Online law school bursts onto scene for SQE – Legal Futures

Posted November 28th, 2019 in examinations, legal education, news, solicitors by sally

‘An online-only law school entered the market yesterday to deliver the new Solicitors Qualifying Examination (SQE), with heavyweight backing from leading academics and lawyers.’

Full Story

Legal Futures, 28th November 2019

Source: www.legalfutures.co.uk

Pre-92 universities lead way with BPTC pass-rates – Legal Futures

Posted November 26th, 2019 in barristers, examinations, legal education, news, universities by tracey

‘The pre-1992 universities achieve the best results in the centralised exams taken by students on the Bar Professional Training Course (BPTC), it has emerged.’

Full Story

Legal Futures, 26th November 2019

Source: www.legalfutures.co.uk

Approval of SQE not a foregone conclusion, LSB warns – Legal Futures

‘Approval of the Solicitors Qualifying Examination (SQE) is not a foregone conclusion, the Legal Services Board (LSB) is to make clear to the Solicitors Regulation Authority (SRA).’

Full Story

Legal Futures, 12th November 2019

Source: www.legalfutures.co.uk

AQA could face class action suit from parents of children who were possibly given ‘incorrect’ grades – Daily Telegraph

‘The UK’s biggest exam board could face class action from parents, following revelations that answers were being “remarked” by the same examiners.’

Full Story

Daily Telegraph, 16th October 2019

Source: www.telegraph.co.uk

‘Staggering’ Home Office disregard for innocent people saw thousands lose visas in cheating scandal, MPs say – The Independent

Posted September 18th, 2019 in delay, examinations, fraud, government departments, news, universities, visas by tracey

‘The Home Office showed “staggering” disregard for innocent people during the visa scandal that saw more than 50,000 overseas students accused of cheating and cost taxpayers nearly £20m, MPs have said. The Public Accounts Committee found that hundreds of people were still protesting their innocence at “great personal cost” more than five years after being accused of fraudulently passing English language tests due to the Home Office’s delay in responding to indications that some may have been wrongly caught up in the probe.’

Full Story

The Independent, 18th September 2019

Source: www.independent.co.uk

Alison Berridge, Alexandra Littlewood and Ciar McAndrew: Freedom of Information Journal – Recent decisions of the Commissioner and Tribunal – Monckton Chambers

‘Alison Berridge, Alexandra Littlewood and Ciar McAndrew, public law barristers at Monckton Chambers, highlight the points of interest from April-June decisions of the First-Tier and Upper Tribunals.’

Full Story

Monckton Chambers, 20th August 2019

Source: www.monckton.com

SRA considers ditching skills testing from first part of SQE – Legal Futures

‘The Solicitors Regulation Authority (SRA) is considering whether to abandon the skills element of the first stage of the Solicitors Qualifying Exam (SQE), meaning it would consist entirely of multiple-choice questions.’

Full Story

Legal Futures, 31st July 2019

Source: www.legalfutures.co.uk

Home Office used ‘confused, misleading, incomplete and unsafe’ evidence to revoke visas of tens of thousands of international students, report finds – The Independent

‘Tens of thousands of international students had their visas revoked after the Home Office used “confused, misleading, incomplete and unsafe” evidence, MPs have said. The department ignored expert advice and relied on “dodgy” evidence when it accused almost 34,000 students of cheating in English language tests in 2015, according to a new report published by the all-party parliamentary group (APPG) on the Test of English for International Communication (Toeic).’

Full Story

The Independent, 18th July 2019

Source: www.independent.co.uk

‘Discredited’ test used on two in five Syrian asylum seekers in UK – The Guardian

Posted June 18th, 2019 in asylum, examinations, government departments, immigration, news by tracey

‘Almost two in five Syrian asylum seekers were made to take a widely criticised language test to prove their nationality, the Guardian can reveal. Campaigners and experts have criticised the Home Office for the widespread use of language analysis on those claiming to have fled Syria, describing it as “pseudoscience” and a political tool to exclude migrants.’

Full Story

The Guardian, 17th June 2019

Source: www.theguardian.com

Investigation into the response to cheating in English language tests – National Audit Office

Posted May 24th, 2019 in auditors, examinations, fraud, immigration, press releases, statistics, visas by tracey

‘The National Audit Office (NAO) has today published its investigation into the Home Office’s response to widespread cheating by international students in English language tests. Clearly widespread cheating did take place but some people may have been wrongly accused and in some cases, unfairly removed from the UK.’

