stephen bennett
Mr Enigma
And while Brexit rumbles on.
Our schools are beyond breaking point – where is the outrage
‘Early April brought news of a school in West Yorkshire that has introduced a once-a-week “dark day” when all the lights are turned off.’
‘
And if you want a case study in the awfulness of modern education policy, look no further than Baron Agnew of Oulton, the 58-year-old alumnus of Rugby school and businessman who, as if to highlight the smooth workings of our 21st-century meritocracy, is a minister at the Department for Education. Last year, he said he was “like a pig out hunting for truffles when it comes to finding waste in schools”. The baron bet headteachers a bottle of champagne that advisers dispatched by the DfE could find proof of needless spending.
Three weeks ago came news of the kind of thing he had in mind: among 20 schools visited by his “school resource management advisers”, some had been variously told to replace teachers with support staff on limited contracts, teach some classes three at a time in a dining hall, keep half of any money they raised for local charities – including a children’s hospice – and, when it came to lunch, submit to “reviewing the portion size”’
Stephen
Our schools are beyond breaking point – where is the outrage
‘Early April brought news of a school in West Yorkshire that has introduced a once-a-week “dark day” when all the lights are turned off.’
‘
And if you want a case study in the awfulness of modern education policy, look no further than Baron Agnew of Oulton, the 58-year-old alumnus of Rugby school and businessman who, as if to highlight the smooth workings of our 21st-century meritocracy, is a minister at the Department for Education. Last year, he said he was “like a pig out hunting for truffles when it comes to finding waste in schools”. The baron bet headteachers a bottle of champagne that advisers dispatched by the DfE could find proof of needless spending.
Three weeks ago came news of the kind of thing he had in mind: among 20 schools visited by his “school resource management advisers”, some had been variously told to replace teachers with support staff on limited contracts, teach some classes three at a time in a dining hall, keep half of any money they raised for local charities – including a children’s hospice – and, when it came to lunch, submit to “reviewing the portion size”’
Stephen