EQUAL OPPORTUNITIES POLICIES FOR SCHOOL CHILDREN The Parliamentary Information Office of the Parliamentary Yearbook examines new education policy which seeks to tackle discrimination against children from disadvantaged backgrounds. At regional level, Kent County Council intends to change its 11+ grammar school examinations to remove the influence of a middle class culture of exam coaching. At national level, schools minister David Laws tells teachers that they must focus “relentlessly” on closing the attainment gap between poor and affluent children, now to be monitored by Ofsted. Teachers must reduce the achievement gap between rich and poor Schools must focus “relentlessly” on reducing the achievement gap between poor and affluent children. This was the advice given by Schools Minister David Laws to teachers attending the annual conference of the Association of Teachers and Lecturers (ATL) in Liverpool at the end of last month. During his address to conference Mr Laws described the appalling gap between the life chances of the poor and the rest of the student population as “a scar on the face of our education system”. More than 6 in 10 of children on free school meals leave school without 5 good GCSE grades, including English and Maths, compared with 1 in 3 children from relatively affluent homes. The focus on closing the achievement gap is to be reinforced through the Ofsted assessment and rating system. Ofsted Chief Inspector Sir Michael Wilshaw has made clear that this will be a priority. There are also plans to “parachute” standards-boosting head teachers into the worst schools. Mr Laws warned that schools could no longer rely on obtaining a ‘good’ or ‘outstanding’ Ofsted rating simply by achieving a high overall attainment: “You have actually got to focus much more on these gaps than was the case in the past and having Ofsted support for that is really important.” He emphasized that no school can now count as an “Outstanding School” if it fails to address excellence for most of its disadvantaged pupils. Smoothing the way for rich kids was no longer the name of the game, at least in the public sector. The Schools Minister also reminded teachers that schools can take advantage of the Pupil Premium. This payment – introduced as part of the Coalition education reforms - aims to help schools improve results amongst children from the most disadvantaged backgrounds. This year schools can receive up to £900 for each pupil eligible for free school meals. Ofsted is inspecting schools to ensure the pupil premium is being spent appropriately. It will be interesting to see how teachers respond given that they already report being under considerable pressure from Coalition reforms. This came across clearly at the ATL Conference. Mr Laws’ address to conference came after delegates passed a motion of no confidence in troubled Education Secretary Michael Gove and in the Chief Inspector for Schools Sir Michael Wilshaw. Delegates noted that pressure imposed on the teaching profession by both these men was at a damaging and counter-productive level. Kent County Council plans to end unfair advantage of coaching culture Kent County Council (KCC) plans to end the unfair advantage to children from wealthier backgrounds by making changes to their 11-plus grammar school examinations. The council is concerned about a strong coaching culture identified in a survey. There is evidence that coaching for middle-class children begins as early as five years. As a result KCC plans to introduce a test that is as “uncoachable” as possible. Councillor Mike Whiting, Kent’s Cabinet Member for Education, is leading the initiative for change. He emphasized that the council is looking for social mobility. He said: “We want more children from all walks of life to get into our grammar schools and there are bright children in all walks of life that deserve a crack at that.” It is hoped that changes will be introduced in time for testing in 2014 for school entry in September 2015. These initiatives in Education take place against a background of widening inequality of wealth in the United Kingdom. Website: parliamentaryyearbook.co.uk Email: [email protected]
Posted on: Wed, 22 May 2013 09:57:45 +0000