What is really going on in our schools? Well, Laura....

[noblegiraffe]

Laura Kuenssberg appears to have just discovered that schools exist. New to the concept she has written an essay discussing what might be going on in them, from the perspective of someone who doesn't know what they are talking about. Basic errors include "standards haven't crashed because GCSE and A-level results in 2022 were up on 2019".

She mentions the lack of funding, but doesn't mention the lack of teachers. She mentions increased pupil absence but doesn't mention the implosion of support services for children like CAMHS, or the huge waiting lists for SEN diagnosis and the cutting of TAs in schools due to lack of money. She suggests covid might have had an impact, but not that the government have done basically nothing to address this and that their covid catch-up adviser resigned in disgust.

She says a minister says that 'teachers have had a bashing since covid'. Since covid! She doesn't mention this is led by the government and has been going on for years.

So, what's really going on in our schools? Anyone want to help Laura out?

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/education-65360168

I do think there is an argument for middle schools- I'm not sure having 11yos and adult sized 16yos in overcrowded buildings is in any way ideal.

But who would staff them? I don't think many secondary teachers would want to?

I would not want to work in a middle school.

One of the issues facing schools is that Children’s Services are also under-funded. It means that support that could have been given before a child starts school isn’t always available, that schools are too often expected to be the Early Help Coordinator, and that school age children aren’t always give the support that should theoretically be available from services outside of the school.

Part of the problem started twenty or more years ago when it was decided to close down many of the special schools in the name of inclusion - Labour government then - the problems seem to be cross party. This was surely about saving money rather than for the good of the children. This has meant that there has been the ludicrous situation of children with very complex needs in a mainstream setting, which helps no one.
There are now very few families where one parent is at home with their children, whether through necessity or choice. This means that the children are often rushed from one place to another and it can interfere with milestones, especially as far too many parents seem to think it is other people's jobs to teach children how to use a knife and fork, how to dress themselves and to toilet train them. Adding into the mix is the widespread use of screen time. I think many parents do not speak to their children enough or read to them, which is why there is a rise in children with speech problems.
Families are more fractured than ever and this has to have an impact on the children. In addition to this, far too many people know all their rights without accepting their responsibilities and far too many children are brought up to think the world revolves around them.

Ironically, Germany has this system and they don't perform as well as the UK. I used to teach in this system and all it meant was:

• middle class students being pushed into the grammar system where they couldn't cope.
• students who go through a turbulent time in primary unable to meet their true potential.
• high levels of school stress to keep their place in that school.
• basically a full school of bottom sets with all the issues around undiagnosed SEN, behaviour and enticing staff to apply that you'd expect.

Been in EYFS twenty years. My reception class is a different one to 20 years ago.
I have 4 SEN children who get additional funding but I am talking about a few hundred pounds. Not enough for one on one. These children are missing out. It is impossible to give them the support they need whilst dealing with a full class. Pressure is on for children to reach their GLD before going into year one. Speech and language is the worst it's ever been.
Its just chaos!

Warnock report which advocated for inclusion was 1978, so moving away from special schools was happening long before Labour government. I think giving parents choice of mainstream started in the early 80s.

In 1978 we had a Labour government.

"Applications to primary initial teacher training (ITT) courses have fallen by almost a fifth year-on-year as experts warn of a “worrying” trend.
The data has been published amid wider concerns over teacher supply and as teachers prepare to strike over pay later this week.
In April 2023, there were 6,527 “placed” ITT applicants on primary courses - those that were recruited, accepted a conditional offer or deferred an offer - down from 8,100 in April 2022.
The 19.4 per cent fall is up from February’s 15 per cent, suggesting a worsening picture.
Applications to secondary courses, meanwhile, have fallen year-on-year for the first time in 2023."

https://www.tes.com/magazine/news/primary/itt-recruitment-primary-applications-plummet-dfe

Primary school training applications plummeting is really alarming, this has, up till this year, not been a problem.

On the what can you do front, yes as PP said write to your MP. And there are local elections for many next week, if you get canvassed talk about education. Yes it's not really their issue, but when did that stop anyone! And tweet or email Laura Kuensberg. It may be wishful thinking, but after Sunday and the big response she received it might just be that the penny has dropped, or is starting to. We need to convince journalists that there are stories to be told. Big stories about the government causing harm to children. Laura has a less defined role now and is possibly more likely to follow up something she doesn't know a lot about if her journalistic antenna can be set off. And contact the Labour party and ask them why they aren't talking about all this??

