Professional Documents
Culture Documents
P u blish ed by
The Learning Skills Foundation®
INTRODUCTION
Paul Brett. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . P a ge 1
LECTURE 1
LECTURE 2
Amanda Spielman.. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . P a ge 32
LECTURE 3
INTRODUCTION
• Sch ools feelin g dis-em power ed by top down over ly pr escr ipt ive n ew
in it ia t ives fr om cen t r a l Gover n m en t a n d it s plet h or a of qu a n gos
P a u l Br et t
J u n e 2010
Tooley is best kn own for h is wor k on low cost pr iva t e edu ca t ion . H e bega n t h is
wor k in 2000, h a vin g discover ed for h im self t h e exist en ce of low cost pr iva t e
sch ools in t h e slu m s of H yder a ba d wh ile doin g con su lt a n cy for t h e In t er n a t ion a l
F in a n ce Cor por a t ion . A m a jor r esea r ch pr ogr a m m e wa s su bsequ en t ly
u n der t a k en between 2003 a n d 2005, fu n ded by t h e J oh n Tem plet on Fou n da t ion ,
explor in g t h e n a t u r e a n d exist en ce of pr iva t e sch ools for t h e poor in In dia ,
Gh a n a , Niger ia , Ken ya a n d Ch in a , a n d com pa r in g pu blic a n d pr iva t e pr ovision
for t h e poor . Th is r esea r ch is r epor t ed in a r a n ge of books a n d pu blica t ion s,
in clu din g Th e Bea u t ifu l Tr ee: A per son a l jou r n ey in t o h ow t h e wor ld's poor est
people a r e edu ca t in g t h em selves (P en gu in , New Delh i, a n d Ca to In st it u t e, 2009).
H is wor k h a s a lso been pr ofiled in docu men t a r ies for t h e BBC a n d P BS: for t h e
la t t er it wa s fea tu r ed a lon gside t h e wor k of Nobel La u r ea t e Moh a mm ed Yu n u s
a n d H er n a n do de Sot o.
Both a r e r igh t . To a ch ieve edu ca t ion a l tr a n sfor m a t ion , we n eed bot h in n ova t ion
a n d a ccou n t a bilit y. Bot h a r e im por t a n t , a n d la ckin g in ou r sch oolin g syst em.
Th is even in g, I'll look a t bot h con cept s, explicit ly a n d im plicit ly: I begin by
ou t lin in g fin din gs of t wo set s of r ecen t r esea r ch I've been con du ctin g ‘Wh a t
pa r en ts wa n t'. I'll t h en pu t t h is in t o t h e con t ext of P r ofessor s H a r gr ea ves a n d
H opk in s' pa per s, ‘Wh a t t h e pr ofessor s wa n t'. I'll su ggest t h a t bot h pa r en t s a n d
pr ofessor s wa n t less gover n m en t , so I'll be in a posit ion to con clu de wit h a n swer s
t o t h e qu est ion posed in t h e t it le t o t h is pa per .
So pa r en t s a r e in fa vou r of mor e in depen den ce for edu ca t ion , don 't r em ot ely
t h in k t h a t st a t e edu ca t ion deliver s t h e best qu a lit y edu ca t ion ; m a n y a r e in
fa vou r of vou ch er s t o sen d th eir ch ildr en t o pr iva te sch ools, even in t er m s of
t oppin g u p t h ese vou ch er s wit h t h eir own mon ey.
F or th e secon d r ecen t r esea r ch I've been con du ctin g, pu blish ed a s Th e Bea u t ifu l
Tr ee (P en gu in , New Delh i), poin t s t o a vibr a n t pr iva te sector in developin g
cou n t r ies a n d em er gen t econ om ies. An edu ca t ion r evolu t ion is sweepin g t h e
developin g wor ld. E ven in poor a r ea s of Asia a n d Afr ica , or din a r y people a r e
a ba n don in g st a t e edu ca tion en m a sse. Th ey'r e a ppa lled by it s low st a n da r ds.
In stea d, t h ey'r e sen din g t h eir ch ildr en t o pr iva t e sch ools t h a t a r e bu r geon in g,
in clu din g low cost pr iva t e sch ools in t h e poor est pla ces on t h is pla n et .
