Focusing on the accessible and contemporary in school means that children's education is "shallow-rooted", the Prince of Wales wrote in the Royal Society of Literature magazine.

Heavier testing at school has led to less time for learning and necessitated a teaching style he described as "defensive".

Fashionable trends in education risk producing a generation of "culturally disinherited young people" and Prince Charles looks to the Germans, French and Russians who embrace their literary heritage as he believes we ought to.

The prince hosts an annual summer school for teachers and writers to discuss the teaching of English and history in state schools and his article reflects on the aims of the group.

Do you agree with Prince Charles' sentiments? Would reduced testing in schools allow for deeper understanding? Do we embrace British heritage properly within the curriculum? Tell us what you think.

This Talking Point has now closed. Read a selection of your comments below.

What's wrong with a test every year? How else can progress be measured? I work in a school and know at first hand that there is plenty of time for other aspects of school life e.g. work experience, citizenship, time with tutor groups, untested PE and music, and other essential experiences. With testing the kids will always say there's too much.
Liz, England

Exams are stressful no matter what your age or their importance Jenny Humphrey, UK

Children at all ages are tested too much and the stress that they are put through because of them is often not realised. Exams are stressful no matter what your age or their importance as me and my friends have found out throughout our time at school. So the Government need to stop putting us through endless years of exams these are meant to be the best years of our lives!
Jenny Humphrey, UK

At school here in the Netherlands, I had a test on at least one subject almost everyday. This form of continuous assessment worked very well for me - frequent testing on smaller parts of the curriculum, then end of year tests on the whole lot. More tests, not less, are the way to go
Andrew, British in the Netherlands

Absolute nonsense. I never felt over-tested or over-examined. The opposite, in a wholly coursework-oriented syllabus is exactly what is fuelling claims of education becoming much easier. I also don't believe we should spend more time on English heritage and history. That's how the American system works and, I'm afraid to say it, it produces international ignorance at a breath-taking level.
Andy, UK

Andy: UK, Unfortunately, the drive to higher and higher levels of testing is driven by the rise of management and accounting culture. In this realm decisions cannot be made unless there are concrete figures to analyse. So, the worth of schools is driven by league tables and exam performance. In amongst this, the education of our children from school, all the way through to the universties suffers. It's blinkered and short-sighted but we'd better get used to it because the culture change has already happened and isn't going to change back.
Darren Stephens, Whitby,UK

History is essential to teaching heritage and ensuring that up and coming generations appreciate what a great country we have... or had as the case may be. Even so, real world (modern) education is needed so students come out of school or college and can then walk into a job with less training.
Dave, SE, UK

Prince Charles is exactly right Kristopher Welsh, England

Prince Charles is exactly right, our schools should spend less time having to worry about exam results and figures, and more time giving pupils a broad, flexible and interesting education. You can be taught a subject, or taught how to pass an exam in that subject.
Kristopher Welsh, England

When the Conservatives were fiddling about with education in the 80s, imposing the badly thought out model we still struggle with today, much of the teaching profession warned them that their plans were bonkers. The tabloid press made out that these warnings came from militant lefty teachers, the government had a big majority, and of course the changes went ahead.

I'm surprised it's taken this long for the rest of the country to start realising that endless testing, "league" tables and so on achieve little except pupil demotivation and teacher stress. As was predicted by the professionals all that time ago.
Mark Studden, England

My children all agree that there are "Far too many tests and not enough fun." Learning should be enjoyable for teachers and pupils - my children are fortunate to be bright and have coped - many of their friends have not and have dropped out of school after GCSEs and are in a state of depression.
Vee Jay, England

The problem with the current testing is that it does not permit variety. I lost count of the number of time we studied the Romans at school, but covered very little of the rest of history.
Helen, UK

From the age of 13 I have been tested every year Amy Utton, London, UK

I am currently on a gap year in order to avoid facing year after year of examination in which studying is never learning but always revising and preparing for tests. From the age of 13 I have been tested every year.

If it had not been for my gap year then I would have faced 10 years of continual testing, year 9 SATs, year 10 mocks, GCSEs, AS levels, A2 exams, then three years of exams at university followed by two years of exams to become either a solicitor or barrister. It is becoming a joke.
Amy Utton, London, UK

We test young children too early. That has the potential to subdue or destroy confidence in children. We don't have enough emphasis on encouraging direction. A child might be very strong when examined on a topic but their interest might lie elsewhere.

All too often emphasis is placed on the exam result. People develop at different rates throughout their life. That doesn't go hand in hand with reduced intelligence. I hated history with a passion when I was at school; now I read it often in my spare time.
Mike, Scotland

Tests contribute nothing to the actual education of any child, but are an important part of ensuring that standards are maintained. It should be no surprise that schools, driven by the publication of league tables, feel compelled to blow the SATs out of all proportion and teach according to what will be measured on the SATs. The solution is simple: Stop publishing league tables.
Guy Chapman, UK