Schools have 'relentless examination focus'
If your children were among those who have just received their GCSE or A level results, you might be interested in this. It's an extract from a briefing prepared by civil servants for the higher education minister Bill Rammell.
"The relentless examination focus in schools means that the purpose of education is seen as passing the examination, not the developing of knowledge, skills and understanding for their own sake, or for the broader development of the ‘whole person’."
But just in case any of you think this reflects your children's experiences, I should point that the briefing was actually about China, which Mr Rammell visited in May. The briefing went on to say:
"This has recently been acknowledged by the Ministry of Education, and a new initiative to promote ‘quality oriented’ education as opposed to ‘examination oriented’ education is underway. This new focus will involve a fundamental attitudinal change, not only among teachers and students, but among parents and society as a whole, which will be a slow process."
The full briefing given to Mr Rammell about the Chinese education system was obtained by the Â鶹¹ÙÍøÊ×Ò³Èë¿Ú through a freedom of information request.
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