David Mingay is a science teacher in Kent
I spent a couple of years teaching in Washington DC recently. I was working in the private sector, which operates a system that we would do well to emulate in both the state and independent sectors in this country.
Basically, there is no state control over the syllabus. Teachers can teach whatever they think is appropriate, and set and mark their own assessments, in much the same way as university departments operate.
Teachers design their own courses, so they can teach to the level they, and not the government, think is appropriate for that age group. In addition to the standard school subjects, teachers can also offer courses in their own specialist areas — the school has an expert on bioethics, for example, who teaches a bioethics course. Students benefit because they are being taught about the teacher’s areas of expertise, and also because the teacher’s enthusiasm makes classes more exciting. The school also offers courses on topics as diverse as 19th century European art, literature and music, and anthropology.
The danger of dumbing down is dealt with by having courses moderated by local universities. The major benefit of this, of course, is that universities are getting students who are educated to the level they would expect. Schools who try to lower their standards soon get a reputation amongst universities for doing so and quickly do something about it.
There would also be a wider benefit to the UK taxpayer if we adopted this system. All the exam boards and their associated quangos and Whitehall civil servants could be dispensed with, leading to savings which could be redirected to schools themselves.