Archive for category Education
Debugging the curriculum
Posted by Nick Cowen in Education on 14/06/2011
Via Bishop Hill, we learn that schools will no longer be required to teach climate change as part of the science curriculum. This is a good step, not so much because of the political controversies surrounding climate change policy, but because its inclusion helped to set a bad precedent. It has become a common tactic of influential interest groups (whether on the right or the left) to try and get their pet issues inserted into educational policy so that they can be advocated nationally to the detriment of other important content. This is one of the drivers of unnecessary centralisation in the education system. This process diminishes teachers’ professional autonomy, reduces their local accountability to parents, and forces them to waste time complying with Government directives rather than delivering engaging lessons. Moreover, in concentrating on topical issues rather than the knowledge necessary to grasp subject areas, children’s educational horizons have been narrowed.
The Pupil Premium Premier League
Posted by Stephen Clarke in Education, Politics on 13/06/2011
Late last month the Sutton Trust and Durham University released a report ranking 21 different strategies for improving pupil achievement. The report summarised the evidence relating to the strategies and commented on their value for money. The intention of the report is to provide schools with some evidence on what the ‘pupil premium’ (set to be £430, per qualifying pupil, in 2011/12) is best spent on. The results are interesting, but perhaps of limited use for schools.
The value of a university education? It’s a question of degree
Posted by Stephen Clarke in Economics, Education on 12/05/2011
Today the BBC reported on research, carried out by the Centre for Economics and Business Research, which indicated that more graduates were taking low-skilled jobs. If the research is correct, this could beg the question: will a £9,000-a-year degree be worth it?
Rewriting History
Posted by Carolina Bracken in Education, European Union, Political Correctness, Politics on 07/04/2011
In 2008, MEPs gave the green light to a new museum, designed to showcase the “common historical memory” of the European Union and “bring Europe’s history alive”. Set to open in 2014, this Brussels-based “House of European History” (HEH) will sprawl over an acre and has an expected price tag of several million euro. However, while its construction has yet to begin, the project is already riddled with controversy.
You’re hired!
Posted by Stephen Clarke in Economics, Education, Politics on 08/02/2011
Vince Cable yesterday marked the beginning of National Apprentice Week by announcing that the Government would increase annual funding for on-the-job training by £222 million to take the total to £1.4 billion. It was hoped that this, coupled with encouraging firms to take on more apprentices, would increase the total number of people enrolled on such schemes to 400,000 by 2014/15. Such a move may indicate that the Government wants to make apprenticeships a more important aspect of British education and employment. If this is the case, the Government would be advised to examine the German dual apprenticeship system which has been an integral part of that country’s education system and labour market since the 19th century.
Reoffending Prison(Provid)er
Posted by Carolina Bracken in Crime, Education, Security on 18/01/2011
After a year of industrial unrest, damning assessments, and accusation of falsifying records, the country’s largest further education college has once again come under fire. The Manchester College (TMC) now faces an investigation by the Skills Funding Agency over its offender learning at HMP&YOI Reading, after a whistleblower alleged that the education provider regularly receives overpayments of public money.
