What is education? Guest speaker (Jane Davidson)

Jane Davidosn was the Minister for Education for 7 years. She talked to us about the changes in education over the years. She started ny saying that the National Curriculum was introduced in the 1980's. This meant that the teachers were no longer in charge of what was taught, as all teachers had to follow the same plan. Teachers at the time were not happy with this as it meant that their freedom and imagination was taken away from them. Margaret Thatcher said that she did not want teachers to have freedom and that all students should learn the same no matter where they were. She explained that when the children were 11 they were split into groups according to their ability. They were moving on to do either OCR's or GSE's. She explained that those who went on to do CSC's were unlikely to get into higher education.
The introduction to the National Curriculum also meant that the children were divided into streams that best suited their abilities. SAT's were introduced for 7 year olds in 1991, for 11 year olds in 1995 and 14 year olds in 1998. This meant that the education system was now structured so all children had a similar experience.

In 1997 there was a change of government to labour. Tony Blair said in his speech "Education, Education, Education" which is still very memorable today. He said that the National Curriculum was too restricted and needed to change. Jane Davidson told us that Education Policy was the same in Wales and England until the Assembly government was introduced.

Jane Davidson was elected Minister of Education in 2000. She introduced a new Foundation Phase for 3-7 year olds.

Highways of Access
More people from poor areas go to University or other higher education than would be expected -21%. This is because there is lots of help offered to make this possible.


Wales - Facts
Wales is more poor than the rest of the UK. On average Wales have lower earning than the rest of the UK, and more Welsh people have less or no qualifications.
Regional Pay - Pay and Wages are a lot less in the Wales than they are in the rest of the UK. Teachers in Wales earn on average 10% less than teachers in England.

Increase Standards of Higher Education
More investments
Foundation Phase for 3-7 year olds
New curriculum which allows teachers to be imaginative
Make class sizes smaller - students benefit because the teacher has more time to focus on each of them
Free breakfasts available to children. This is beneficial to the students who either can't afford to have breakfast in the mornings before school, or for those whose parents work early and have no time to make breakfast in the morning. Breakfast is important as it prepares children for the day ahead, giving them the energy they will be needing.