When I assembled a group of teachers aged over 35 at my local comprehensive school (which, despite being in the home counties, deals with children from very difficult as well as privileged backgrounds), I was struck by their honesty about what has been gained and lost since they were at school.
They started by justifying how they do things now—but with enthusiasm rather than defensiveness. “The education experience has become more exciting because learning has become more active.” Students, I was told, are encouraged to find things out for themselves, which allows them to understand things in more complex ways than if they are spoon-fed.
These teachers did not accept that students should have to learn vast quantities of factual information, as opposed to learning where to look for it. I pressed them on the risk of ignorance: “How can you understand history without some basic knowledge about what happened when?” I was relieved when a history teacher conceded that core knowledge has sometimes been neglected in the past, and assured me: “We have come back to a respect for facts.” But she wanted her students as far as possible to discover information for themselves. At present they are looking at evidence to decide the strengths and weaknesses of King John. I hope that along the way they learn that he signed Magna Carta and lost most of England’s possessions in France. I suspect that good teachers ensure this happens, but with others it can be hit and miss.
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