Memorandum submitted by Professor Keith
Barnham, Physics Department, Imperial College (SA 6)
Ever since I myself took the 11-plus examination
I have been convinced that selection at secondary level is morally,
educationally and socially wrong. This opinion has been strengthened
by my experiences as a parent living in selective and non-selective
LEAs and throughout a lifetime in education including the last
several years as a Professor of Physics. The main reasons for
this conviction are:
— selection results in inferior education
for pupils at the selective schools and in the other secondary
schools in selective areas.
— the continuation of the grammar and
other selective secondary schools and of the ethos surrounding
them is a main contribution to the still lamentable staying-on
rate at 16 in the UK compared to our competitor countries.
1. The present government's approach to
selection is muddled and resembles that of previous Tory governments
for the following reasons:
— They talk about "parental choice"
conveniently forgetting that where selection is concerned one
parents "choice" inevitably means many more parents
face a loss of choice. The only true "choice" is when
all schools in an area can teach all abilities and all the children
can go to all the schools.
— They appear to agree, in private,
that selection at 11 is wrong, but have made the ballot system
so difficult there is no way that parents can end the grammar
system.
2. Specialist schools are re-introducing
a form of selection by leading to a "two tier" system
in many areas. When I raised this with a minister I was told that
this was a problem but before long all schools would be specialist.
This is crazy as:
— I am convinced that for the great
majority of children at 11 they and their parents have no idea
what will turn out to be an appropriate Specialisation
— in many areas geographic considerations
will mean many parents are left with very restricted or inappropriate
options
— what is the "choice" for
parents who, like me, would like their children to be open to
the widest possible range of options ie they prefer their children
to go to a good comprehensive school?
— There is no doubt that too early
specialisation in the UK is one of the problems why we have lagged
behind industrial competitors.
3. In order to improve secondary education
in the UK the government should return to its first manifesto
and its commitment then to end all selection in secondary schools.
August 2003
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