2026-11-02 — Competition and Education Briefing

Ireland

All Ireland Linguistics Olympiad Registration Closes This Friday

Deadline reminder — 6 November 2026

Registration for AILO 2026/27 closes on Friday, 6 November, ahead of the school-based preliminary round during the week beginning 9 November.

The competition accepts second-level students across the island of Ireland, including registered home-schooled students. It has Junior and Senior categories, and no prior knowledge of linguistics or foreign languages is required. Students may enter only one national linguistics olympiad per school year.

AILO — Registration · Official 2026/27 Brochure. AILO

United Kingdom

Derby Announces Citywide School Inclusion Training Day

Published — 2 November 2026 | England

Derby City Council has announced that 2,600 school staff will participate in an inclusion training day on 27 November. All 106 schools in the city have adopted the Derby City Inclusion Charter.

The programme will focus on practical classroom approaches, inclusive learning environments and relationships, bringing together teachers, teaching assistants, school leaders and special educational needs coordinators.

Derby City Council — School Inclusion Day. Derby City Council

School Funding Forecast Requires an Important Clarification

Correction to the 30 October briefing | England

The earlier briefing did not adequately distinguish a funding forecast from an agreed government decision.

Schools Week explains that the projected 2% real-terms fall in total mainstream school spending between 2028/29 and 2031/32 reflects an OBR assumption: funding per pupil stays constant in real terms while pupil numbers decline. It is not an announced funding cut. Actual allocations remain subject to future government decisions.

Schools Week — What the School Budget Forecast Means. schoolsweek.co.uk

United States

COMAP Mathematical Modelling Competitions Close Registration on Wednesday

Deadline reminder — 4 November 2026 | International participation

Registration for the US-organised High School Mathematical Contest in Modeling (HiMCM) and Middle Mathematical Contest in Modeling (MidMCM) closes at 2pm EST on 4 November. The contest window runs from 4–17 November.

Teams comprise up to four students from the same eligible school, institution or programme, with a faculty advisor. HiMCM accepts high-school students and younger entrants; MidMCM is for students aged 14½ or below at the start. Registration costs $100 per team.

The 2026 rules include revised affiliation requirements, an updated AI policy and a new submission process. These international contests are listed here because COMAP is US-based.

COMAP — Official Rules, Eligibility and Registration Deadlines. contest.comap.org

Teachers’ Union Challenges Delays in Public Service Loan Forgiveness

Reported — 2 November 2026

The American Federation of Teachers and nine borrowers have filed a lawsuit alleging delayed loan-forgiveness decisions and the removal of previously credited qualifying payments. The programme covers eligible public-service workers, including school-district teachers.

The Education Department says it is correcting errors in payment counts. The allegations remain contested; the lawsuit does not itself change teachers’ eligibility.

Education Week — Teachers’ Union Lawsuit Over Loan Forgiveness. edweek.org