Full press release

National Audit Office, 24th May 2019

Source: www.nao.org.uk

Parents of student who died in suicide over anxiety attacks to sue Bristol University – The Independent

‘The parents of a student who took her own life because she was too anxious to make a public presentation are taking legal action against her university.’

Full Story

The Independent, 19th May 2019

Source: www.independent.co.uk

English teacher refused UK visa because her English isn’t up to ‘standard’ – The Independent

Posted September 7th, 2018 in examinations, news, visas by tracey

‘An English teacher has been refused the right to join her fiance in the UK after the Home Office claimed her English does not meet the required standard.’

Full Story

The Independent, 7th September 2018

Source: www.independent.co.uk

Government ‘complicit in school’s illegal exclusion policy’ – BBC News

Posted July 27th, 2018 in examinations, government departments, news, school exclusions by sally

‘The government has been “complicit” in an illegal policy that saw a school force out pupils unlikely to achieve high grades, campaigners have claimed.’

Full Story

BBC News, 27th July 2018

Source: www.bbc.co.uk

Exam boards launch legal challenge over government’s flagship T-level qualifications – The Independent

Posted July 19th, 2018 in education, examinations, news by tracey

‘Legal action has been launched against the Department for Education over the introduction of the government’s flagship technical qualification, by the body which represents exam boards.’

Full Story

The Independent, 19th July 2018

Source: www.independent.co.uk

Inquiry condemns school that barred A-level pupils – The Guardian

Posted July 11th, 2018 in examinations, inquiries, news, school exclusions by tracey

‘An independent inquiry into a top grammar school, which was revealed by a Guardian investigation to be forcing out pupils who were unlikely to get top grades at A-level, has delivered a damning report accusing the school of illegally treating its students as “collateral damage” in the pursuit of its own interests.’

Full Story

The Guardian, 10th July 2018

Source: www.theguardian.com

Trainee barristers told they will be marked down for wearing short skirts – The Guardian

Posted April 17th, 2018 in barristers, examinations, freedom of expression, news, universities by tracey

‘Trainee barristers are being told they will be docked points in their exams if they wear short skirts, colourful socks or “kinky boots”. A handbook at the BPP university law school warns students that they may lose points if they do not adopt an extremely conservative dress code in their advocacy assessments.’

Full Story

The Guardian, 16th April 2018

Source: www.theguardian.com

Barrister who lied about LLM and death penalty experience to gain pupillage disbarred – Legal Futures

‘A barrister has been disbarred for lying about her qualifications and experience, including a claim that she had saved 10 men from the death penalty in Malawi.’

Full Story

Legal Futures, 1st March 2018

Source: www.legalfutures.co.uk

Oxford University not at fault for graduate’s 2:1 as he may have ‘simply coasted’, judge rules – Daily Telegraph

Posted February 8th, 2018 in examinations, news, universities by tracey

‘Oxford University was not at fault for a graduate’s 2:1 degree as he may have “simply coasted”, a judge has ruled.’

Full Story

Daily Telegraph, 7th February 2018

Source: www.telegraph.co.uk

Court comes down hard on fake certificate sellers – Technology Law Update

Posted September 28th, 2017 in examinations, fraud, news by sally

‘Students hoping to secure places in higher education or with employers will want to put their best foot forward with a sheaf of hard-won qualifications. But fake certificates sold online are an increasing problem. Now the body representing the main UK examination boards, the Joint Council for Qualifications or JCQ, has won an important court victory against the fraudsters, sending a strong message to others making money from this illicit trade.’

Full Story

Technology Law Update, 27th September 2017

Source: www.technology-law-blog.co.uk

Calls for inquiry into grammar school that ‘unlawfully’ excluded students – The Guardian

Posted September 5th, 2017 in education, examinations, news, school exclusions by sally

‘Parents and former governors at a leading grammar school found to be systematically excluding pupils halfway through their A-level studies say there needs to be a full inquiry in order to restore confidence in the school.’

Full Story

The Guardian, 4th September 2017

Source: www.theguardian.com