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The properties of pyjamas

Ucas has found that large numbers of teenagers cheated by copying from websites offering advice on how to apply. A study of 50,000 forms concluded that one in 20 pupils lifted text for their “personal statement”, part of the application where candidates write about themselves and their interest in a subject. Last year, 800 medical students lifted chunks of text from the same site; 234 candidates said their interest in chemistry began when, at eight, they burned a hole in their pyjamas. There was a similar sense of déjà vu when 370 would-be doctors began with “a fascination for how the body works” and 175 wrote of their “elderly or infirm grandfather”.

Observer (Peter Barnes)

he English Way

Teachers have been given permission to discuss the controversial theory of creationism in science lessons.

Questions about creationism, says new government guidance, should provide an “opportunity to explain or explore why they are not considered to be scientific theories”.

Daily Telegraph (David Harling)

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