SAT maths scores soar after Tory reforms toughened up the exams and told teachers to focus on the basics Larger proportion of Year Six pupils are now meeting the required standard Some 79 per cent of pupils reached the expected standard in maths this year The ‘maths mastery’ approach involves children being taught as a … Read more
Runners who wear Nike’s fastest shoes may have a 4 to 5 per cent advantage over others during races, according to a recent New York Times analysis. Nike’s controversial Vaporfly shoe was met with constant debate before and after Eliud Kipchoge, who was wearing the shoes when he shattered the two-hour marathon record in Vienna … Read more
There are many lessons to be learned from the election, not least that British voters are a fundamentally sensible lot who don’t take kindly to being bullied by spittle-flecked extremists. But if it’s a masterclass in how to be a successful First Lady (in waiting) you’re after, look no further than Carrie Symonds. It’s not … Read more
Jake and Hannah Graf have revealed their excitement about becoming parents. They are the first set who are both transgender in Britain Jake and Hannah Graf are brimming with delighted anticipation, bursting to impart the happy news that they will become parents of a baby girl in April. ‘I’m so excited! I love little babies,’ … Read more
Brothers pen heartwarming letter to Santa which goes viral after asking the big man to finally visit them at their remote home in Brazil Zaquel da Silva Costa, 9, wrote a letter asking Santa Claus to finally visit their home in the eastern Brazilian state of Acre The boy said he and his brother have been … Read more
This time there is no one else for Jeremy Corbyn (pictured) to blame This time there is no one else for Jeremy Corbyn to blame. No ‘Blairite’ conspiracy that plotted to bring him down. No failures by other ‘comrades’ but simply the wrong policies with the wrong tactics, and a total failure to understand the … Read more
The Big Apple in December is glamorous and glittering, carried on a tide of spectacular department store window displays, floodlit ice rinks, Radio City Christmas specials and bell-ringing Santas on Fifth Avenue. But that all comes at a price. A sky-high price, in fact, along with impossible-to-get-in restaurants, sold-out Broadway shows and claustrophobic, congested sidewalks. … Read more
The easiest way to avoid a whopping mobile phone bill when you’re on holiday is to switch off your device and start relaxing. But most of us will want to make calls, send texts, check emails, explore social media or use the internet to work out map directions or how to visit local attractions. How … Read more
Draw up a wish-list list for an ideal family skiing holiday — proximity to slopes and ski school, enough altitude for good snow at the start or end of the season (prime school holiday time), no queues — and the list soon shrinks. So I was intrigued when a friend suggested Val Cenis. It sits … Read more
Dusseldorf might not be the first spot in Germany you’d think of for a weekend break. But there’s plenty to see and do — and eat and drink — in this city of 600,000, especially with its fantastic Christmas market in full swing right now. Its air of prosperity is evident everywhere, especially among citizens … Read more
To future generations, the names of toppled Labour strongholds will tell the story of Boris Johnson‘s tidal wave. It began in Blyth Valley, a former mining area in the North-East that had never before elected a Conservative. It swept through Darlington, Sedgefield and Great Grimsby, Stoke Central and West Bromwich, culminating in that extraordinary moment … Read more
More than one million people sign petition in protest at Netflix Christmas film depicting Jesus as gay A Christmas satire on Netflix depicting Jesus in a gay relationship has sparked a backlash in Brazil Almost 1.5 million people have signed a petition calling for the film to be axed The First Temptation of Christ is … Read more
As the decades passed, this idea helped expand what computers were capable of. Without high-level languages there would be no App Store, and no World Wide Web. Ralph Anthony Brooker was born on Sept, 22, 1925, in southwest London, the youngest son of Edwin Brooker, a civil servant, and Dorothy (Owen) Brooker, a homemaker. His … Read more