In today's government reshuffle, which sees Lord David "hug a husky" Cameron back in the cabinet, spare a thought for the once great survivor, Nick Gibb who has surely been sacked for the last time. Gibb, a voice for high "standards" for many years was brought back into the DfE by one of our many recent PMs after being inexplicably sacked by one of the others. I hope I'll be forgiven for not quite remembering which did what to him.
Gibb has been seen by many of those wishing for more robust support from the DfE for ESD / EfS / CCE / EE / LSD / whatever, will no doubt be cheering his demise as he has been seen as a block to reform. But I doubt it will make a difference this side of an election to how the DfE operates.
Many credit Gibb for his championing of reading reforms in primary schools and these do seem to have made a difference and I'm certainly a convert to phonics. Though how much difference there has been in those very many homes with no reading culture, is open to question, despite our successes in international rankings.
.............................................
Thursday update. Here's a comment in Spiked on the Gibb legacy. It says that he had three stints in the DfE (not two as I said) and a period in opposition before that with the schools brief as well. The writer, Joanna Williams, balances the credit side of Gibb's work in relation to reading with a significant debit in relation to other pressing educational concerns that he chose to ignore. Environmental educators know that all too well.
Respond