If I were Secretary of State for Education...
What would you do if you were Secretary of State for Education? Some leading international educationalists have shared their ‘mini manifestos’.
We recently sponsored an initiative from Summerhouse Education and Sunday Times Wellington College Festival of Education – to ask 41 top educationalists what they would do if they were Secretary of State for Education in the UK.
Dr David James, Festival Director, gives a bit of background:
All of the ‘mini manifestos’ you read in this publication were written in that rather unreal time before the result of the general election was known, and when any outcome seemed possible. Everyone believed (perhaps for the last time) that the pollsters were right, and that we were heading for a hung Parliament... It was, of course, not to be.
“But periods of uncertainty can often produce innovative ideas, and there is plenty of evidence of this in the following pages. I initially started to approach contributors who were directly involved in the festival but, even with the huge range of high-profile speakers we had signed up, I also wanted to bring in people such as John Hattie and Daniel Willingham, who could make valuable contributions to the ongoing debate surrounding educational policy in this country, but who were unable to attend in person. I’m very glad I did because their insights are characteristically balanced and perceptive.”
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Rod Bristow, President of UK and Core Markets at Pearson, adds:
The 41 authors have come up with a wonderful blend of the inspired, the considered, the funny, the impossible, the very possible, the hugely expensive and the cost-free.
“There is something for everyone in these imaginative memos. From Peter Tatchell’s rally cry against intolerance to Toby Young’s plea for less red tape; from Christine Blower’s reflections on critical and creative thinking, to Dame Sally Coates’ proposed State Education Charter, to David Blunkett’s thoughts on the structures of government.”
Read the mini manifestos
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Tell us what you think. Tweet us at @Pearson_UK using #IfIwereSoS.