By Peter Vale and Steven Karataglidis. The southern hemisphere’s cold weather is a certain signal that winter conference season is upon us.
In the coming weeks academics – from many disciplines – will be spending freezing nights in student dorms and days exchanging disciplinary gossip on the plight of the universities and on what is new in their chosen field. More...

By Peter Davies. During the UK’s EU referendum campaign, the economy was reported to be an important topic for the electorate. Yet voters said they were not being told enough to get a clear view of the economic consequences of their choice. More...

By Simon Burgess. Something extraordinary happened to the pupils of Elizabeth Garrett Anderson School in London in 2009. Michelle Obama visited that April while in London with her husband for a G20 summit, then asked pupils from the school to meet her in Oxford two years later, and finally invited a dozen pupils to visit her in the White House in 2012. More...

By Andrew Linn. After Brexit, there are various things that some in the EU hope to see and hear less in the future. One is Nigel Farage. Another is the English language.
In the early hours of June 24, as the referendum outcome was becoming clear, Jean-Luc Mélenchon, left-wing MEP and French presidential candidate, tweeted that “English cannot be the third working language of the European parliament”.
This is not the first time that French and German opinion has weighed in against alleged disproportionate use of English in EU business More...

By Catriona Pennell and Mark Sheehan. As commemorations to mark the centenary of the Battle of Somme begin, its clear that World War I retains a lingering and vivid presence in the countries which fought in it. But the unfolding centenary anniversaries can also be understood as a moment of heightened anxiety about the future of the way the war is remembered More...

By John R. Woodward and Marwan Fayed. News that numerous cathedrals are offering short courses in Latin is a reminder of the long decline of the language over the years. It was a core subject in the British education system until fairly recently – and not because anyone planned to speak it, of course. More...

By Tom Perry and Rebecca Morris. With Theresa May as the new prime minister at the helm of the Conservatives, speculation is already mounting about whether her support for a new academically selective grammar school in her own constituency will translate into national educational policy. This will be a big question for her newly appointed secretary of state for education, Justine Greening. More...