Two-finger salute

[Angel Heart]

http://www.thesun.co.uk/article/0,,2007320449,00.html

Two-finger salute

By DAVID WOODING
Whitehall Editor
July 13, 2007

FURY erupted last night after Sir Winston Churchill was axed from school history lessons.

Britain’s cigar-chomping World War Two PM — famed for his two-finger victory salute — was removed from a list of figures secondary school children must learn about.

Instead they will be taught about “relevant” issues such as global warming and drug dangers. Churchill’s grandson, Tory MP Nicholas Soames, branded the move “total madness.”

The decision to axe Churchill is part of a major shake-up aimed at dragging the national curriculum into the 21st century, it was claimed last night.

But the plan — hatched by advisers — angered schools secretary Ed Balls, who vowed to probe ALL the changes to the curriculum.

The proposals will see traditional timetables torn up, with pupils focusing on modern “relevant” topics such as drug and booze abuse, climate change and GM foods.

Churchill — voted the greatest ever Briton — goes off the required lessons list, along with Hitler, Gandhi, Stalin and Martin Luther King.

There will also be no need to mention the Wars of the Roses, Elizabeth I or Henry VIII.

The move left Mr Balls locked in a row with his curriculum advisers.

He insisted: “Churchill should be taught to all pupils and I shall be taking steps to ensure it is.”

Shadow schools secretary Michael Gove said: “Winston Churchill is the towering figure of 20th-century British history. His fight against fascism was Britain’s finest hour.

“Our national story can’t be told without Churchill at the centre.”

Churchill’s grandson, Tory MP Nicholas Soames, stormed: “It’s total madness. The teaching of history is incredibly important. If people do not seem to care about the country in which they live, the reason is that they don’t know much about it.”

Ministers said the shake-up will free up a quarter of the school day so teachers can focus more on individual pupil needs. All subjects for 11 to 14-year-olds face an overhaul.

ENGLISH: Lessons must focus on reading and writing accurately and speaking clearly. Classic and modern literature will be a must. Recommended authors will include Jane Austen, George Orwell and Alan Bennett. Pupils must study at least one Shakespeare play.

SCIENCE: Touchy issues such as genetic engineering of plants and animals and use of nuclear power are added. Kids will also learn about the effects of drugs such as booze, cigarettes and cannabis, sexual health and infection.

MATHS: Personal finance, such as how to manage a bank account and work out credit card interest will be added to algebra, linear equations and ratios.

HISTORY: Will still focus on major events in Britain, Europe and the world, including both world wars, the Holocaust, and the British Empire. Visits to museums, galleries and historical sights are a must.

MODERN LANGUAGES: Schools will be able to stop teaching French, German and Spanish and offer other languages, including Urdu, Chinese, Russian, and Arabic. Qualifications and Curriculum Authority boss Ken Boston said the changes would equip young people “with the skills for life and work in the 21st century”.

A spokesman said changes would not be radical, adding: “Anne Boleyn will still be beheaded, the Pennines will remain the backbone of England and Romeo will still fall in love with Juliet.”

Headteachers last night said that the reforms were “a move in the right direction”.

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[Diuretic]

Good idea, pity about the execution (ahem, pun unintended).

The dropping of historical figures of study such as Churchill will be all that some see. I think that was a dumb thing to do because it threatens to undo the good bits of the curriculum (at least as far as I can tell). Put Winnie back but leave those relevant things as well.

 

[CSM]

Good idea, pity about the execution (ahem, pun unintended).

The dropping of historical figures of study such as Churchill will be all that some see. I think that was a dumb thing to do because it threatens to undo the good bits of the curriculum (at least as far as I can tell). Put Winnie back but leave those relevant things as well.

I'm with you on this one (can't believe I just wrote that!). The only minor difference I have is that saying those "other" things are "relevent" implies that Chrchill and history in general are "irrelevant".

As has been pointed out ad nauseam on this board, those who ignore history are doomed to repeat it.

 

[Diuretic]

I'm with you on this one (can't believe I just wrote that!). The only minor difference I have is that saying those "other" things are "relevent" implies that Chrchill and history in general are "irrelevant".

As has been pointed out ad nauseam on this board, those who ignore history are doomed to repeat it.

It's alright CSM - I know how you feel - quite a shock isn't it?

Yes, those other things are relevant, I worded that poorly.

Years ago children in the UK used to "learn the Kings and Queens". I doubt the worth of memorising all of them. But they should still study history (I always loved it at school) because as Oliver Wendell Holmes pointed out, if we want to know where we're going we have to know where we came from.

