A*
A grade awarded for exceptionally good performance in any subject at General Certificate of Secondary Education. Previously, the highest grade awarded was an A grade. When the introduction of an A* ...
A. S. Neill
(1883–1973)Alexander Sutherland Neill was an exponent of democratic, pupil‐centred, or ‘free’ schooling, and the founder of Summerhill School. His reaction to his own Calvinist upbringing led him to ...
ability grouping
Grouping pupils together in classes to be taught according to their ability. In the United Kingdom this is not usually the case, as pupils are normally grouped according to age, and within a national ...
academic
1 An adjective used to describe learning and related activities which are largely of a cognitive nature and involve the acquisition, exploration, or application of knowledge, often of an abstract ...
academic board
A committee of staff and managers in a university or college which meets regularly for the purpose of regulating and monitoring the academic affairs of the institution. Staff members are usually ...
academic monitoring
The process of observing students' academic progress in one or more subject over a period of time. It is used by teachers to compare the performance of a particular student to that of his/her ...
academy
1 A specialist school or college, usually providing training in the arts or in a specific profession; for example, a music academy or a military academy. It may also be applied to a secondary school, ...
accelerated learning
A range of techniques which are claimed to increase the learner's capacity to absorb and retain information by focusing on learning how to learn. Proponents suggest that we use only a small ...
access arrangements
Adjustments which are made which enable students with particular needs to access tests and exams. Such arrangements must not give students an unfair advantage. Students entitled to access ...
Access course
Known in full as an ‘Access to Higher Education course’, this is a programme of study specifically designed for adults without formal entry qualifications such as Advanced Levels (A levels) seeking ...
Access Fund
A source of financial support for students aged 16 or over in full‐time education whose studies involve costs (for example, for specialist equipment) which they are not able to meet; or who face ...
Access to Employment
(A2e)A pathfinder project which aimed to enable adults, including people with disabilities or learning difficulties, to gain the skills needed to enter employment. The project concentrated on ...
accessibility plans
Since 2003 it has been a requirement that all schools possess an accessibility plan. These must describe how the school intends to improve access for pupils with disabilities to the curriculum, ...
accountability
Educational institutions, in the persons of their managers and governing bodies, are required to account publicly and, in the case of schools, particularly to parents for their performance through ...
accreditation
1 The awarding of credit to an individual student for achievement of, or towards, a qualification. See also accreditation of prior learning.2 A process by which an organization or institution, such ...
Action for Employment
(A4e)Originally formed in 1986, A4e is now an international organization which helps people to return to work as well as providing a training and recruitment support service for businesses. The ...
active learning
Learning which encourages the pupil or student to engage actively with what is being learned through activities such as group discussion, role play, or experimentation, rather than passively ...
active vocabulary
The range of words which an individual is able to use accurately in their speech (active spoken vocabulary), or their writing (active written vocabulary), or both of these. The active vocabulary does ...
activity
A task or exercise undertaken by the learner, and usually set by the teacher, which has an intended learning outcome. Such activities range from the fairly passive—for example, listening attentively ...
admissions
The process of gaining a place at—being admitted to—a school, college, or university. Schools have been required since 2007 to ensure that their admissions code promotes social cohesion. This ...
