When was the last time you had a chat over dinner about Circular 10/65? No, me neither but maybe it's high time that we all did.
Circular 10/65 (10/65) was introduced by the Labour politician Anthony Crosland in 1965 and what is significant about it is that it introduced the debate about comprehensive schools and, therefore, is arguably responsible for the biggest single disaster in British education since the second world war.
Now, wait a minute, I know what you may be thinking. Actually, I am a proud product of comprehensive schooling, I have worked in them for many years and I remain a supporter. My grouch with 10/65 is that it started a debate amongst our politicians that none of them have been able to conclude and all the while students and teachers have been left stranded in the crossfire.
In 1944, while bombs fell on bunkers, a new Education Act was passed having been successfully steered through Parliament by R.A.Butler and his chum, Hoare Baletia- better known as the beacons guy! Churchill, understandably, was pre-occupied and reportedly indifferent to Butler's plans and paid scant attention to the bill and its completion.
Crucially, the 1944 Education Act kept the Tories happy and appeased the Liberals by retaining an element of class division yet holding out the promise of social mobility through its clarion call: parity of esteem. You might go to a Grammar, Secondary Modern or Technical School but, in theory at least, all were equal and people could move between establishments as required- though, in reality, few ever did.
10/65 blew all this away! Now, one might argue that was good and necessary but the problem is what has been left in its wake.
In today's educational world, teachers are frequently the butt of criticism and accusations of systemic failure. They lack discipline, are unable to command respect and have poor qualifications- Mr Gove has a particular issue with degree levels.
Meanwhile, students take "soft" subjects like Media Studies, gain "dumbed down" GCSEs (introduced by a Tory government or have they forgotten?) are told their qualifications are inflated and, anyway, there are no jobs out there and we'll cut your EMA as well.
Against such an onslaught, even I could get a bit feral!
Meanwhile, the politicians continue to fail in their attempts to sort the system out. Trends come and go, standards are both assaulted and then raised, OFSTED- a whipping dog bunch of jobsworths - continue to raise the bar (think noose) ever higher, the examination boards change things frequently, budgets are cut, numbers in classroom rise, support services disappear, a baccalaureate appears and we all go to Academies now...A rose by any other name would smell as sweet!
And all of this has gone on for years! Education is a political shuttlecock and the political classes don't care as long as they can get their children into the London Oratory or wherever it is they want to go.
The rest of us have to take our chances.
The 1944 Education Act was a long time ago but at least it was the result of sustained effort and hard work- I know because I have read the archives at Kew. Today, it's all a little bit too back-of-the-fag-packet-knee-jerk-soundbite.
Meanwhile the teachers and the students struggle.
Today's politicians do not care about Education, even if they say the word three times, and it's about time they did. When was the last time a Minister actually stayed in post for a substantial period of time?
See, told you!
People say that R.A.Butler was the best Prime Minister we never had: they may have a point.