The lack of funding in schools has been hitting the headlines in the UK recently, although often buried under the Brexit Shambles (B.S. for short). This article is not one where I will be decrying the real-terms fall in education investment by the government — there have been enough of those articles already. Instead, I will be taking a look at what the hidden costs of this are.
Does failing make you a failure?
In a world where education is driven by performance goals the action of failing to achieve a target has resulted in labels being given to children at an early age.
The action of failing at something has become an identity. I failed, therefore, I am a failure.
Should schools be policing children’s diet and exercise?
This morning, the news in the UK featured a story “Parents ‘must not abdicate duties’ to teachers, says Ofsted” The heart of the story is that Amanda Spielman, the boss of OFSTED (the organization that judges the standards in schools), is due to deliver a speech that states:
Parents should not expect schools to police children’s eating and exercise, or toilet train pupils