There was an old man called Michael…..

“There was an old man called Michael Finnagen, he grew whiskers on his chinnagen, the wind came up and blew them inagen. Poor old Michael Finnagen. Beginagen.”

Education (and other) policies seem an eternal “beginagen” routines when it is announced that “children must learn literacy and numeracy”. The obvious question is why there such large numbers who haven’t achieved after years of schooling when those like Michael Gove and Michael Wilshaw, self appointed know-it-alls, have been left in charge. Now Nicky Morgan, supposedly Gove’s successor, wants kids to know the 12 times table, it is reported. Why the 12 time table? Are we about to go back to pounds, shillings and pence?

How is it that education is equated with rote learning of specific items, apparently picked out of the air by those with no educational training. Of course this has nothing to do with education, it’s just another panic measure trotted out after another spate of bad publicity. Supposedly it is to tell the Sun and Daily Mail reader that what they are thought to regard as education is also a concern to, in this case, the Tories. (Since a number of the guys have been “educated” at Eton just what are they talking about? What exactly is it they think that the masses need?

It doesn’t look like something to do with being able to think for themselves. (Is that what Eton et al are about?) The problem is that whenever someone else takes over education we seem to go back to the beginning or basics so nothing seemingly progresses. “Education” starts earlier and earlier in the UK – whereas elsewhere in the developed world children might start formal learning at 7. When, they ask, will children learn to play? In Britain play isn’t popularly seen to be learning. Stress laden classes must begin as soon as possible after leaving the womb. Counterproductive? Well the experiments with the private sector leading hasn’t been exactly promising with academies and free schools showing no advance over state run schools. In process accountability has been lost and this year even the league tables have fallen apart so no one has a clue how schools are performing, even in the narrow world the UK education is being made by the ignorant and privatisation-driven political elite.

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