Non et h eless, t h er e is st ill m u ch for m e to do. I get t h in kin g a bou t h ow won der fu l
it wou ld be if a ll ch ildr en cou ld h a ve bespoke lea r n in g in cor e su bjects like
m a t h em a t ics, scien ce, E n glish a n d ot h er la n gu a ges. Bu t a s pa r t of m y r esea r ch , I
r ea d widely on edu ca tion , a n d come a cr oss Pr ofessor Rich a r d P r in g's pa per in
t h e sa m e Lea r n in g Skills Fou n da t ion ser ies. Yes, I see wh a t h e m ea n s: followin g
Dewey, edu ca t ion is n ot ju st a bou t in dividu a ls pu r su in g ‘kn owledge a n d
u n der st a n din g' (wh ich per h a ps t h ey cou ld get fr om t h eir bespoke lea r n in g), bu t
a lso get t in g ‘pr a ctica l ca pa bilit ies', ‘m or a l ser iou sn ess' t o t h in k ‘a bou t t h e big
issu es wh ich con fr on t societ y', a n d a lso t h e sen se of ‘belon gin g t o a wider
commu n it y'. Ter r ific, let 's t r y to bu ild t h ese in to m y model t oo.
I come up with something like this, based on the twin prongs of the
Hargreaves & Pring approach:
Th a t 's m y in it ia l idea . I'd th en sit down with spr ea dsh eet s to wor k ou t if it is
fin a n cia lly fea sible. H er e a r e som e ba ll-pa r k ca lcu la t ion s. I n eed t wo fu ll-t im e
lea r n in g cen t r e fa cilit a t or s pa id a r ou n d £30,000 ea ch per a n n u m , in clu din g
on -cost s. Th a t 's £60,000. Addin g in r en t , m a in t en a n ce a n d a ll t h e ot h er
r ecu r r en t expen dit u r es dou bles t h a t , so I h a ve a n n u a l expen ditu r e of a r ou n d
£120,000.
Th is pr ocess seemed r ela t ively sim ple for H a r gr ea ves, a n d per h a ps on ly t ook a
cou ple of yea r s. Bu t H a r gr ea ves is a ver y specia l per son a n d fou n d a n ew
gover n m en t r ela t ively sym pa t h et ic t o h is idea s. I too t r ied t o per su a de t h a t sa m e
n ew gover n m en t t o explor e som e n ew idea s, m eet in g wit h Sir Mich a el Ba r ber
a n d Sir Mich a el Bich a r d a m on gst ot h er s ba ck in 1997/98, a n d got n owh er e, even
t h ou gh t h e idea s wer e br illia n t . (P er h a ps I'll h a ve m or e lu ck wit h a n ot h er , n ot
yet kn igh t ed, Mich a el, Mich a el Gove, wh en h e t a kes office in Ma y). Bu t even I
wa s a pr ofessor of edu ca t ion a t a r epu ta ble u n iver sit y, so a t lea st I got m eetin gs
wit h t h e good a n d t h e gr ea t : im a gin e h ow difficu lt it wou ld be for a n or din a r y
per son ! Th a t 's a n oth er a dva n t a ge of t h e ma r ket pr ocess of in n ova t ion : it 's
dem ocr a t ic, open t o a n yon e, n ot h ier a r ch ica l a n d elit ist like t h e pr ocess of
in n ova t ion in t h e pu blic sector .
