I finished Bite The Hand That Feeds You by Henry Fairlie, and also the late, great Frank Johnson's Best Seat In The House.
Fairlie - he coined the term 'The Establishment' in the 1950s - is pricey at £25, but is an interesting look at the politics of the period. The Johnson book is a collection of some of his best Spectator pieces and is, as you'd imagine if you ever read him, very funny indeed.
I started David Willetts' The Pinch, which suggests that the Baby Boom generation has royally screwed this country. As a post-Baby Boomer, I naturally agree.
We've just signed contracts with a teacher who will reveal what it's like in some of Britain's worst schools. Frank Chalk did this way back when we started, but the new book is based on a wider experience of more schools throughout the UK - the author left his cosy job in a decent comprehensive and spent a year working as a supply in some very challenging places. Unlike Chalk, he'll be writing under his own name, so we expect some good publicity and (I hope) decent sales when it comes out later this year.
I think the state of the education system is the single most important issue facing the country, and am very interested in Toby Young's ongoing efforts and also in the Tory proposals to introduce 'Swedish-style' schools here. I do worry slightly about Michael Gove. In a discussion between him and Chris Woodhead in the latest Standpoint, there is the following exchange:
Chris Woodhead: Cogita is a profit-making organisation. Our schools by and large are oversubscribed so in terms of the challenge of persuading people that it is a good idea to send their children to them, we've met that challenge. In terms of the taxpayer, my view is that the money that you Secretaries of State for Schools spend is given to you by parents and I don't see why you should not give the parents who want it the money back. Say you don't have to cash it just in a state school, but you can cash it also in a private school, and top it up.
Michael Gove: That's another area where I disagree.
CW: I don't know why philosophically, as a Conservative, you think that it is wrong for parents who wish to forgo their holiday or new car, to spend their money on their child's education.
MG: This is probably the area where I don't know what I am. Am I shockingly left-wing or am I being infected by the spirit of John Rawls?
Three months out from an election, if he doesn't know what he is we're in trouble!
Finally, we still have a small number of tickets available for our Theodore Dalrymple evening in Chelsea on Tuesday February 23. Call on 01455 221752 to order or for more info.
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6 comments:
Is`nt the country divided enough as it is?Cant you see the danger in making it even worse? We are spending more than enough on education in this country to give our children a superb education its just a matter of using the money effectivly which I`m afraid with the present set up is F****** impossible.
Somehow or other it will have to change, how? who knows but I feel very afraid for my grandchildren
At least with Gove being a politician I expect him to be out of touch and a bit incompetent. What worries me is Chris Woodhead trying to act as if he knows about teaching when he was one of the most insensitive and out of touch ofsted interferers who caused huge suffering with no benefits wherever he went.
Jerym - thanks for your comment.
I'm not sure I quite get your point, though?
Obviously, I agree that we spend enough on education already - I just think we need to spend it on teachers and books, rather than bureaucrats, IT suites, SATS tests and fancy new schools (though some schools do need demolishing and rebuilding, and I'm not against computers in schools, I think teachers and books are more important).
I'm just not sure how this view equates to making the 'divide' worse?
Anon - thanks. I only know of Woodhead what he writes now, most of which seems to make good sense to me. Of his time at Ofsted I can't comment.
Re my previous post
I agree with you completely regarding`bureaucrats,IT suites,SATS test`etc that is the problem with our schools today the money should be directed at teaching.
When I was a kid in primary school very many years ago we had teachers and a head master who often took a class himself and when I left I could read,write a passable essay and had a working knowledge of arithmetic.
On entering an all boys grammar school I was puzzled to see on occasions a woman about the place and was told that she was the school secretary and that she came in for a few mornings a week.
move forward to today one of my sons teaches in a sixth form college and he tells me that only about half the staff actually teach and a large proportion of his time is spent in providing information for the administrators.
The money is there it just has to be spent on teaching further division of society is potentially very dangerous.
Yes - I just don't see how my original post was promoting division, though?
Re bureaucracy, it's everywhere like topsy or knotweed. I had lunch yesterday with Theodore Dalrymple and we fell to discussing his old hospital, where the entrance foyer had a noticeboard with photographs of all the senior management and doctors, with the chief executive at the top of the pyramid. Dalrymple recalls noting that there were five layers of managers before you got down to the doctors.
I agree with your comments re Woodhead now - he does seem to be quite sensible in what he says, but when wife taught and Woodhead was ofsted you wouldn't recognise the same man (my opinion I appreciate!)- mind you if (and only if) he was having his strings pulled and following some agenda or party line, well he wouldn't be the first, would he?!
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