SECONDARY NEWS
Three quarters of secondary school pupils using AI for homework
Research by leading online education platform Save My Exams has found that 75% of UK secondary school students in the UK are using AI for homework.
During a recent episode of Channel 4’s Educating Yorkshire, an English teacher at Thornhill Community Academy raised concerns that a student had used AI to write an essay on Shakespeare’s Macbeth, with the teacher also discussing the difficulties of proving it and the lack of training they had received. Thornhill’s Headteacher, Mr Burton, commented: “AI is a new problem. Schools are finding out what the right way to use AI is and how to utilise its capabilities and then also be aware of the potential pitfalls.”
Save My Exams’ data reveals the extent of the issue on a national scale. Research from Save My Exams found that 75% of students use AI for homework, with 24% using it daily, 44% weekly, and 32% monthly. This reliance on AI reflects students’ perceptions of whether its use counts as cheating. Over two-thirds (68%) of students don’t consider using AI for homework to be cheating, while more than half of parents (55%) do.
The findings further highlight the need for guidance, as a significant proportion of students may be relying on AI without verifying its accuracy. The research uncovered that over a third (35%) of students don’t fact-check the information that AI tools generate.
While 56% of students said they feel confident identifying AI work, most struggled in practice. When presented with two answers to an exam-style question, one written by a teacher and the other by ChatGPT, 67% incorrectly believed the AI response had been written by a human, showing that students often cannot distinguish AI-generated work from human writing. Despite almost two in five (38%) of UK parents believing that AI should be banned in schools, the research found that 70% of parents surveyed said they’d be more likely to help their children use AI if their school provided training. Similarly, 82% of students said they’d be more likely to use AI if their school taught them how to use it effectively, with a further 61% saying that they would use AI more often if schools implemented a policy.
50 Oldham students awarded Greater Manchester’s first MEGA Scholarships
Oldham has become the first region in Greater Manchester to award 50 young people with landmark MEGA Scholarships, opening the door to future careers in cyber and technology.
The pioneering scholarships from the MEGA (Motivated, Educated, Generation with Ambition) Hubs programme, developed by professional technology training and skills provider IN4 Group and funded by Oldham Council, were officially launched at a special celebration event hosted by sponsor, the housing association First Choice Homes Oldham (FCHO).
The 50 successful students, from Oldham College, North Chadderton Sixth Form, Crompton House Sixth Form, The Blue Coat Sixth Form College, and Oldham Sixth Form College, each received a commemorative plaque and MEGA goodie bag to mark the achievement.
The launch followed an earlier assessment centre event, where 84 students from across Oldham took part in a competitive day of tasks, including coding challenges, responding to a ransomware attack, soft skills development, and speed networking with industry
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www.education-today.co.uk professionals, to secure their scholarship place.
As part of the programme, each scholarship student will receive a £1,000 bursary, mentoring, workplace visits, hackathons, industry placements, and the option of undertaking a cyber security qualification, counting towards UCAS points, or industry-recognised Microsoft and AWS qualifications. They will also gain unique exposure to some of the world’s leading employers, including KPMG UK, Northrop Grumman, CGI, BT, QinetiQ, Roke, and Energus, building vital skills and networks to prepare them for high-value digital careers.
The Oldham MEGA Hub is part of IN4 Group’s wider blueprint to inspire the next generation of digital talent, improve academic attainment, and create local pathways into high-value careers. To date, 543 students in Oldham have been engaged through MEGA Days, the Super Curricular Club, and the MEGA Scholarship programme. Of these, 37% are female and 47% are from ethnic minority backgrounds, with all 15 secondary schools in the borough involved in MEGA Hubs activity.
November 2025
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