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  • Has Education UK lost its way?

    Friday 19 November 2010

    Categories: Education, Extra curricular, Higher Education, Media Influence, Teenagers

    There seems to me to have been a national shift over recent years to a perceived emphasis on examinations rather than education; on structures rather than students; inspection rather than inspiration; on specifications rather than scholarship; compliance rather than common sense; and testing rather than teaching. The result at a national level has been a distortion of purpose and outcomes.

    This is not the fault of schools, but of previous Government initiatives. While the new Government is seeking, I hope, to address this drift, there is much work to be done.

    We have seen the negative effects of the pressure of league tables, of the hoop-jumping assessment objectives of examinations, and of the tedious time-consuming, tick-box regulatory regime, which shifts and complicates constantly. It is not that inspection and testing should not have their due place: it is a question of proportion. At a time of such economic pressure and competition for university places and jobs, that balance can come under even greater strain and scrutiny.

    We in GSA are proud of the balance we work hard to strike. We enable girls to achieve excellent results and go on to great universities and careers, while we focus, too, on the development of the individual at a deeper level than any string of grades can ever reflect. There are no A*s for determination, integrity, leadership potential, responsibility, values, kindness, common sense or a positive attitude to life.

    I am not suggesting a retreat from the traditional curriculum. I am delighted that Michael Gove is looking very seriously at certain subjects and placing a renewed emphasis on history and literature (though Dryden may be harder to sell than he thinks), and I hope he will combine the best of old and new in his plans. I hope too that he will not stop there as he examines our cultural capital and its place in schools, but will go further to reaffirm the role of the arts in education, in particular. We must not ignore those things which deeply enrich lives.

    As we accept the very real imperative to deliver employability, we must not lose sight of the broad skills which employers seek, and the value of a liberal education which includes the humanities and an appreciation of the arts. It is too easy and short-sighted, in these difficult times, to focus on a purely functional approach to education.

    In GSA schools, areas of personal development flourish alongside scholarship and enterprise. Scholarship is an unfashionable word. But it’s not fusty or irrelevant or elitist. It’s about the magic of discovery, about independent thought, about knowing how to learn and being hungry to do so.

    Our students can expect to have numerous jobs in their working lives. That takes resilience as much as flexibility. I am conscious that young people are under unprecedented pressure today. In 2007 UNICEF rated the wellbeing of children and adolescents in the UK the lowest of 21 rich nations.

    We must not underestimate the increasing pressure posed by the education system itself: the endless testing, the introduction of the A* at A levels, the consequently higher hurdles for some top universities, together with the devaluing of the A. And consider too the A* at GCSE – one mistake on a bad day, at the age of just 16, that brings one A* grade down to an A, and it’s no go at certain universities for you! And what about the increasingly intense competition for university places and the huge debts our future undergraduates are likely to incur?

    Everything they do must now tick a box towards future study and career. What of the gap year? The CEO of UCAS, thinks it should be renamed the “bridging year” and put to good purpose to secure a university place. In the current climate of competition for university places, I understand the rationale for her advice. But can they not be carefree, be young, for even a short time and, in that time, develop the confidence and resilience they will so badly need, broaden their interests, and grow up? It seems to me that there will soon be no time left for young people to “stand and stare”, to allow them to grow, to become more fully themselves, let alone have fun.

    I am not endorsing endless freebie holidays paid for by families. I believe that young people should work to pay for these travels, and engage in worthwhile projects. But we must be careful not to squash the natural idealism, the sense of adventure and the innate passion of young people into utilitarian boxes where everything must be “strategic”, “focused” and “targeted”.

    All this is why the extensive opportunities, the space to be themselves, the balance of hard work and fun, and the expert pastoral care we offer so superbly in GSA schools matter so much.’

    Gillian Low was addressing the Girls’ Schools Association’s annual conference in Manchester on Monday 15th November 2010

    Posted by Gillian Low

Your comments

All private schools- GSA and HMC- need to be careful that they practise what they preach on their websites. The rhetoric of positive psychology and character development is often as vacuous and insidious as that of the exam culture. Management consultancy must be repelled at all costs- it has largely failed in the world of business and has crept into the educational sphere. It is perhaps time for independent schools to be just that and to take a lead. Neil Postman called for a subversive model of education and when the capitalist model has so glaringly failed it is about time schools reorientated themselves to put people first. Results are less important than gaining a love of learning, of life, of yourself and of others.

By mag on Friday 18 February 2011

I agree. My daughter is in Year 11 (GCSE year)now, and she is finding it constantly stressful because nearly every week there’s a coursework deadline, a module of assessed work, or something. She wants to get A* grades and this means learning the mark schemes in detail to “tick every box”. That is not education! I don’t blame the school, it is the system, as you say. I think I was very lucky to be at school in the “O” Level era. It was still hard work to do well in “O” levels, but that work was leading to real progress in the subject, not just an in-depth knowledge of the examiners’ requirements. The distraction from real learning is so frustrating for my daughter, and I feel helpless, there is no alternative for her but to jump through the hoops. I do hope Mr Gove’s reforms will make a difference by the time my son is that age.

By blackpoplar on Saturday 27 November 2010

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