Alt er n a t ively, it cou ld a ll get complet ely dist or t ed. Th is pr ocess is h igh ligh t ed in
P r ofessor Alison Wolf's gr ea t pa per in t h e sa m e Lea r n in g Skills Fou n da t ion
ser ies, wh er e sh e sh ows h ow La dy Th a t ch er 's idea (cr ea tivit y) of som e sim ple
‘pen a n d pa per t est s for E n glish , m a t h s a n d scien ce a t eleven ', t o solve t h e
pr oblem of differ en t levels of comm it m en t a m on gst t ea ch er s a n d sch ools
Gover n men t in t er ven t ion in edu ca t ion crowds ou t in it ia t ives t h a t cou ld lea d t o
t h e desir a ble kin d of edu ca tion we wa n t a n d n eed t oda y. It cr owds ou t t h e sh or t
r ou t e t o in n ova t ion , a n d so lea ves u s stu ck in a fa ctor y m odel of sch oolin g, wh ich
m a y con ceiva bly h a ve been a ppr opr ia t e wh en t h e st a te ca m e in t o sch oolin g in
1870, t o fill in th e ga ps of pr iva t e pr ovision , bu t is complet ely ou t -m oded som e
140 yea r s la t er . We ca n t r y t o in n ova t e bu t ca n 't m a ke mu ch pr ogr ess, beca u se
we'r e st u ck on t h e "lon g r ou t e" to in n ova tion , wh er e gover n m en t eit h er
complet ely dist or t s wh a t we wa n t , or wh er e ch a n ges get complet ely bogged down
a n d don 't t a ke effect, cer t a in ly n ot in a n y sca la ble fa sh ion .
Yes.
How can it successfully transform the education system to better meet the
needs of both the individual and society as a whole?
Amanda Spielman
Th ese m ech a n ism s h a ve don e som et h in g t o m a r gin a lise sch ools t h a t t h in k like
t h a t , a n d t o st a r t pu sh in g t h em t o a ch ieve m u ch mor r e. An d a lso th er e h a s been
a ser iou s a t t em pt t o r edu ce t o a m in im a l level t h e pr opor t ion of ch ildr en wh o a r e
edu ca ted in ser iou sly su bst a n da r d sch ools.
Secon dly, complexit y. It t a kes a lot of men t a l ba n dwidt h t o dea l wit h complexit y.
If you h a ve in credibly det a iled r u les a n d t h ey ch a n ge con st a n tly, wh o in sch ools
is su pposed t o be a ble to follow a n d keep t r a ck of a ll t h e ch a n ges a n d pr even t
people fr om t r ippin g u p? We do n ot h a ve t h ose people in ou r sch ools. I a m t h e
n ea r est t h in g we h a ve a t ARK to t h is per son a n d I ca n n ot begin t o st a y on t op of
ever yt h in g t h a t flows t h r ou gh .
A t h ir d fa ctor is cost . Obviou sly dea lin g wit h a ll t h is la w a n d r egu la t ion t a kes a
lot of m a n h ou r s, a n d st a ff t im e ca r r ies a cost . I h a ve n o det a iled costin g t o t a lk
a bou t so will sa y n o mor e h er e.
An ot h er r ea l da n ger wit h excess legisla t ion is t h a t you lose you r discr im in a t ion
bet ween t h e ser iou s a n d t h e t r ivia l. Un like cr imin a l la w, edu ca t ion la w does n ot
come wit h t a r iffs for con viction . It is pr ett y ea sy t o wor k ou t t h a t m u r der is m or e
ser iou s t h a n kn ockin g down a bolla r d, beca u se you kn ow t h a t for m u r der you get
life a n d for kn ockin g down th e bolla r d you m igh t get fin ed £150. E du ca t ion la w
is n ot lik e t h a t . If you ca n n ot do ever yt h in g well, t h er e is n o ch a n ce of
pr ior it isin g obliga t ion s. If you t h in k a bou t t h is in t h e bu sin ess wor ld, t h e a bilit y
t o pr ior it ise a n d pu t t h in gs on on e side is in cr edibly im por t a n t. If you h a ve a
st r u gglin g bu sin ess, h ow do you t u r n it a r ou n d? You do it t ypica lly by
sim plifyin g, by cu t t in g down t h e n u m ber of pr odu ct lin es you ca r r y, by r edu cin g
t h e n u m ber of sh ops in you r ch a in . Depen din g u pon t h e bu sin ess a n d t h e n a t u r e
of t h e pr oblem t h er e is a wh ole ser ies of differ en t t h in gs you m a y do. Bu t by
legisla t in g for sch ools t o do a bsolu t ely ever yt h in g, we h a ve pu t t r ou bled sch ools
in a posit ion wh er e t h ey ca n n ot sim plify t h eir ta sks, so t h a t t h ey ca n n ot wor k
Th a t is six effects: t h e seven t h is loss of ca pa cit y. Com plex r egu la t ion dr ives
ca pa cit y ou t of m a r ket s. Th e oper a t or s wh o ca n n ot cope with it ca n n ot con t in u e.
