14 November 2007
Commenting on Lord Adonis’ proposals for private schools to give master classes for bright students from poor families Nansi Ellis, acting head of education policy at the Association of Teachers and Lecturers (ATL), said:
“It is difficult to conceive of a more wrong-headed approach than this proposal for private schools to give ‘master classes’ to bright teenagers from poor homes. Separate and fragmented projects to raise young peoples’ expectations are deeply flawed - they only help small numbers of children, are not thought-through, unsustainable, and are the worst examples of short-termism.
“This scheme is a waste of public money and made up of projects full of empty promises. We have enough of those already.
“Poorer pupils would be better served by being taught a curriculum which meets their needs in schools with the resources to help all their students achieve their potential - not through tacked-on outside projects.
“State schools already do a good job in difficult circumstances with pupils from all backgrounds.
“What would be useful is for the Government to give more thought to how state schools could replicate some of the best aspects of the independent sector, such as smaller class sizes and better resources. There needs to be more sharing of good practice across sectors, in particular teachers sharing knowledge and skills. Currently this is hampered by the competition between schools fuelled by league tables.”
For further information please contact the ATL press office on 0207 782 1589 or visit our website www.atl.org.uk.
