The former Department for Education Permanent Secretary
argues that "monolithic" Whitehall departments are too remote from
schools to be cost-effective or efficient in managing the system. He also says
that given the scale of public finance cuts and the public's anti-politics
mood, the state must rethink its relationship with the schools sector - by
devolving power and trusting to frontline teachers, Higher Education and
industry.
I totally agree with this statement. In a business world, as leaders, we isolate
ourselves from the coal face by analysing figures and attending meetings,
delegating responsibility for management of productivity to our managers (i.e.
Head teachers and Principles). Politics
is no different; they disassociate themselves from the coal face, spend their
time crunching numbers and making decisions without thinking about the serious
impact that their decisions have on the everyday schools, colleges or academies.
There are a number of solutions we could adopt (or the
politicians could adopt):
·
A new, permanent, independent strategic advisory
body to oversee curriculum and assessment policy - Sir David suggests a
potential model is Sir John Armitt's proposal for an independent National
Infrastructure Commission, which would set long-term priorities on all
significant transport, energy, regeneration and environmental projects - with a
full reassessment every 10 years adopted by government, underpinned by detailed
monitoring and annual reports to Parliament.
·
A moratorium for the next Parliament on new
schools legislation and any major new structural changes to the National
Curriculum and qualifications systems, on top of existing planned reforms.
·
The slimming down of the Department for
Education's remit radically - refocusing it on giving overall strategic
direction.
·
A long-term plan to expand A-levels into a
"broader and deeper" baccalaureate-system - with core specialisms
supplemented by extended project work; top-level literacy, numeracy, computer
science for all; and softer, non-cognitive skills. Sir David criticises the
current government for retaining an "out-of-date" system when the
economy and society "can least afford it".
·
The School Direct teacher training system to be
formally reviewed after the General Election, to stop "good, proven"
university post-graduate courses being put at risk.
Education is rarely out of the news and many pundits have
the cure for these ills. Sadly too many are narrowly focused and obsessed with
academic excellence, academic rigour on curriculum change, testing, league
tables – about the 3 R’s and making exams harder. Sub-editors and the Secretary
of State for Education work on headlines about ‘fewer retakes’ ‘tougher exams’
‘less course work’ ‘reading books’ and ‘writing poetry’.
Of course numeracy and literacy are vital parts of a
civilised society and some testing is no bad thing – life sends us tests every
day; bidding for work, designing and delivering new projects and we must be
ready for that. But this language feels like rolling back the clock instead of
looking forward to what we need urgently for the 21st century not the 20th.
Is anywhere near
enough thought being given to whether we will have a meaningful process to
equip students for the world of work? For a constructive role as citizens in
modern society? For learning how to learn and go on learning and for testing
the right things?
Technology has made it easier to access other people and
global knowledge than at any time in our history. This suggests we should be
doing more to help students develop the entrepreneurial and creative mind-sets
vital for the knowledge economy and doing less to cram facts in their heads for
exams more suited to the old economy.
How are we going to
prepare students for this world and – if what we measure is what we get – what
will need to change in school life and school exams to deliver the workforce
and social beings we will need tomorrow?
Advocates of vocational education point to a variety of
advantages, but the strongest ones are economic. Two in particular stand out:
first, the provision of specialist skills can enhance individual earning
capacity – and therefore economic growth in the aggregate – by easing the
transition from education to the workplace; second, such education is more
appealing to students who see its relevance far more clearly than they do that
of traditional academic subjects.
There is no money to train the staff, there
is a massive pressure on schools to meet attainment levels, and the staff are
over-worked. This spiral of deprivation
sees Heads and Principals making incredibly tough financial choices about which
service to lose in order to survive!
This is not what our
Education system should be like!
Please follow me on LinkedIn
as I aim to change Policy! I want the
£17 Billion of tax Payers money spent on Multi-Agency Post Interventions for
Excluded Children to be spent on Early Interventions in Schools. AND I don’t want the School to have to fund
this out of their meagre budgets!
Follow me on LinkedIn as I need a Bigger Voice to change Policy!
https://uk.linkedin.com/pub/grant-stanley/9b/21a/401
www.grantstanley.co.uk
by Grant Stanley 2018
Comments
Post a Comment