The Association of School and College Leaders today
publishes its General Election Manifesto calling on politicians
not to use education as a political football and instead to focus
on the things that matter – sufficient funding, teacher supply,
and an exam system which is less harsh on pupils.
The manifesto says: “Our education system in the UK is highly
regarded by other countries. We must stop talking ourselves down.
Education has been used as a political football for far too long,
with one side denigrating the system in an attempt to disparage
the record of the other side.
“Robust debate is a sign of
a healthy and functioning democracy, but we must beware that it
does not become excessively negative. We call upon politicians of
all persuasions to mind their language in the General Election
campaign and, in particular, not to indulge in the corrosive
practice of extolling one type of school over another type of
school.”
And it calls
for:
-
Education cuts to be
reversed in full and the introduction of a mechanism
to ensure the education budget
increases annually at least in line with actual school and
college costs.
-
More effort to attract and
retain teachers, including tackling the “punitive
accountability” system of school performance tables and Ofsted
inspections.
-
School performance tables
which encourage collaboration and inclusivity, and a more
supportive approach to dealing with schools rated by Ofsted as
‘inadequate’.
-
No more costly and
distracting structural reform, and instead a focus on
encouraging collaboration between schools.
-
A fairer GCSE system which
better supports the ‘forgotten third’ of students who currently
fall short of at least a Grade 4 in English and
maths.
-
Reform of SATs for
11-year-olds to make them fairer on children and fairer on
schools.
-
Ratcheting down the
pressure on pupils of reformed GCSEs which are harder than
previous specifications and cause too much stress and
anxiety.
-
Making teaching about
same-sex relationships mandatory in all schools, including
primary schools.
-
A review of the curriculum
to ensure it matches the needs of students, employers and the
nation in the 21st century.
Geoff Barton, General
Secretary of the Association of School and College Leaders, said:
“ASCL has no political affiliation and our manifesto is addressed
to the politicians of all parties. We expect there to be a robust
discussion about education and it is absolutely right that there
should be.
“But we urge politicians
against sweeping generalisations, negative point-scoring and
pitching one type of school against another type of
school.
“We have a very good
education system in this country, and many excellent schools and
colleges which do a fantastic job for our young people day in and
day out. But this often seems to be achieved against the odds and
whoever forms the next government has to get to grips with the
priorities we have set out in our manifesto.
“The next government must
recognise that recent announcements over more funding for schools
and colleges do not go far enough and the job is not done. It
must also do more to tackle severe teacher shortages which will
become worse as the number of secondary school pupils increases.
And it must ease the crushing weight of the accountability system
on schools and colleges, and of the exam system on
pupils.”
