Reaction to call to scrap national tests

Parents don't want to go back to a world where schools were closed institutions, no-one knew what was going on in them.

The reason we've got 15 million adults out there in the workforce who have problems with reading and writing is that the education system let them down 10, 15, 20 years ago and we can't go back to those days.

Parents like to know what their schools are like; they like to know what the educational attainment is in each of the schools in their locality. They want transparency, they want openness and they want accountability.

I don't think, incidentally, that any government of any political persuasion is going to go back to those days; certainly we have no intention of doing that.

National tests are crucial for improving standards. If it weren't for testing we would not know that 40% of 11-year-olds leave primary schools without reaching the expected standard in reading, writing and arithmetic.

We have to ensure that schools are not simply "teaching to the test" to raise their league table position. Testing means we can identify problems. The government have done too little to address these issues.

Solving these problems requires schools to adopt tried and tested teaching methods such as setting and streaming, phonics and a strict approach to behaviour and discipline.

The government's obsession with testing continues to be questioned by those who know most about how to teach our children.

This gigantic, expensive system with its escalating costs is no longer serving the best interests of our young people.

Teachers should be able concentrate on what's best for their pupils - personalised teaching - not feel compelled to teach to national tests.

The current system of testing and targets perverts the true purpose of education - children get drilled on how to pass tests, not educated.

The Lib Dems have called for tests to be scrapped for years - now is the time to abolish this stressful and bureaucratic process and make a positive change for our children.

These recommendations appear ludicrous.

I think this is led by teachers who do not want the stress of having to do their job to a standard that ensures children pass exams and pass exams well.

League tables are vital for parents to monitor their children's education.

And I think exams are quite healthy for children to get used to. As adults they will be tested each day in some manner.

There are all sorts of malign effects from the current testing regime.

One is that there is enormous pressure on youngsters and there's a lot of training to take the tests, and both teachers and parents feel that particularly coming up to that crucial time - year six, when you are 11 and just leaving primary school - that you practice for the tests so that you can get the best possible results and there are all sorts of sophisticated practices developing.

And secondly, schools themselves feel under enormous pressure because they are judged by the test results in a very crude way in the school performance tables that come out every year.

The ATL agrees that the current national curriculum and testing regime in England is no longer fit for purpose and in need of a radical review.

It is no surprise that pupils and teachers alike are being turned off and left demoralised by the current regime of cramming pupils with useless facts and "teaching to the test".

All are affected by the anxiety transmitted by their teachers.

We are not producing youngsters who value learning - but in a fast changing world we need a society of life-long learners.

We need to give teachers the freedom to inspire youngsters so they want to learn, not just pass tests and give pupils the space to develop as rounded people.

E-mail this to a friend

Printable version