Our Blog

Understanding Bullying: How We Support Students

Bullying remains one of the most challenging issues young people face, and its impact can reach far beyond the classroom. For many parents, recognising when a child is struggling -and knowing how to help -can feel overwhelming. Changes in behaviour, reluctance to attend school, or sudden drops in confidence can all be signs that something deeper is going on. It’s important to remember that these...

Online vs In-Person Teaching

With the pandemic in the rearview mirror, we often reflect on how it has changed society. One of the biggest changes was the rise of online learning and collaborative platforms such as Zoom and Microsoft Teams. This revolutionised the world of work – leading to the rise of “remote” and “hybrid” work environments. Naturally this has influenced tutoring including here at Cardiff & Vale...

Is a degree worth the money?

The rate of students going to university has massively increased throughout the first quarter of the 21st century. In 2006, around 24.7% of state school students went to university – but this peaked at 38.2% in 2021before settling to 36.4% in 2024 (https://commonslibrary.parliament.uk/research-briefings/cbp-7857/). By 2023 just under half of English people aged 25 had gone to university at some ...

A New Era for Welsh Education: What the Curriculum Changes Mean for Students

The new academic year is upon us, and with it a new Welsh curriculum. The Welsh Government has overhauled the education system in an effort to create a more integrated learning experience (for further details see - https://hwb.gov.wales/curriculum-for-wales/assessment-arrangements/what-s-changing-in-assessment/ and https://hwb.gov.wales/api/storage/0f85def4-81a2-4a30-887c-df07b5cacb08/guide-to-cur...

Resilience

Results day – an anxious time for most, a scary time for some. This blog has already put together a go-to guide for those looking to prepare for results day and the potential of going through the Clearing process. So, for those of you looking to create your Plan B – please see our previous post. This time however, I want to discuss resilience within academic settings, and address those dreadin...

Guide to Clearing- Part 2

Hopefully you will have read part 1 to our Guide to Clearing, but if you have not – please see our previous entry before reading this one. In our previous blog, I provided a five-step guide to Clearing. In that blog I also noted that I had spent multiple years in a clearing centre in a university. During this time, I noted several key rules and developments that will be a key for a student lo...

Guide to Clearing- Part 1

Exam season is over, and of course, for many of you this includes the trepidation of Results Day. On the day, many of you will arrive at your school, collect your envelopes, and reveal your results. For many of you, this will be a time of incredible joy and relief – you got what you wanted, you got what you needed! The next step of your journey is set whether that be to a new school or sixth for...

From Exams to Excellence: Preparing for the Next Academic Chapter

So, we have passed through the exam period. Congratulations, you made it! All those hours of revision, preparation, the late nights and exam day frights – it is finally over. No more exam eve rush, no more “why am I putting myself through this” – you can finally relax. Now the time has come to shift down and prepare for summer. Hopefully many of you will be expecting great results come res...

School Closures-What Next?

Many have you might have seen the recent news that St Clare's School in Porthcawl and Oakleigh House in Swansea, both private schools owned by Cognita, are to be closed (Wales Online - https://www.walesonline.co.uk/news/education/two-top-welsh-private-schools-31604254). The news came as a shock to many, ironically including this author who has been working as a supply teacher in St Clare’s. The ...

What Influences Students?

With the recent release of Netflix’s Adolescence, the question of what influences young minds has naturally come to the fore. It is well known that students are constantly aware of the influence and expectations of their peers. This blog has recently written on this and the influence of peers upon student performance and behaviour. Impact of The Internet As Adolescence has shown, the interne...