Schools and education systems in Britain have been under constant review for many decades and some would argue that teachers should have been more vociferous in challenging the many reforms which have been inflicted on them. Even today we hear voices saying that a teacher’s primary function is not to teach but to look after children’s well-being! To compound the matter, headline issues like the value of diversity, sustainability, globalisation and the prevention of global warming seem to have become the key points of reference of a modern curriculum. This is not to say that an exploration of such issues is not important but they have become totemic.
Some brave teachers have protested at the decline of 'traditional' education; many more are quietly and dispiritedly awaiting retirement and asking where it all went wrong. As a profession, teachers have much to contribute to educational debates and we need to hope that more teachers contribute -and are asked to contribute - to curricular reform.
One who has spoken out - and has been pilloried in return - is Katharine Birbalsingh. Perhaps this explains why so few challenge the prevailing orthodoxies. Her blog is worth a look.You might not agree with what she says but she does raise a number of points which are shared by many in education.