So true about the gap widening if. Hold ten so not catch up in key stage 1. I don't know what the answer is anymore. Children are in nappies in reception going into year 1 in September. Cannot self regulate, express themselves properly due to speech and language. If there is not change soon then the whole system will crumble.

I thought last year, primary ITT targets were missed- not hugely but by 7% or so? This is part of a continuing trend.

Personally, I think primary right now is worse than secondary, and I think people are starting to realise that in primary you can still have to deal with extreme behaviour and high workload.

I also think things like lack of flexible working etc is hurting ITT recruitment- a lot of people now want jobs which involved WFH etc. Teaching isn't that.

Our council is cutting funding for post-16 transport, which is going to have a serious knock on impact in a rural county. There are definitely things that local councils do which hurt school funding.

I think writing to MPs regardless of party helps- let them know this is a key issue for you!

I’m a couple of pages behind but the discussion about schools and education being based on a world 50years ago is so true.
even down to the you do 10 GCSEs, then specialise in 3 a levels (or one btec etc), then do one degree which leads you into your careeer which you’ll do for the rest of your life is completely out of date. How many adults today are doing the same career at 40/50 that they studied for at 16/18/20? We are a much more fluid society now and the school system hasn’t adapted to that at all

I started a thread a couple of weeks ago to help anyone who wanted to write to their MP about the state of education, with some useful links.

The strikes stuff is out of date now.

https://www.mumsnet.com/talk/_chat/4777266-the-government-is-banking-on-parents-not-caring-about-children-or-education

Yes you are correct in both points, round here the council voting is very, very local and not to do with education, but of course in other places it will be different. I mentioned the Labour party because they have been so silent on the issue. I know they have been researching and thinking which to s good, but crikey they need to start shouting as well.

I do agree that we could do with a whole rethink of exams, and a broader education to 18 would definitely be a good thing.

HOWEVER, unless we have significant investment, and we solved the issues around teacher recruitment and retention, any broadscale changes would just make things worse.

Yes they commissioned the report, but by 1979 the Conservative government were in power and stayed there until 1997. The education act that put statements in place and stated mainstream schools should cater for most SEN was 1982 I think. Your post read that you thought special schools started closing in the 90s. What happened was that not many were opened after the Warnock report but improving neonatal care meant more children survived with complex needs and special schools gradually took more children with very complex needs and mainstream took more able children who in the mid-20thC would have gone to special school. And of course the curriculum changed at about the same time and we started expecting all children to pass academic exams.

inclusive education is a global trend though, definitely can’t be pinned to any particular UK government.

@MrsHamlet what's so bad about middle schools? Some areas have them.

@TheNefariousOrange
Yes I hear you. I lived in a country were it was grammar / vocational for a while.
I was more thinking middle school Yr7-9 Softer transition. Less trying to to grown up too soon.
Yr10-13 high school with much wider range of options, more like US system .

@tadpolecity, I think the last thing we want is to follow the US system. Ours is bad enough but theirs is disastrous from what I can see.

Talking about massive curriculum overhauls or changes to the school system right now is utterly bonkers. We're still recovering from the massive curriculum and exam overhaul of a decade ago.

You can only make successful changes to healthy systems. The education system is broken and does not have the resources to keep functioning as it is.

Staff are exhausted and there aren't enough of us. Creating a massive extra workload is the last thing we need. I really hope Labour don't come in with any big ideas.

In some ways it's not great but it's miles more flexible.

Yes it's not really their issue, but when did that stop anyone! And tweet or email Laura Kuensberg. It may be wishful thinking, but after Sunday and the big response she received it might just be that the penny has dropped, or is starting to.

I've seen a couple of tweets about this thread on edutwitter (thank you!), yes any badgering anyone can do of journalists or MPs or whoever to make it clear people do want to discuss education.

And ask your kids what it's like at school. Someone on another thread said that they only discovered that their kid had been having supply for weeks because they asked. And on a different thread someone was saying that their child hadn't had a proper GCSE teacher for the whole of Y10/11 and the class was going to fail.

These issues are having a real impact on the education of children.

do one degree which leads you into your careeer which you’ll do for the rest of your life is completely out of date

Except that this doesn’t happen any more outside a few specialised fields and I very much doubt that any young people are being told this is the case. However I agree that the lack of breadth in general in KS5 is an ongoing problem.