I did not browse the Conservative election manifesto with a sense of expectation, but I was curious about whether they would mention what they have done in relation to climate / sustainability / environmental / etc education. I browsed in vain, as in my heart of hearts, I really knew I would.
A pity, after all, they could have said something simple like this:
"We will build on the excellent start we have made through our Sustainability and Climate Change Strategy in ensuring that all students leave school prepared to face the sustainability challenges of the 21st century."
34 words; not a lot of detail, and not strictly factual, but it's only a manifesto.
But I did notice this:
To keep pace with our global competitors we will introduce the Advanced British Standard, a new "approach to 16-19 education which will build on the best of A Levels and T Levels. We will end the artificial and damaging divide between academic and technical education which has persisted for far too long. Every young person will spend more time in the classroom, learning more subjects, including English and maths to 18, as they do in most advanced economies around the world."
This sounds like a baccalaureate and would be yet another attempt to change the A level system. In all likelihood, they'll not get a chance to have a go at this, but it did draw me back (though not in a good way) to Ns and Fs, Qs and something else – and the many (failed) ways of changing A levels over the years. See this from 2004 and despair.
Responses
Sounds a lot like the belief that "if they only knew more they would think better and be able to make better decisions. If only the experts who advise the politico were as well educated 😉