Ways to improve/fix the UK's education system?

This is a very thorough post. I'm glad that there are different groups supporting a reduction in examinations. As I've started exams in English, Maths and Science should purely be about proven the students know life skills. After exams should be only used in some electives cases and foundation years for university. This also means, seeing as they are teaching life skills, teachers will be able to explain to the less enthusiastic students why they are learning these things.

A controversy rages in society as to whether schools should purely focus on teaching academic subjects or whether they should teach useful life skills. The state secondary school curriculum is based on the old grammar school curriculum from around 1900 and over the decades questions have been raised as to whether this really was the best or most appropriate curriculum for 90% of society.

One faction of society believes that schools should focus purely on an academic education and should not be responsible for teaching anything in the way of life skills or social skills. Another faction of society is critical of traditional academic education in that it does not prepare 90% of children for the real world and believes that schools should focus more on teaching life skills instead. Even former teachers say that a traditional academic education does not benefit, or is completely wasted on, the bottom 10% of society like children from council estates in Knowsley and Hull. They would be better off mastering the basics of primary school maths and English, and learning useful life skills and how to be more self reliant.

ICT appears to be an exception to the rule as the one and only life and workplace skill taught in schools as part of the curriculum. It has been argued, that given the availability and ubiquity of computers and digital devices nowadays, that ICT is probably the easiest life and workplace skill for kids to learn outside of school. Therefore they should learn basic ICT like word processing or spreadsheets in their own time rather than in formal timetabled lessons. Defenders of ICT from computer science in schools have a tendency to approach the subject from the perspective of it being a life and workplace skill, but this then raises the question of what other life and workplace skills schools should teach - and why ICT has been specifically singled out.

Driving is a very valuable life and workplace skill. It’s difficult to deny that almost all school leavers will be drivers a few years later, but driving is not part of the secondary school curriculum in England and Wales and is unlikely to be at any time in the foreseeable future. You might be surprised to know that a GCSE in Motor Vehicle and Road User Studies is offered by the CCEA examination board in Northern Ireland, but I’m not aware of any schools on the mainland that offer it.

http://www.ccea.org.uk/mvrus/

Other life and workplace skills that schools do not teach include:

1. The legal system - despite the law being subject that applies to everyone. One could argued that if more young people knew about the legal system and prominent laws in force then it would reduce the level of crime and the prison population.

2. The workings of the government and civil service departments. There used to be an O Level in British Constitution about this but it sadly didn't make it into the GCSE era. I have the course textbook by Kobrin and Scott.

3. Economics. There is a GCSE in economics but it isn’t offered in state schools. It is only offered in independent schools.

4. Anything to do with employment. How to write a quality CV. Job interview skills. The rights of employees.

5. Anything to do with property. How to take out a mortgage and buy a house. Various legal aspects associated with buying and renting.

6. Medical matters including alternative medicine. The subject is very briefly touched on in science, and is often the most popular part of biology, but certain topics should be taught in more detail and before KS4. Teachers are also restricted on what they can teach as a result of certain political correctness legislation.

The academic vs life skills conflict extends into PE lessons. Schools teach ball sports in PE lessons, and it is a compulsory part of the National Curriculum which all kids must participate in, but they do not teach kids how to ride a bike. This is something that kids have to learn outside of school in their own time. Are playing ball sports more important to kids than riding a bike?

In recent years a small, but increasing, number of schools have included balance bike training in PE lessons for kids in reception class and KS1. Opinions amongst parents are mixed. Some parents hold the view that teaching kids to ride bikes is a useful life skill that primary schools should have been teaching decades ago Other parents hold the view that it is something that kids should learn outside of school and schools should stick with teaching traditional subjects, like football, in PE lessons. Balance bike training is unlikely to become part of the National Curriculum in the foreseeable future.

Reply 21

mojojojo101

17

Firstly education needs to be about the education of children/people, not the ridiculous need to please parents, especially hen it costs the child a proper education.

Secondly, the education system needs to be about more than creating mindless worker bees for an industrialised economy. It needs to shed the spectre of his Victorian roots by viewing children not as vessels to be filled with only the information needed to be a useful worker, but as young people seeking knowledge and enlightenment. Education's primary concern should be the betterment of society through the creation of a more educated, more knowledgeable, more creative citizenry, NOT the provision fo workers for the capitalist class.

Until we start making radical changes in that direction the education system will continue to fail everyone.

Reply 22

Arran90

20

Original post by mojojojo101

Firstly education needs to be about the education of children/people, not the ridiculous need to please parents, especially hen it costs the child a proper education.

Secondly, the education system needs to be about more than creating mindless worker bees for an industrialised economy. It needs to shed the spectre of his Victorian roots by viewing children not as vessels to be filled with only the information needed to be a useful worker, but as young people seeking knowledge and enlightenment. Education's primary concern should be the betterment of society through the creation of a more educated, more knowledgeable, more creative citizenry, NOT the provision fo workers for the capitalist class.

Until we start making radical changes in that direction the education system will continue to fail everyone.

There is much truth to what you say but remember that TSR is a forum of people who are overwhelmingly interested in passing exams, getting pieces of paper with high grades on them, then getting into the best universities, rather than questioning what they know and don't know or what schools do and do not teach.

For decades parents have held the mentality of telling their kids to do the work they are set to do and don't ask questions, or even worse, argue with the teacher.

Reply 23

username3689306

2

Hey, chav kids here. Often times it’s the teacher or lesson that causes disruption. I was talkative and rude during my Maths lessons but that was because I didn’t understand it (i have dyscalculia and only got diagnosed when I was sixteen) and because the teacher was rude to other student and then demanded respect. However in English I was well behaved because the teacher I had was amazing and played off everyone’s individual strengths. So stop being classist and assuming that because a child is poor they don’t have an interest in learning, you don’t know what’s going on in their life.

Reply 24

noworrybhappy

3

Original post by Yaboi

Honestly we need a more standardised form at A level, more like the American system where kids don't really choose their major until they're in university as to before.

Kids having to chose their degrees basically at 16 is ridiculous imo, they might choose completely the wrong A levels for degrees they realise they want to do but can't apply for them.

I don't really see this as a good idea. I've read from American students who complain about not being able to pick what courses they want to do. I get what you mean, picking you GCSEs builds up the career route you may take but I think it's better if people were able to take GCSEs at any time or take them at their colleges. Like in some apprenticeships like hairdressing, they teach you Level 2 (GCSE level) before moving to Level 3. I think it should be more fluid.

Ways to improve/fix the UK's education system?

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