UK Education - present correspondence

Having failed everything at school, at 16 I dropped out. Slowly I recovered and eventually became a university lecturer in teacher training. However, and obviously it was a very big decision at the time, I left the UK in 1981 because I had no hope that education administrators would ever possess the insight and vision to realize that many of the policies they implement damage children. Tragically for children,this insight and vision has never stopped. I live in San Diego because it suits me but the USA system is equally as damaging to children. I still write to politicians and administrators in the UK but never with any hope that they will examine research that indicates very clearly the way to optimize childrens' wellbeing and learning (examine Finland, Netherlands, New Zealand or even Venezuela and so on).

On other web pages I describe in detail the recent UNICEF Report which examined the physical and emotional well-being of youngsters in the world's wealthiest nations. According to per capita GDP, the UK is the fifth world's wealthiest nation. However, British children are languishing at the bottom of the UNICEF international league table. Education, regarded, quite rightly, by UNICEF as vital to a child's future life chances, Britain ranked 21st - last, mainly due to its poor record in persuading pupils to stay on in education and training.

I have never received a satisfactory response from a UK administrator or politician in the 40 years I have been raising points so I have no faith that anything will change until there is a Minister who will accept the failures of present policies and is strong enough to make changes. There is nothing more difficult than dealing with people in denial and the present administrators continue with policies that have produced a system that is ranked 21st - last amongst developed nations. Yet these same people have the gall to  talk about the accountability and transparency that is needed in the education system.

By any criteria if they had to be accountable and transparent they would now be fired as their results are the worst in the developed world. Added to their insensitivity and lack of vision, is a minister obviously out of his depth and therefore, who is totally ineffective; and you have all the ingredients of the disaster that is now UK education. Having recently returned from an eastern European country where I have been lecturing it gives me no satisfaction when describing examining successful and unsuccessful education systems, to point out that the UK is the worst country in which to raise children in the developed world and that administrators are the main cause, mainly due to their utter lack of vision and insight; their obsession with testing, the result of which is a test-driven curriculum.

My heart bleeds for UK teachers; they deserve a lot better but UK admiistrators' or politicians' puerile attempts at supporting obviously failed and outdated policies just shows the mindset of the policy makers. God help the children of the UK because the education system is obviously failing them but from my experience of the last nearly 40 years indicates that basically nothing will change.

I am thankful that I was able to raise my children in New Zealand where, immodestly I would add, I was able to make a significant contribution to education; but the mindset of New Zealand administrators is very, very different from their counterparts in the UK. For example, it took just two weeks to give a presentation to the Chief Inspector for South island. I thought that was that but two weeks later I found myself flown up to Wellington to give a presentation to the education hierarchy and briefly meet the minister and my involvement through way of submissions lasted another two years.

Compare that with UK where I have never received a satisfactory answer in 40 years, never mind actually meeting one of the elite. New Zealand administrator are prepared to listen and discuss, something that UK  administrators are incapable of doing, I still wait, but after 40 years somewhat impatiently, for answers to points that I raise but as usual they are ignored. Methinks that administrators have some gall to talk about accountability or transparency. At some point they need to accept their policies are a disaster for UK children. When they do this they might actually implement policies that produce an education in which children will thrive and excel but I am without hope this will occur. It isn't complicated or difficult. Just feed in the right material through the right methodology at the right time and behold it all works easily and beautifully!

Gordon Brown, immediately before he became Prime Minister, stated "My passion is education….To those who feel that the political system doesn't listen and doesn't care, to those who somehow feel powerless and have lost faith, to those who feel Westminster is a distant place and politics all too often a spectator sport, I will strive to earn your trust. I want to be a voice for communities far beyond Westminster, a voice for the parent, a voice for the patient and the public." "The best preparation for governing is listening to the British people" and "to create a better mechanism for people to become more involved within a few weeks".

I emailed and also sent by physical post information and material which, I believe, is relevant to the improvement of the present disastrous system. Obviously I did not expect a response from his office but the eventual response I received from an official in the Ministry of Children, Schools and Families left, as usual, the feeling that UK administrators are deep in denial. Having received similar responses or no responses at all for the last 40 years, I tried writing (emailing) the Minister. I did not get a response so I emailed his wife who is also a Minister in another department. No responses from either. I tried again with the Ministry but their response again avoided answering the points I raised. I usually have hope but my UK experience spanning those 40 years leaves none.

I have, therefore, have no hope that UK education admiistrators or politicians have the vision, insight or enterprise but to do anything else but to continue with their present disastrous policies. The education of children is too important for me to do nothing so I am left with no option but to write to Gordon Brown again knowing that almost certainly it will, as usual, be handed on to an official at the Ministry of Children, Schools and Families and all I can say is that here we go again.