eager to move forward. Once stopped, the reform effort could take years to get moving again.

The support of civil rights groups for the No Child Left Behind Act has been muted in the years since the law was first passed. But with the reauthorization process under way, the groups are making it clear that they view education reform as a civil rights issue. They want changes in No Child Left Behind — but only changes that strengthen the law — and they are fully prepared to fight the unions for those changes if necessary.

The government will publish national statistics on primary school tests next week despite the marking delays.

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New rules mean people coming to the UK will need points and sponsors to get student visas.

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A Sikh teenager wins her High Court fight to wear a religious bangle to the school from where she was excluded.

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A medical student with dyslexia is to take legal action in a bid to prevent the use of multiple choice exams.

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The exam watchdog is intervening to take over the re-marking of disputed Sats test papers.

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A university department caught pressurising students in an official survey is to be excluded from this year's league table.

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Only three economics teachers were trained on postgraduate teacher training courses in the whole of England last year.

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