THE FREE SCHOOLS DEBATE
‘Free schools’ has been an increasingly heard phrase recently; met by some with support and others with concern.
For those who aren’t familiar with the concept, free schools, also known as parent-promoted schools are, according to the Department for Education ‘all-ability state-funded schools set up in response to parental demand’. However with opinions sharply divided, it is interesting to consider both sides of the argument.
Those who are for free schools, argue that they provide an opportunity to raise achievement in areas where local authority run schools are not providing a perceived level of good education.
Not only that, but many look to other countries and see the benefits that such schools have achieved elsewhere. It has been suggested for example that some of the best schools in America are free schools. It has also seemed that so far there has been a divide between the rich and the poor; families who are better off financially are able to move in to catchment areas with better schools, whereas others who may not be able to do this are left in a predicament.
On the other side of the argument however, people question the future of existing schools? It could be said that it is all very well to spend money setting up these new ‘free schools’ but what about the schools that are already in place? Should we not be putting money in to improving our existing schools? There is also the concern that free schools could be run for profit, although Education Minister, Michael Gove, has stressed that this will not be the case. There could however be a possibility that the running of free schools is contracted out to private companies, something that makes many uncomfortable.
One of our readers, David Meaton commented: “What concerns me is how will “free” schools improve standards? It is all very well for Gove to say that they will drive up standards but how will this actually occur in reality. What mechanisms will he put in place to make this happen?
“In the BSF/Academies “bureaucracy” that he has swept away, local authorities and academy sponsors had to produce detailed education strategy documents which set out clearly what they were going to do and how they were going to do it and this was subject to public scrutiny and approval. The previous government and nearly all local authorities devoted much energy and resources to tackling the problems of underachievement and deprivation. The importance about these measures was that they were cohesive and measured and brought benefits across the wider community. Local authorities have clearly demonstrated their ability to manage education effectively with over 70% of our schools rated as good or better by Ofsted.
“Free schools by their nature will be localised and subject to the control of the Secretary of State. Where will the local democratic accountability be?”
However, Mark Leach, a teacher from Stockport rejects claims that state schools will suffer as a consequence. “My understanding is that an awful lot of this money will come from stripping out a lot of the overheads and bureaucratic processes. The key difference is schools in the school system at the moment are not purely accountable to the parents of the students that they teach. They have accountability to the local authority and they have accountability to local politicians. This is about giving ordinary parents choices.”
Ultimately, most people will have an opinion about
the creation of free schools. WorkLife wants to know what do you think? Visit
www.worklifemagazine.co.uk or email
debate@worklifemagazine.co.uk with your thoughts.
WORK - 13
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