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1. Our weekly grump from Richard Watson Todd, the last in his mini-series on academic publishing, O brave new world that has such people in’t! https://grumpy.hcommons.org/2026/08/30/o-brave-new-world-that-has-such-people-int/

Spoiler alert: it’s not an optimistic end to the series!

If you missed them, you’ll find Richard’s earlier posts in this series on his blog’s home page.

2. A snippet from today’s Popbitch e-mail that surprised me, because it wasn’t about celebrity misbehaviour: <Eleven plus two> is an exact anagram of <twelve plus one>.

3. How to help a young child build executive function by Amanda Ruggeri for BOLD https://boldscience.org/how-to-help-a-young-child-build-executive-function/

When a 2-year-old in a meltdown hits her mother, her executive function is in the earliest stages of development. When, at five, the same child clenches her fists and shouts that she’s angry, instead of hitting, that’s likely her increased executive function at work. Executive function describes the cognitive processes that allow us to deliberate rationally, make intentional decisions, work towards goals, and switch between tasks. At its core is the regulation and control of our behavior – rather than simply acting on impulse. As anyone who spends time with children knows, these skills take time to develop …

I should declare an interest here: my grandson is nearly 2!

4. The global context for the ELT (English Language Teaching) industry remains a very challenging one. Here’s a recent report by Bonard https://tinyurl.com/y9u9jfvv (PDF below) for English UK, The global position of the UK ELT sector in 2025 which, although it manages to end on a reasonably upbeat note

The UK enters 2026 in a relatively strong global position. Although the sector declined in 2025, it performed better than several other major ELT destinations and remained the largest market by student numbers. Among the mature ELT destinations, the UK’s competitive position has stayed comparatively stable despite the wider decline in international mobility.

has to admit that

2026 is likely to remain challenging for the UK ELT sector. Affordability pressures continue as the cost of travel, accommodation and studying abroad rises, while geopolitical instability, particularly in the Middle East, creates further uncertainty around an important source region for the UK. Early 2026 data from English UK’s quarterly intelligence scheme (QUIC) also indicate that UK ELT volumes remain under pressure. At the same time, students have more choice, including lower-cost regional destinations and English language provision closer to home.

Plus, PDF also below, English UK’s ‘snapshot’ data for Q2 of 2026 – care to guess which country sent the most students to the UK? I would not have got the right answer!

Thanks to @Jodie Gray for both of those!

5. Nothing inappropriately upbeat or downbeat, however, about the ‘Study’ section of the accredited official UK statistics, Why do people come to the UK?, which you’ll have to interpret for yourselves https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/immigration-system-statistics-year-ending-june-2026/why-do-people-come-to-the-uk-study

Since the January 2024 policy changes restricting most international students from bringing dependants, sponsored study visa grants have declined substantially. This has been driven by falls in both main applicant and dependant visas. Dependant grants dropped immediately following the policy changes and have since stabilised at a much lower level (YE June 2026 was 89% lower than the peak in the YE June 2023), while main applicant grants saw a steadier decline but have continued to trend downwards. Consequently, total sponsored study visa grants remain substantially below the levels seen before the policy changes were introduced.

Other sections of the statistics, including ‘Work’ and ‘Family’, here https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/immigration-system-statistics-year-ending-june-2026

6. And, finally, the video of Dr Roger Federer’s speech at Dartmouth College Commencement Day in 2024 https://youtu.be/pqWUuYTcG-o

If you’re in a hurry, which I thought I would be but ended up listening to the whole thing, his three life lessons from tennis begin 6 minutes in.

If you’d rather read about the speech, here’s The Athletic’s piece about it from 2025 https://tinyurl.com/47me9scp

One day last June, during a steady rain on a chilly morning in New Hampshire, Roger Federer told a story about failure. Over the course of two decades, he emerged as one of the greatest tennis players who ever lived. He played 1,526 singles matches in his career and won almost 80 percent. He hoisted 20 Grand Slam trophies, including Wimbledon a record eight times. “Now, I have a question for you,” Federer said, looking out across a sea of umbrellas at the commencement ceremony for Dartmouth College. “What percentage of points do you think I won in those matches?” He paused. “Only 54 percent,” he said …

Which country sent most English language students to the United Kingdom in the second quarter of 2026? Saudi Arabia!

CLAUDE CONFESSION

• Date again!
• Suggested Cres link to the Absyrtides https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Absyrtides might puzzle new readers but I’ve left it as it’s been there most of the summer
• Suggested I also name the author of the BOLD piece – accepted
• Link the two Bonard quotes better – accepted
• Suggested I trim last quote from The Athletic a little – accepted
• Correction of date of Roger Federer speech
• Spotted a full stop that should have been a comma
• Too gloomy a post overall – left as is! (Popbitch anagram added since.)