My wife was a teacher for many years so I am aware of the diffcluties which are often ceated by interfeering Gov's - I note that standards in Scotland, whilst still very good, have dropped in recent years, so maybe not so second to none -
https://www.holyrood.com/articles/news/falling-literacy-scottish-schools
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2016/05/31/snp-under-pressure-over-appalling-drop-in-scottish-school-numera/
Yes, it's not a bright picture, but I did write: "if you can buy it," and that's sometimes key.
My daughter is a teacher (state, secondary school) and teaches kids right up to leaving school for university. The problem is that the kids have to cope with a set of problems removed from the classroom, the greatest one being home support for ambitious levels of education. When parents themselves lack good education, there is little incentive for the kids, either from themselves or their parents. Teachers have to spend a vast amount of time at home still working on their professional duties; the job never ends with the school bell. Do all kids and their parents apply themselves as much? No, they do not, and to make it worse, parents expect teachers to carry the can for their own neglect of their brood. I remember when my own two were at school - their mother spent ages helping them understand maths and science; even then, the difference between the two children was remarkable, putting all those crazy notions of equality where they belong: in the bin. It is not all about equal opportunity; it is as much about aptitude, which is a terrible, myth-busting non-PC thing to write, but the truth nonetheless. You see it all around you, but must deny it in order to conform and not make anyone aware of being
an asshole less capable.
As I've mentioned before, the best pupils often seem to come from outwith British origins, because the parents bring with them a culture of work, no expectations of state-supplied freebies, and the understanding that you are responsible for your own future. The irony of their situation is that, thought they come with an admirable attitude, they lack the advantage of the native tongue, and this will always hold them back somewhat until/unless they return to their own lands and find themselves on another plateau where they can shine.
On yet another level, the private school one, it now appears that a lot of nouveau riche parents simply dump their kids in those institutions and hope to be able to wash their hands of them so as not to let them get in the way of their own lives. And it can work to the same bad effect as some poorer kids suffer, except that in the case of the rich, the kids can feel they have no need to work because they will be okay regardless. And this does not follow anymore, where fortunes can be as easily lost as they might have been made. A huge problem is making people realise that a good education is something for them
to enjoy for the rest of their lives, and not only about getting financial reward.
I feel so lucky to be able to consider my last three or so years at school as having been wonderful in so many ways. The earlier ones were, generally, hell, where I learned one great lesson: survival within a hostile environment. After that, the Internet is relative peace!
Rob
