Monday briefing: What will it take to turn around our struggling education system?

Smartphones have become a focus of the debate about young people’s engagement with learning, but schools must also look at how they teach. Photograph: Peter Lopeman/Alamy

Good morning. I’m back, but don’t get too excited. I’ll just be making guest appearances here and there.

Now, on to children, who – if the steady stream of warnings is anything to go by – are in serious trouble. There’s the pull of addictive screens, a sharp drop in children reading for pleasure, a global decline in academic performance, and a notable rise in youth mental health struggles. Together, these trends point to a wider crisis in learning.