Don’t say goodbye to Mr Chips!!! Maybe its because I’ve read Lord of the Flies but I’m not sure putting children in charge of education is the best thing for them, our schools, or, indeed, all of our futures. In her ‘Utopian Thinking’ piece in the Guardian, Rachel Roberts argues: There are a few things … More Democratic Education is no Utopia
To be cultured means to nail one’s colours to the mast, and those who fear what’s arbitrary in that (and run to theory for protection) fear culture itself. Howard Jacobson The importance of tradition, the great tradition, is not that it is the only possibility but it is the best one that we have. For … More Get Kids Cultured
We are living in interesting times… The future is glimpsed through a glass, darkly and, indeed, there may be dark times ahead. A concatenation of unfortunate events are all that is needed for the future to not be as predicted. One minute all is good, the next you are knocked over by the proverbial 48 … More Time to Ditch ‘Those’ 21st Century Skills
When all kids have grit, what then? When every school is outstanding, what then? When every target is reached or surpassed, what then? When everyone’s mindset is switched to growth, what then? When all is meritocratic and we all get to where we ought to be, what then? When every twenty-first century skill has been … More What Then?
Are schools exam factories? Take a look at a picture of a contemporary factory production line, how does the analogy pan out? Are the robots teachers? The products, children? The outcome, the exam? If a car factory makes cars, an exam factory makes exams, Pearson? Well, no, the child must be the outcome, but not any colour … More Are Schools Exam Factories?
As April is the cruelest month I take a jaunt down by the river and see how things are progressing, so much building is going on, people moving in, putting plant pots on their balconies, and a bike on the nineteenth floor. Down on Greenwich Reach potential purchasers are promised property that combines: “…brilliant architecture, … More Schools, Business and ‘Providing Intelligence’
“Education is simply the soul of a society as it passes from one generation to another.” GK Chesterton We need to summon up the spirit of, the albeit fictional, Ned Ludd and Captain Swing. We need to smash up the 21st century equivalents of the threshing machines and power looms! O Teachers! Click on this … More Teachers! A Call to Arms!
Twitter is awash with adults grabbing their mobile phones to tweet their outrage at the use of mobile phones by pupils in schools. There is evidence to prove student test scores can be improved if you ban mobile phones, the evidence “suggests that restricting mobile phone use can be a low-cost policy to reduce educational inequalities.” … More Mobile Phones for Life!
Trivium 21c 