I've spent long enough in education (fives years as an academic and about two decades as a school and HE governor) to have an opinion on this issue. So I thought I'd share some of them.
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The really galling thing for me Richard is that nothing you have said is rocket science. You have only pointed out the consequences of events and the government’s reactions to them. Experience tells us that our leaders are defo not proactive. They wait, and deflect, and then lie about what they knew and when. It’s a total abdication of responsibility to facilitate their disaster capitalism agenda.
You can safely bet that the grades for Etonians will not be harmed in any way during this period.
Richard, I’m sympathetic to the arguments that Universities have become perversely adjusted to a marketised model and instrumentally adjusted to a rewards & target structure that no longer pertains to the present. Indeed, there’s been significant resistance to these insidious developments- from managerialism to performance audits to academic freedom – there’s a literature out there. Most of us (for I declare an interest as an academic) believe that the more invidious aspects of the neoliberal university are inimical to preparing students for a changing world. I don’t think many lecturers would recognise the archaic assessment system you describe. Many staff have sought to innovate despite the system. I also hear the same from schools & FE colleges. The structural impact of education as consumption is one of the key root problems.
I have to say the assessment is still far too archaic and fighting against it (and I did) hard
This is the first time I have had the confidence to leave a comment. I have spent over 60 years in education in one form or another. I went to school, university, teaching for over 40 years, examiner for over 25 years, moderator for over 10 years, AI Ofsted Inspector for ten years, and father of two sons both of whom have Ph.Ds and one still works in a Russell-Group university. My main expertise in education was with sixth form students as a teacher of A level for 40 years, as a sixth form tutor for over 25 years and as Head of Sixth Form for nearly ten years. Richard I agree with everything you have said in your podcast but there is so much that still needs to be said.
I absolutely agree with your point about GCSEs. As soon as the majority of students had to stay at school until they were 18 I started to ask the question why are we doing exams at 16? I wrote to various bodies, my MP, my school governors etc etc. and I never did get a satisfactory answer. The main reason we still have GCSEs is that people make a profit from them. Exam boards are profit making companies and that is why they are alive today when they have very little educational value or worth.
You suggest that teacher assessment has a role to play in the final grading of students. I could not agree more but if it is so important why is coursework no longer used to assess students? The main reason was that it was unreliable. What do I mean by that? Teachers and students and parents cheated. This cheating took place on a vast scale. I moderated coursework which had been marked by teachers and I was regularly changing marks by 7 or 8 and at times 10 or more. These were not marking errors or failure to interpret the mark scheme correctly. Marks had been awarded for wrong answers–no ifs and no buts. This is not the place to ask why this was the case.
Please take my word for it that the UCAS application system would not survive a detailed inspection of how it actually operates rather than how people think it operates.
I was disappointed that you didn’t mention the fate of university lecturers many of whom are on temporary contracts or zero hour contracts. Before the grades fiasco many of these had received notices to say that their contract was not being renewed and lecturers who had left were not being replaced. The obvious effect was that the workload of the remaining lecturers increased. I know of one university department of over 1000 students which has just one member of staff who has responsibility for the physical and mental well being of the students. He does not have the luxury of even one admin staff which means that he has to deal with everything. I was head of a sixth form of 400 students and I had 22 tutors and 3 admin people to do the same role. Is there any wonder that the mental health of university students is of such concern today.
It is impossible for me express my concerns and fears about our education system in such a short space and this may not be the place to do it. Your podcast is asking the questions and expressing the views I have held for years. In this time of great change there is a chance that the changes which are so desperately needed in our education will be made before it is too late. Good luck Richard and keep on with the podcasts. They are much appreciated.
Derek
Thanks for your comments
I agree with a great deal of what you have to say – and most especially on the fate of many university teachers. Those who take this task seriously – and they are usually the more junior members of a department (but not always) are massively stressed by the experience and responsibility.
You are also right about over-marking. When I began teaching I sought practical advice. I was told by one professor when I did so that I should never take more than. ten minutes marking a 3,000 word essay. I completely ignored her wholly inapp[riopriate advice, but she was, in any case, a lousy academic at every level.
There are vast numbers of teachers who want to deliver for those they teach. Doing so is a fantastically rewarding experience. But we do not invest enough in it for all to flourish. And that’s a scandal that yet more austerity will exacerbate.
I just apologise that I think the video was already overly long for the series and I missed some things out.
Thanks for your comment.