C.S. Lewis wrote a great short essay about this sort of topic, "Men Without Chests", it's in his "The Abolition of Man", quite appropriate really. I do think though that Lewis wouldn't have condemned these changes in the curriculum wholesale (if you read that piece you can see he forcefully attacks "trendiness" in education and a lack of intellectual rigour).

 

[Angel Heart]

I've read most of CS Lewis's work. I'll have to pick up that.

The old, "if you don't learn from history you are doomed to repeat it" comes to mind.

 

[Diuretic]

I think they may have learned though. I like the parts of the curriculum that actually give the students a chance to learn the realities of life. In our high school curriculum there's very llittle, if any, material devoted to how to be a functioning adult in society. From the piece I read here it seems that in the UK they have picked it up. Funny though, Ken Boston, who is mentioned in the piece, used to be the Director-General of Education in my state before going to the UK, pity he didn't think of that when he was here.

 

[ScreamingEagle]

Fury? Thank God there are a few sane people left in Britain. Good for Balls. If I were him I too would be very angry and investigating each and every little change of the curriculum. The very FACT that they were unbelievably planning to drop people like Churchill, Hitler, Stalin, etc. from the history lessons is a HUGE indicator of who these people are and what their agenda is. Duh.

Re other subjects, it says they are adding "touchy" things like genetics and nuclear issues, global warming. I'd say that probably means a political agenda is being included most likely at the expense of other regular scientific topics, especially if time is of the essence - which seems to be the flimsy reason given for changing the curriculum and so radically "updating" it. At this rate pretty soon the schools will be nothing more than brainwashing camps for the young. (as if they aren't already)

And why would they drop a language like Spanish? It's a very relevant language of today and is spoken in mucho countries.

 

[Annie]

I think they may have learned though. I like the parts of the curriculum that actually give the students a chance to learn the realities of life. In our high school curriculum there's very llittle, if any, material devoted to how to be a functioning adult in society. From the piece I read here it seems that in the UK they have picked it up. Funny though, Ken Boston, who is mentioned in the piece, used to be the Director-General of Education in my state before going to the UK, pity he didn't think of that when he was here.

In my local high school, there are several programs in place aimed towards 'adulthood':

1. Obviously 'sex education', which includes all of the areas disliked by some. It also includes issues such as the effects of divorce on children and society. Volunteerism as an American value. Why marriage is important for children's stability. Yes, seriously.

2. Consumer education, which includes checking, savings, and credit knowledge. Teaches the basics of economics, a subject most high schoolers are clueless about; including the stock market and mercantile exchanges; their impact on the economy and how through retirement accounts, nearly everyone is impacted by their performance. (Note: this is DuPage County, wealthy suburb of very wealthy county).

3. Driver's Ed. Weird one to bring up, but it includes not only behind the wheel and blue slips. Also includes detailed information on DUI and what happens when one is under the influence-simulators that state such things as:

one joint, two and reactions.​

one beer, two, three and reactions​

simulation while conversing on cell phone, in traffic. My one son freaked, he hit an old lady.​

 

[Diuretic]

In my local high school, there are several programs in place aimed towards 'adulthood':

1. Obviously 'sex education', which includes all of the areas disliked by some. It also includes issues such as the effects of divorce on children and society. Volunteerism as an American value. Why marriage is important for children's stability. Yes, seriously.

2. Consumer education, which includes checking, savings, and credit knowledge. Teaches the basics of economics, a subject most high schoolers are clueless about; including the stock market and mercantile exchanges; their impact on the economy and how through retirement accounts, nearly everyone is impacted by their performance. (Note: this is DuPage County, wealthy suburb of very wealthy county).

3. Driver's Ed. Weird one to bring up, but it includes not only behind the wheel and blue slips. Also includes detailed information on DUI and what happens when one is under the influence-simulators that state such things as:

one joint, two and reactions.​

one beer, two, three and reactions​

simulation while conversing on cell phone, in traffic. My one son freaked, he hit an old lady.​

I would dearly love to see that in the various state curricula here.

I was listening to a piece on an NPR programme that was on radio here about a place in Mexico, Kidzania. It's an entire community simulation for children. I was a bit intrigued when I heard the piece on radio so I googled (natch) and I'll link the Wikipedia page because the official site is very Flash heavy.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kidzania

Now I know some educators might be critical because it looks like a theme park and looks like it might be run for profit but what the heck, kids (and adults) learn better when they're relaxed and happy so this would be a great learning experience for them.

 

[akiboy]

Well according to me there is got to be more on the Cold War , Vietnam , Korea,Falklands. Modern History such as the Gulf Wars should also be included.

In Science...Its good to see that there is more emphasis on nuclear science. Nuclear science wether it be in weapons , energy , medicine is the key to nexte generation technology.

What about J.K Rowling in Literature?? The first billionaire female author!!