Fownhope’s Heart of Oak Society traces its roots to the age of friendly societies, when communities provided their own safety net. Its anniversary celebrations reveal a tradition still very much alive, says MARK SEDDON
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The Ministry of Defence must stay out of schools
Children don’t need militarism. They need a decent learning environment, writes RHIANNA LOUISE
ANGUS REID explains the significance of Cuba’s egalitarian in letter and spirit Family Code and the pertinent lessons it holds for democracies anywhere in the world
Special report by PEOPLE’S WORLD
NICK WRIGHT considers how the isolation of Israel and a new film on the controversial Italian communist leader are creating new reference points for Italy’s left
CARLOS MARTINEZ says Cuba’s achievements in the face of a criminal blockade are startling, but the island’s future if the United States succeeds in crushing it looks bleak
AMNON BROWNFIELD STEIN reports that far-right MPs who mobbed the event organised by Hadash may have helped raise awareness of the brutality of the Israeli right
“CADET units can improve attendance and educational achievement, supporting children in ways that schools cannot,” said an interim report on the social impact of cadet forces published this week by the University of Northampton.
Defence Secretary Michael Fallon praised the report while announcing 31 new cadet units in state schools.
The funding of the cadet expansion programme, part of nearly £90 million that has gone into military programmes in education since 2012, seems rather an anomaly.
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Afghan women living under the Taliban are navigating a system that makes their public existence conditional on male approval, writes SHUKRIA RAHIMI
With 12,000 fewer teachers since 2010 and dwindling resources, Scotland’s schools desperately need investment to support diverse learners rather than empty promises from politicians, writes ANDREA BRADLEY
In the second part of a two-part article, CONOR BOLLINS asks why the government’s ambition when it comes to the military is not applied to sectors where it could do real good
In part one of a two-part feature, CONOR BOLLINS asks whether we should be concerned about the Prime Minister’s military recruitment plans