Porkies and half truths - 4

The Government recently reported that school exclusions have been reduced by 25% since they came to power. ( I am not sure if this is a good thing, if it means that disruptive students stay and cause havoc, but they seem to be claiming it as a success.)

But once again, all is not what it seems. Disruptive behaviour has not decreased, on the contrary, it seems to be increasing. The Government has increasingly adopted a policy of re-cycling - sending disruptive students to other schools.

You may feel, and they may, that this is sharing the misery and failure to others caused by students without any inclination to study, by sending such students to all schools in turn.

The downside is that the disruptive students are not getting the (expensive) special facilities one-to-one attention and counselling which they need. On the contrary, by regularly changing school what little education these students have will be reduced because of the challenge provided by joining new schools, - different teachers, different syllabus timings and, above all, the insecurity which is more likely to make a need to establish their disruptive credentials and claim more teacher scalps.

The Government policy, frequently changing, and often to deceive the public or to save money, could make a difficult situation much worse, and promote educational failure rather than nipping it in the bud.