Th is wa s seen in ca r e h om es for t h e elder ly a few yea r s a go a n d I th in k it is been
seen r ecen t ly wit h t h e im posit ion of t h e E a r ly Yea r s Fou n da t ion Sta ge. I looked
u p th e sta t ist ics on ch ildm in der s t h is a ft er n oon a n d th e n u m ber of r egist er ed
ch ildm in der s h a s dr opped by 20% over t h e la st t h r ee yea r s a ft er bein g ver y fla t
for a n u m ber of yea r s. Given t h e complexit y a n d bu r ea u cr a cy of t h e E YF S,
per h a ps it is m or e su r pr isin g t h a t 80% h a ve su r vived so fa r .
On t o n u m ber n in e. An over -pr escr ipt ive a ppr oa ch t o legisla t ion len ds it self t o
m isu se by gover n m en t t o ju st ify it s a ction s.
My ver y la st dr a wba ck, a n d a s a dir ector of New Sch ools Net wor k I a m a lwa ys
con cer n ed a bou t t h is on e, is t h a t excessive r egu la t ion in crea ses ba r r ier s to en t r y.
Th is is n ot n ecessa r ily im por ta n t if you a r e n ot in ter est ed in to open in g u p a
m a r ket t o n ew pr ovider s, bu t if you a r e it is ver y im por t a n t in deed. In a n y
in du st r y it is well kn own t h a t a complex r egu la t or y en vir on m en t crea t es
sign ifica n t ba r r ier s t o en t r y, wh ich is wh y t h e big oper a tor s in a ma r ket a r e
oft en pr ett y h a ppy t o go a lon g wit h h igh r egu la t ion beca u se t h ey kn ow t h a t it
en t r en ch es t h eir a dva n t a ge. My per son a l view is th a t t h e ba r r ier s t o en t r y in
edu ca tion in m ost t h ou gh , n ot a ll r espects, sh ou ld be sign ifica n t ly lower .
Resea r ch in t er est s
• P h ilosoph y of E du ca t ion ;
Th e Newsom Repor t , t h er efor e, h a d a vision of edu ca t ion for a ll, r ecogn isin g t h e
r a n ge of a bilit ies wh ich n eed t o be n u r t u red, r efu sin g t o equ a t e ‘edu ca t ed' wit h
Educational aims
Practical capability
Bu t t h a t is a t r a gic mist a ke. As t h e Roya l Societ y of Ar t s (wh ich for 250 yea r s
h a s st r iven t o br in g t oget h er t h eor y a n d pr a ctice, th in kin g a n d m a kin g, in t ellect
a n d sk ill) decla r ed in it s 1986 m a n ifest o, E du ca t ion for Ca pa bilit y,
Rob Ma t t ock, wh ose fa mily h a s gr own a n d sold r oses for over 100 yea r s, ca pt u r es
t h is in h is a ccou n t of wor k wit h a gr ou p of boys in a n Oxfor d pr epa r a t or y sch ool
wh ich pr ides it self in it s a ca dem ic su ccesses. Th ese boys wer e in volved in t h e
h ybr idisa t ion of r oses, n ot for a n y a ca demic pu r pose – it wa s n ot on t h eir
exa m in a t ion pr ogr a m m e.
Learning to be human
• wh a t m a kes u s h u m a n ?
I h a ve ca lled t h is pa per ‘Th e n eed for a wider vision of lea r n in g', beca u se, in
pu r su in g t h e a im of edu ca t ion for a ll, a s t h a t is pr ocla im ed or im plicit in so
m a n y pu blica t ion s a n d legisla tion s over th e la st 60 yea r s, we h a ve n ot esca ped
fr om a con cept ion of lea r n in g wh ich gu a r a n tees on ly a r ela t ively sm a ll n u m ber
will a n d in deed ca n su cceed – n a m ely, t h ose wh o per for m well in a r a t h er
n a r r ow u n der st a n din g of a ca dem ic st u dies.