Commenting on the Governments announcementon tests and target setting for primary schools, Doug McAvoy, NUT GeneralSecretary, said:
Charles Clarke has taken a welcome firststep in recognising the damaging and stifling effects of National Curriculumtests and national targets on primary schools.
His proposals for the future whilewelcome do not go far enough however.
The Education Secretary should havefollowed Wales and scrapped the tests for seven year olds altogether. Teachers will be bewildered that he has nottaken such an obvious step.
Nor will they understand why the testsfor 11 and 14 year olds have not been scrapped. They do little for learning, distress young people and underminethe curriculum.
His proposals to abandon local authoritytarget setting for schools is welcome but he clings onto national targets whicheveryone, including the Chief Inspector, agrees are a nonsense. These areretained for political purposes not educational benefit.
I welcome the Governments initiativeson tackling unacceptable pupil behaviour in primary schools and proposals tofoster creativity.
I want Charles Clarke to go that extramile and remove the current regime of tests, national targets and schoolperformance tables which bedevil schools.
EN D PR.41/03