Back to basics

Thursday, November 6th, 2008

Charles Clarke MP (Remember him? Pointy ears, former Education Secretary, made a pig’s ear of the Home Office) has been heading up a “major Policy Commission into the needs of the education system.”

The Commission has made five recommendations. At number five on the list is “Uses of technology”, and making sure the hardware and software used in schools in “interoperable”. Hardware and software that works together? The man’s a visionary.

But that pales in comparison to recommendation number two: back pain in children. “Children are generally taller now and the range of heights in any cohort is greater than in the past (BackCare, FIRA and BESA research). As a result, an increasing number of children are suffering from back pain due to unsuitable furniture.”

Are bigger seats for beanpoles really the second biggest priority for our schools? What about the deplorable state of the IT GCSE exams for starters?