http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/education-38157811

So another set have results have been published showing that our children are ‘lagging behind.’ This time it’s the Pisa (Programme for International Student Assessment) tests. These give us an international league table for maths, literacy and science and frankly our results are disappointing. Not devastating but definitely disappointing.

‘Why so?’ I hear you ask.

Well, the last time these tests were taken – 3 years ago – our results were disappointing and at that point the government made great promises about changes that would provide our children with world class education.

What we were actually given was a new curriculum that seemed based on the education secretary’s preferences rather than based on evidence of experts (I believe the incumbent of that time mentioned elsewhere that the public were fed up with experts). That curriculum is interesting – on occasion the foundation GCSE maths curriculum has provided excellent resources for those of us tutoring for the Kent Test. Yes, our 9/10 year olds are learning material that is on the GCSE syllabus.

And all that investment in training high quality teachers? Apart from the implication that existing teachers were somehow lacking, all the training and investment have done nothing to stem them haemorrhaging of good teachers from the profession. I choose the word haemorrhage carefully – teachers are the lifeblood of education and if we can’t keep them in the classroom all the Government rhetoric will count for nothing.

I listened to the out-going Ofsted Head, Sir Michael Wilshaw, on the radio today. Apparently it’s OK – England isn’t doing too badly which seems to be all that matters as that’s all Sir Mike is responsible for. If only the pesky Northerners were doing as well as us down here all would be well in Sir Mike’s world. I am minded to disagree (not for the first time, it has to be said) with Sir Mike. We have the facilities, and the wit to provide a world class education; what we don’t have is a culture in which teaching is a valued profession – and that is in no small part down to Ofsted Heads, Education secretaries and media reporting by those who have never worked at the coalface, who have attempted to micro-manage the highly-trained professionals who teach your children, know your children and care for your children. One of the deep joys if tutoring is that we are accountable only to you and your children, not to officials who see children as figures.

It will be interesting to see how the DofE responds to the new figures – what new strategies it come up with. Sir Mike says it is a marketing and recruitment issue. Mrs G says it will take a paradigm shift:

Value our teachers, view education as vital in its own right, rather than simply a step to employment, cherish our children and inspire them to value their learning.