Agenda item

That this Council:-

(a)       believes this Government is making a shambles of education reform;

(b)       is disappointed that the new English Baccalaureate Certificate seems to have been thought up without proper consultation with unions, teachers or school leaders and are not based on evidence or on expert opinion from education professionals or businesses and that the Secretary of State for Education (the Rt. Hon. Michael Gove, MP), should have engaged with experts and companies to ensure young people get the skills for jobs of the future;

(c)        is concerned that the new system will create a two tier system that will see many leave school with no or inferior qualifications and notes a source quoted in the Mail on Sunday suggesting that the long term objective is to bring back a two tier system: "Schools will be given time to raise their game and adjust to that. If they can’t, or decide their pupils simply aren’t up to taking the new exam they may be forced to find a different option. That could reopen the debate about having another, less difficult exam.’

(d)       worries that students with learning difficulties have been overlooked in these proposals; the British Dyslexia Association said a renewed emphasis on exams rather than coursework and the breaking of two-year studies into smaller units and the extra stress associated with once-and-for-all exams could disadvantage candidates with some learning difficulties; the changes would also damage their chances of going on to higher education;

(e)       is concerned that the over emphasis on academic subjects will marginalise sport and arts and this approach has already been demonstrated through changing focus away from vocational education, cuts to support for vocational education services and cuts to funding to support work experience placements;

(f)         believes that these changes are out of date, from a Conservative-led Government totally out of touch with modern Britain and will produce an elitist system;

(g)       thinks that GCSE English exam papers should be remarked in England as they were in Wales; many students will struggle to go on to further education due to receiving lower than expected grades in English;

(h)        notes a recent report from Ofsted indicating that the Pupil Premium is not working in the way it was intended, because it fails to offset the cuts the Government has made to the schools budget, the report highlights that only 1 in 10 head teachers say the Pupil Premium is having a significant effect on supporting pupils from less well-off backgrounds, and that the funding is being used to plug holes in schools budgets, created by the biggest cuts in education spending since the 1950s; and

(i)         believes that this Government is making it difficult for pupils from disadvantaged backgrounds to get the education they deserve and directs that a copy of this motion be sent to the Secretary of State for Education to relay these concerns to Government.

It was moved by Councillor Jackie Drayton, seconded by Councillor Jenny Armstrong, that this Council:

(a)       believes this Government is making a shambles of education reform;

(b)       is disappointed that the new English Baccalaureate Certificate seems to have been thought up without proper consultation with unions, teachers or school leaders and are not based on evidence or on expert opinion from education professionals or businesses and that the Secretary of State for Education (the Rt. Hon. Michael Gove, MP), should have engaged with experts and companies to ensure young people get the skills for jobs of the future;

(c)        is concerned that the new system will create a two tier system that will see many leave school with no or inferior qualifications and notes a source quoted in the Mail on Sunday suggesting that the long term objective is to bring back a two tier system: "Schools will be given time to raise their game and adjust to that. If they can’t, or decide their pupils simply aren’t up to taking the new exam they may be forced to find a different option. That could reopen the debate about having another, less difficult exam.’

(d)       worries that students with learning difficulties have been overlooked in these proposals; the British Dyslexia Association said a renewed emphasis on exams rather than coursework and the breaking of two-year studies into smaller units and the extra stress associated with once-and-for-all exams could disadvantage candidates with some learning difficulties; the changes would also damage their chances of going on to higher education;

(e)       is concerned that the over emphasis on academic subjects will marginalise sport and arts and this approach has already been demonstrated through changing focus away from vocational education, cuts to support for vocational education services and cuts to funding to support work experience placements;

(f)         believes that these changes are out of date, from a Conservative-led Government totally out of touch with modern Britain and will produce an elitist system;

(g)       thinks that GCSE English exam papers should be remarked in England as they were in Wales; many students will struggle to go on to further education due to receiving lower than expected grades in English;

(h)        notes a recent report from Ofsted indicating that the Pupil Premium is not working in the way it was intended, because it fails to offset the cuts the Government has made to the schools budget, the report highlights that only 1 in 10 head teachers say the Pupil Premium is having a significant effect on supporting pupils from less well-off backgrounds, and that the funding is being used to plug holes in schools budgets, created by the biggest cuts in education spending since the 1950s; and

(i)         believes that this Government is making it difficult for pupils from disadvantaged backgrounds to get the education they deserve and directs that a copy of this motion be sent to the Secretary of State for Education to relay these concerns to Government.

Whereupon, it was moved by Councillor Andrew Sangar, seconded by Councillor Joe Otten, as an amendment, that the Motion now submitted be amended by the deletion of all the words after the words “That this Council” and the substitution of the following words therefor:-

(a)       welcomes plans to reform Key Stage 4 examination, which have been backed by a number of experts including Sir Mike Tomlinson, the former Chief Inspector of Schools;

(b)       however, reiterates its opposition to a two-tier system of examination;

(c)        therefore, lauds the notable policy changes secured by Liberal Democrats in Government, as set out in a report of The Financial Times on September 17^th 2012, which include:

(i)         avoiding the re-introduction of a two-tier system, by ensuring weaker pupils will not be entered into simpler exams; and

(ii)        no return to “norm-referencing”, a process whereby grades are awarded to a fixed number of pupils;

(d)       further commends Liberal Democrats in Government for securing the Pupil Premium, which has seen £11.4 million invested into Sheffield schools this academic year, a figure which will continue to grow year-on-year;

(e)       notes recent comments by Lord Andrew Adonis, Minister of State for Education during the last Government, in which he stated, “I wish we had introduced the Pupil Premium”;

(f)         supports the moves by the Coalition Government to boost vocational education, including:

(i)         increasing spending on apprenticeships in its first year by £250 million – a 50% increase on the previous Government’s commitments;

(ii)        implementing a £1 billion Youth Contract, to tackle unemployment among 16-24 year-olds; and

(iii)       providing financial backing for a Sheffield University Technical College, which will deliver vital skills and training to the next generation of Sheffielders; and

(g)       also welcomes announcements made at the recent Liberal Democrat Conference, which will help support disadvantaged children and young people, including:

(i)         a further £100m to repeat the successful Summer Schools programme in 2013 and 2014;

(ii)        an increase in the Pupil Premium entitlement to £900 a year for each disadvantaged child; and

(iii)       an additional £50 million a year to provide extra tuition to 11-year-olds who are struggling with poor maths and reading skills.

On being put to the vote, the amendment was negatived.

It was then moved by Councillor Karen McGowan, seconded by Councillor Martin Lawton, as an amendment, that the Motion now submitted be amended by the addition of new paragraphs (i) and (j) as follows and the relettering of original paragraph (i) as a new paragraph (k):-

(i)         is disappointed at the news that there were almost 30,000 fewer applications for university places this year due to the increase in tuition fees to £9000 per year, making further education unaffordable and undesirable for many students;

(j)         regrets that the Government’s decision to treble fees has clearly deterred people from applying to university;

Motion to move to next business

During the debate, it was moved by Councillor David Baker, seconded by Councillor Penny Baker, that the Council does now proceed to next business.

On being put to the vote, the motion was negatived.

On being put to the vote, the amendment was carried.

After a right of reply from Councillor Jackie Drayton, the original Motion, as amended, was put as a Substantive Motion in the following form and carried:-