Yet more evidence of the failures of the state education system have come to light today:
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- Fewer than half of 16-year-olds this year achieved five A*-C grade GCSEs including English and maths;
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- Only a quarter achieved five A*-C grade GCSEs including English, maths, science and a foreign language;
- One in five teenagers failed to get a single A*-C grade GCSE - for boys, the figure was one in four.
The full government figures are available here.
It cannot be repeated often enough:
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- The state education system is failing to provide enough children with a good, rounded education.
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- The state education system is particularly failing poorer children, who perform far worse than the average.
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- The state education system is failing despite education spending doubling in the last decade.
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- Without major change the state education system will continue to fail no matter how much money is spent on it.
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- The state education system is failing because it is managed by politicians who lack experience of managing large organisations, lack detailed knowledge and experience of education and are in their posts for too short a time.
- Returning control over education to civil society, as is done in Sweden, the Netherlands and others, will improve outcomes, especially for the poorest children. Politicians should set high-level education policy, such as the level of taxpayer funding and the number of years of compulsory education, and leave the rest to parents and teachers, who will make a much better job of it.