Best of Today

Former aid worker Simon Boas, whose essays about his feelings towards life and death went viral, died in July aged 47.

He was told he had terminal throat cancer in 2023 and began writing about his experiences in his local newspaper, the Jersey Evening Post. This inspired readers across the country.

His book, A Beginner's Guide to Dying, will be posthumously published in September.

If one of his final interviews before his death, Simon spoke to Emma Barnett on Radio 4's Today programme in June 2024 ahead of being moved to a hospice.

Listen to the Today programme on Radio 4 and BBC Sounds: 6-9am Monday-Friday; and 7-9am on Saturdays.

The government has started a major review of the curriculum and assessment in England's schools, chaired by education policy expert Becky Francis. But how could we rethink England's curriculum and assessment?

Today hears from schools across the country trying new ways of doing things from using AI in classrooms to a more skills based approach and looking at why the 'exam season' might cease to exist.

The series hears from: former Conservative Schools Minister Nick Gibb; Jill Duffy from the OCR exam board; Jason Arday, former guest editor of the Today Programme and professor of the sociology of education at Cambridge University; Sir Ian Livingstone, a giant of modern British business and the man behind the Livingstone Academy; and Claire Heald, CEO of the Cam Academy Trust.

Producer: Sareen Bains

Listen to the Today programme on Radio 4 and BBC Sounds: 6-9am Monday-Friday, and 7-9am on Saturdays.

Earlier this year, the Today programme gave our listeners the chance to look at an issue that matters to them.

Herbie and Ayesha both voted for the first time this year.

They wanted to look at the disconnect they believe exists between young people and politicians.

Listen to the other stories explored by our listeners this week on Radio 4 and BBC Sounds between 6am-9am.