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NEWS • VIEWS • INFORMATION • ADVICE
‘Downward spiral’ in Wales refuted
A Report claiming education in Wales is at risk of entering a ‘downward spiral’ has been criticised as an insult to teachers by the NASUWT.
The Report says too many schools are ‘coasting’ and that literacy and numeracy standards are too low.
The Report was commissioned by Education Minister Leighton Andrews into the structure of the education service in Wales.
More co-operation between local authorities in delivering education services is recommended, with a proposal that support be channelled through four regional hubs rather than through 22 individual local authorities.
The Report follows the recent publication of international data comparing the performance of pupils in different countries.
Mr Andrews has been critical of what he has called a ‘systemic’ failure in the Welsh education system after Wales’ performance in the PISA rankings which grades countries on the basis of education performance.
The NASUWT believes that rather than rushing in with misguided and draconian attempts to ‘fix’ the education system, ministers should concentrate their primary efforts on addressing the £604 pupil funding gap between schools in Wales and England.
Mr Andrews has already announced plans to introduce national reading tests for pupils at Key Stage 2 and develop a new grading system for schools which could see the closure of those institutions deemed to be under performing.
He has proposed annual literacy and numeracy tests for teachers as part of their training, and set out proposals to revise initial teacher training so it becomes a twoyear masters course.
The NASUWT contends that the introduction of punitive monitoring and assessment systems will do little to improve educational performance and that reforms should instead be focused on providing adequate funding and support to schools. The Union is concerned that introducing a grading system will lead to a return to league tables and a focus on failure by the media.
Equality under threat
The disproportionate impact of the Coalition Government’s programme of cuts on disadvantaged and marginalised groups in society has been condemned by the NASUWT.
The strides made in tackling inequality and discrimination are in danger of being reversed, the Union told the wider trade union movement, as the burden of the cuts starts to fall most heavily on women, the disabled, the young, and black and minority ethnic communities.
Fighting against the cuts and making the case for alternative methods to deal with the nation’s financial deficit was the central theme of the Union’s work at the recent series of TUC equality conferences.
The Coalition’s attacks on public services and the welfare state will disproportionately hit those groups already most marginalised in society, with NASUWT delegates at the TUC Women’s Conference, held in Southport in March, highlighting the threat to women’s physical safety and economic security.
A higher proportion of women than men are employed in the public sector and are therefore seeing their pay frozen, their pensions raided and their jobs coming under threat, the Union warned. Cuts to local authority funding are forcing the closure of many organisations dedicated to providing support for women experiencing domestic violence and rape, along with reductions in childcare and parenting support.
A similarly bleak picture is facing young workers, and NASUWT delegates to the TUC Young Members’ Conference, held last month in London, condemned the Coalition’s ‘slash and burn’ decision to scrap the Education Maintenance Allowance (EMA). The Union warned that, together with the planned rise in university tuition fees and the large-scale job losses likely as a result of the cuts, the employment and economic future of a whole generation is at risk.
The Coalition’s ‘patronising and colourblind’ approach to tackling inequality will do nothing to promote social cohesion and instead is likely to inflame racism, the Union warned delegates at the TUC Black Workers’ Conference.
Support was secured from Unions for coordinated lobbying of ministers for major changes to the Government’s Equalities Strategy. NASUWT delegate Michelle Codrington-Rogers, highlighted a series of flaws within the plan, including a shift away from enforcement action to merely encouraging individuals and organisations not to discriminate. “This will do little to progress the fight for greater equality,” she argued, “and will be exacerbated by the Government’s ‘shameful’ decision to drop the duty on public sector bodies to promote equality.”
“This Government has proven it doesn’t believe in human rights or equality, and that leaving people to fend for themselves is acceptable, as it promotes market forces,” she told the Conference.
Ms Codrington-Rogers was also elected onto the TUC Race Relations Committee.
The impact on disabled students and workers of the Coalition Government’s programme for education was highlighted by the NASUWT at the TUC Disability Conference.
The abolition of the Building Schools for the Future (BSF) programme, massive cuts to capital funding for schools and the tearing up of planning laws to enable schools to be set up in disused office blocks and abandoned shops will all restrict access to education, training and employment for learners, support staff and teachers with disabilities, delegates at the London conference held earlier this month heard.
Coalition attacks on workplace and trade union rights will also leave disabled workers more vulnerable to management bullying and discrimination, the Union warned.
For more information goto:
www.nasuwt.org.uk/EqualityMatters
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