Birmingham Schools - Update

[mushroom25]

it has been reported on this evening's Central News that parts of the DfE report into the Park View Academy schools trust (and others) have been leaked to the Daily Telegraph.
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/education/educationnews/10775755/State-schools-isolate-non-Muslims.html
the leaked sections of the report tend to suggest that some of the allegations (gender-segregated classes, redacted curriculum, no music or arts lessons for primary pupils) have evidence to back them.
Chair of Governors Tahir Alam (who is allegedly receiving undeclared four figure sums from the 3 Park View schools as a "consultant") is said to be "disappointed" at the leaking of the report.

These are Academy schools, outside of direct local authority control, and therefore free to plough their own furrow, within certain guidelines. On balance, was the creation of these bodies a good idea?

[Gromit]

The whole concept of Academies and Free School was to get the funding away from the local authority control (usually inner city so Labour run), and opted out to Government run.

Now that Free Schools (most of which are religious) and some Academies are having problems, then the blame for their running is not with Labour Local Authorities, but with Coalition run and Westminster based central Government.

You reap what yiu sow.....

[emmie]

most the free schools seem to be successful, going on various reports, and what makes anyone think that the councils control would be any better, if those in charge at the council or some of the officers can be persuaded to look the other way, this i am sure is the proverbial tip of the iceberg,
and why would anyone be surprised. If the cases are made, and those found guilty, and this will be a long investigation, i hope they are never allowed to be part of governing, working in any school, and at best guilty parties at smear campaigns, ousting of legitimate heads of schools, go to prison. Some won't ever believe this could happen, let us see

[lozzer50]

I for one would not send any child of mine to an academy. they are a law unto themselves. I know of at least three near me that had to change because they were in special measures and nothing has changed.

[emmie]

have a read of this, and the fourth paragraph down, about Michael Gove

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Free_school_%28England%29

[Gromit]

// most the free schools seem to be successful, going on various reports //

Did you read the fifth paragraph in your imk emmie...?

// In April 2014 it emerged in a leaked document 'Future Academy System: Lord Nash Session' that failing Free schools were being given special fast-track attention by the government to limit potential embarrassment to the Education Secretary Michael Gove. It stated "political ramifications of any more free schools being judged inadequate are very high and speedy intervention is essential". //

[emmie]

i did read through it, but this was wiki,
have had this subject posted before and any number of links to
free schools, most of the info that was gathered appeared to be a
thumbs up. How many council run schools over all these years have been a failure, and going on how many of our young people who leave the educational system, seem to have been largely failed by it.
Employers have said so, that they are having to teach them basic subjects, which is madness.

[grumpy01]

Perhaps its to help with spelling gromit?

[grumpy01]

Also with punctuation.

[emmie]

perhaps it is.

[emmie]

who got blipped.

[Gromit]

If it is a 'thumbs up' why are the Government giving the failing schools 'special fast-track attention'?

The truth is they are no better than the schools they are replacing. They are outside the control of the democratically elected local councils, and they are getting a disproportionate amount of Education funding because they are Gove's pet project. And a high number of them seem to be muslim, christian and jewish run which should not be funded by the taxpayer in the first place.

[Peter Pedant]

.

Scary - the skools are here to educate the children not indoctrinate them

[emmie]

have you got a link that they are mostly faith schools

[kawanabe]

It's going back a couple of years, but at the time 1/3 of the newly approved free schools where faith based, and the article says that 25% of the first wave of free schools were faith based.

http://www.theguardian.com/education/2012/jul/13/third-new-free-schools-religious

[emmie]

i wouldn't have any school, council run, or free have religion as part of its base, that should be the preserve of Synagogue, Church, Mosque.

[emmie]

i attended a church school, which wasn't my first choice, as the one i wanted to go to was over subscribed

[anotheoldgit]

Most schools in the not so complicated past were Church of England Schools, if not all.

And prayers were said, hymns sung at morning assembly, and Religion taught, but strangely enough most came away from school with a good knowledge of the important three 'R's.

More than can be said today.

[THECORBYLOON]

When was this 'not so complicated past' exactly? The C of E was teaching a third of schoolchildren at the start of WWII so even when you were at school, ANOTHEOLDGIT, their schools were in the minority.

[mushroom25]

TCL, I don't think AOG meant that a majority of schools were directly controlled by the CofE, per-se - but rather at the time the 1944 Education Act was in force (which required that the school day in every county school and every voluntary school shall begin with collective worship on the part of all the pupils in attendance), the majority faith in England was still C of E.