School Drop-outs Are Criminals Under Labour’s New Proposals
Today, the government has announced “detailed proposals” in a Green Paper on education, which they basically propose that from 2015, anyone who leaves school (or “training”, whatever that ambiguous term means) will be a criminal. Drop-outs will get £50 on-the-spot fines, and an ASBO-style “attendance order” giving them a study course that they are expected to attend.
This is bad enough so far, but it gets worse.
To police these proposals, a new electronic database will be set up to track the destinations of children from when they leave school, held by local authorities, which will be required to be updated by colleges and companies. Another pointless database full of more and more information about us. How much will this cost, and will it work? Going on this governments record: too much, and probably not. Yet another trip further into the Big Brother and Nanny State ideals of New Labour, and yet another inroad into our civil liberties and taxes.
According to the Times, the Green Paper describes the types of teenagers who drop out of education or training in this manner:
“Angry young rebels Against the system and very hostile to authority figures, such as teachers. Disrupt lessons. Could be encouraged to take up college coursesQuitters Believe they have tried and failed. Need to be offered courses that are not too difficult
Rebels without a cause Impatient to get a job and start earning cash. Believe that their personality will be their key to success. School is boring, but they are not hostile to teachers. Apprenticeships seem the best option
Cool dudes Life is about having fun and school gets in the way. Teachers see them as lazy. They need to see links between their education and interests. Mentoring could help
Hedgers Waiting until they get their GCSE results. Vocational options can help
Settlers Sit between the “cool dudes” and the “quitters”. They want an easy life and need to be offered courses on which they can succeed
Escapists Dream of being discovered, but are disengaged. Vocational courses and mentoring can help to get them back on track
Strugglers Want to do well but have unrealistic aspirations. They are eager to get on but need courses at an appropriate level”
These sound far more like the sort of clarifications that you would get from an internet quiz than you would expect to be included in a “detailed government proposal”!
I know I have written on this stupid proposal to force kids to stay in school or education or “training” until 18 again and again, but I believe that it is an important issue. Making kids stay in education or training until eighteen really is not worth the effort. Those who don’t want to learn or train won’t, no matter how much you cajole, threaten, or legislate. Instead, it would be far more beneficial for everyone to put more money into adult learning, so that when these kids who dropped out at sixteen finally think “shit, I wish I’d done more education so that I could get a better job” then the opportunity is there for them to do something about it when they want to. That is when they, and the country, will get the best out of the money put into it.
Put money and effort into improving education until 16, like David Willets suggests:
“I want people to stay on but I am not yet convinced by compulsion. The real challenge is to raise standards in schools up to the age of 16.”
And then provide better provision for adult learning. Let them drop out at sixteen, but provide an easy way back in at a later date.
Sources: The Times, The Telegraph, The Guardian, BBC: article 1, article 2, 24dash.com
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