Continuing our theme this week…most of the arguments pro two-tier are based on half-truths. This is an excellent way to mislead, because the unwary recognise the half that is true and fail to spot the logical inconsistency in the other 50%.
Example number 4:
Pro two-tier: Secondary schools are so much better because they match their teaching to the National Curriculum Key Stages.
Pro three-tier: So do lower and middle schools – the National Curriculum is a continuous and hopefully progressive journey, not distinguished necessarily by age but by natural development.
This, of course, is the same National Curriculum that is being dismantled piece by piece by the current Government…not to say what the next Government will attempt to do to Schools.
Michael Gove for example seems very keen to change things, and I’m sure he won’t stop introducing new initiatives just because Bedford is busy changing school system !
Read more educational arguments under the Summary tab above – back on Monday looking at finance (or rather the lack of it).
Save Middle Schools - The Blog 
In fact, if Michael Gove chooses to implement the Rose Report fully, we will find that specialist teaching is required in the latter stages of primary education. Most authorities will struggle to meet this: Bedfordshire COULD be ahead of the game, however, if 3-tier is retained!
and Birmingham is planning 2 new 14-19 Academies!
And it’s not just the Rose Report that supports the introduction of specialist teaching in Primary – so does the Cambridge Primary Review. Beware the swinging pendulum. If Bedford switches in a long, costly, risky, painful process sacrificing the improvements that could be made in the mean time with all that effort it might meet the pendulum coming the other way.
You have not mentioned the non truth “No other BSF bid is for 3-tier”. Until it was found that North Tyneside were already well down the BSF approval trail with their 3-tier BSF plans. Were the “professional expert education officers” ignoring the truth or had they not even bothered to investigate the matter?
One of the other interesting changes that Michael Gove was considering was moving the SATs tests from the end of year 6 to the beginning of year 7. Interesting- wouldn’t middle schools be in a perfect position to conduct those tests with their pupils?
But we really should stop seeing the end of a key stage as the be all and end all. SATs have their days numbered, in my opinion and middle schools already deliver specialist teaching, particularly in the core subjects, which drive standards higher and makes the transition to the key stage three curriculum easier.
Why in 2008 why were the GCSE results from Bedford schools worse than the England average and worse than the average of our statistical neighbours? DCSF and OfSTED show that there is no difference in England between those areas that have 2-tier schools and those that have 3-tier. There is no adverse comment by OfSTED on transition between lower-middle-upper in Bedfordshire. Middle schools appear to have no more difficulty in recruiting suitable qualified staff than anyone else. So what is the difference between the rest of England, our statistical neighbours and Bedford Borough?
It cannot be our 3-tier structure, unless DCSF and OfSTED are conspiring against Bedford. Blaming the structure allows all of those involved in Bedford’s education to avoid blame – it is not their fault that they have underfunded and undermined education in Bedford for decades. Our new Mayor sums it up – he cannot possibly have any responsibility for the state of John Bunyan even if he is the local councillor and Chair of Governors it must be the structure!
And, JamesD,during the transition process – when standards fall- it really will be the fault of the move to a two tier structure.But, that will get the officers etc. off the hook, as they balme the standards falling on the transitional process. Of course, underneath these statistics are real children seeing their educational and life chnaces being used as an unfortunate experiment.