Now that a steady stream of students are starting to trickle back into school and plans are being put in place for everyone to return come September, a stripped back version of the curriculum is currently being debated. Education Secretary Gavin Williamson has insisted that this will not be the case, despite guidance from his own department suggesting that there will need to be a focus on maths and English in some areas to cover any gaps in pupil knowledge. The priority to get children back in school and back to learning is an understandable one, particularly since home schooling has proved to be somewhat challenging, to say the least. But if the push for core subjects above all else really does go ahead, we are at risk of alienating children from their education even more than COVID 19 has.
What this issue highlights is the problem with the way education is defined in our current system, and how it should be defined in an individual rather than collective sense. Like many areas of life, there is a spectrum - it isn't as simple as some children being clever and others being stupid. There are those who will always excel in academia, will likely go to university and continue on a high powered executive trajectory. Then there are others who are attracted to more vocational courses, that will become the backbone of a functioning society and will never not be in demand. Many will fall somewhere in between, perhaps needing a bit more encouragement to decide where they fit best. None of these career paths will be the same, yet they are all equally valid. So why should expect them to all have the same needs when it comes to what they learn at school?
There is no doubt that subjects such as maths, English and the sciences are important, especially where employers are concerned. They help to develop fundamental skills like problem-solving, communication and understanding how our universe works. The trouble arises when trying to engage children who struggle, either because they have learning difficulties such as dyslexia or simply because their interests don't lie in that area. By focusing on a select few subjects, there is a very real risk of isolating those children who aren't engaged by academic pursuits and require something more practical. If they do choose to implement this in schools, the Department of Education are essentially telling our students that these are the only important subjects, the only ones they need to be successful, the only ones that schools should bother with. What message does that send?
As necessary as they might be to pass exams, maths, English and science fail to enrich children in other ways that are equally beneficial. Art, music, drama, PE, technology all educate in different ways, teaching our children to express themselves, work together, create and actually do rather than just sitting behind a desk. School is supposed to prepare us for life, but even before COVID 19 it was guilty of becoming another box-ticking exercise, enabling us to regurgitate the right information in exams before we emerge bleary eyed into the 'real world'. Even those who go on to get first class degrees from the most elite universities are often confused and intimidated by this prospect. Reopening schools during a pandemic provides an opportunity to make a change, particularly given that it will still be a while before normal school life can resume. Bearing this in mind, perhaps the case can now be made for an education that isn't merely sitting in a room in front of a board. Another aim of getting our children back in school is also supposed to be getting them socialising again and bonding with their peers, actively encouraged and often essential in sports, music, drama and the like. Because if this pandemic has proved anything, it's that these qualities are the ones that keep us and our society going in times of crisis.
Comments
Post a Comment