Summer ‘reading lists’ are an annual conversation piece amongst politicos and thinkers. Self-appointed authorities set these lists to show what direction they think policy should be taking. I don’t have a list to publish – I have just one book to recommend. And I am hoping that our Education Secretary Bridget Phillipson will have it…
A report from parliament’s Communications and Digital Committee has addressed the issue of ‘media literacy’. It describes what an important issue it is and how social cohesion and democracy itself is threatened by ‘inadequate media literacy’. The phrase is an import from the US and means ‘having the skills to think critically about the content…
The Government has appointed Becky Francis to review the National Curriculum. She was recently the subject of a Telegraph article that delved into her past and her pronouncements to try and understand what it might mean for education. She comes from the progressive direction which always sends shivers down my spine having had to deal…
Labour and the unions are preparing to damage our education system and harm our children. It has been reported that the new government wants to reduce testing and move away from learning times tables and basic grammar. This will be disastrous. Since the new syllabus – which I advised on – was introduced in 2014,…
Here we go again. A new government has vowed to shake up what is taught in schools. A feminist professor, Becky Francis, has been appointed to ‘breathe new life’ into an ‘outdated’ curriculum and a new education secretary wants to stamp her mark on the system. It is worth noting here that England has been…