The recent revelation that Gordon Brown’s government are trying to prevent an independent committee of scientists from accurately reporting evidence about the relative dangers of different types of drugs is only one of several examples of misrepresentation of scientific evidence by the UK government.
At the end of 2008, the then Home Secretary (Jacqui Smith) had to apologise after selectively releasing statistics which appeared to show a reduction in knife crime. Sir Michael Scholar, the Head of the UK Statistics Authority said:
They picked out the elements from the statistics that went along with their announcement and they didn’t publish the rest.
A more longstanding problem is that the UK government has claimed for several years that educational standards have been rising consistently, as shown by the continued rise in pass rates at both GCSE (age 16) and A level (age 18). See for example the following A level results chart below (extracted from this article):
UK educational standards 2009
The very fact that pass rates at A level have risen for 27 years in a row ought to be grounds for suspicion: in most fields of endeavour, progress tends to occur in fits and starts rather than continuously.
However, the real problem in this case seems to be that UK governments (both Conservative and Labour, as the 27 year period covers both) have been able to change the system to suit their political goals: what is being compared over time has changed, so that A levels today are very different from A levels at the start of the period.
It is a fundamental principle of research that conflicts of interest must be avoided and that some kind of external verification of results needs to take place. For example, it would be foolish to accept the results of research conducted by a tobacco company on the medical effects of smoking without some kind of independent verification of those results, and indeed a comparison with the results of research conducted by other organisations with no financial interest in the outcome of the research.
Accepting the assurance of UK government ministers that UK education standards continue to rise at face value is somewhat akin to accepting the results of medical research on smoking conducted by tobacco companies without question. When ministers tell us that everything continues to get better and better, do they really believe that, or do they have an axe to grind?
Whilst it may well be true that there have been significant improvements in teaching methodology and course materials since 1982 due to factors such as improved technology (computers and the internet), and better sharing of good material, and it may also be true (as is often claimed) that children and teachers are working harder, what does the external evidence about UK educational standards tell us?
It all points in the opposite direction from what ministers have been telling us:
Here are some recent quotes (from this article) from senior executives at major employers:
The chief executive of Tesco:
Sadly, despite all the money that has been spent, standards are still woefully low in too many schools. Employers like us, and I suspect many of you, are often left to pick up the pieces
Asda’s chief operating officer:
No one can deny that Britain has spawned a generation of young people who struggle to read, write or do simple maths. That’s why we’re finding packs of nappies discarded in the booze aisle, as the last few pounds are spent on alcohol rather than childcare
The Chairman of Glaxo Smith Kline:
Increasingly, people in the biggest companies are internationally mobile, and having an academic framework that is consistent around the world is quite appealing. Grade inflation has devalued the A-level and it is now an OK exam that used to be an excellent one.
Contrast this with the response from a spokesman for the Department for Children, School and Families:
Standards have never been higher in our secondary schools. We are working to lift the burden of administration tasks from teachers.
Last year, in an online petition to Downing Street, the Royal Society of Chemistry says record-breaking exam results were “illusory”.
From the same article:
Shadow Children’s Secretary Michael Gove said: “The Royal Society of Chemistry is only the latest independent body to warn of the devaluation of science education.
“We’ve slipped 10 places in the international league tables for science and children are being asked questions that show our curriculum isn’t preparing them for the challenges for the 21st century.
“That’s why we need to make sure that our exams are as good as the world’s best.”
Dr Pike, from the RSC, added: “We are witnessing an illusory great leap forward in education, where achieving contrived targets has become the end in itself.
“The proof lies in the enormous expense to provide remedial mathematics and even remedial science classes at university, and the lack of skills of graduates highlighted by employers.”
Now while Michael Gove as an opposition politician may well have an interest in underplaying educational attainment under his political opponents, what possible incentive do employers, universities, scientific bodies and compilers of international comparisons have in doing so? Isn’t the simplest explanation the most likely one: they are telling the truth, and the ministers and spokesmen from the education department are either mistaken, deluded, or spreading misinformation.
This article completes the picture by debunking similar myths about rising standards at primary school level:
Labour claims of a rise in school standards were condemned as a ‘myth’ today as a major six-year study called for a complete overhaul of primary education
Vernon Coaker, the Schools Minister, rejected the conclusions.
“We completely refute the claim that primary standards have not risen across the board,” he said. “Independent Ofsted inspections shows there have never been so many outstanding and good primary schools and results show huge improvements over the last decade – a tribute to the high quality of teaching, training and heads.”
(If you believe what the minister says, there are some cigarette companies who might be very interested to show you how their research shows that smoking is very good for you …)
As in many areas of life, it is time for a new set of politicians to be put in charge of education, and they need to stop changing the system around to suit their own ends, and start listening to the professionals. Above all, they must allow teachers to teach what matters, rather than simply to the tests and to achieve what have become artificial and devalued targets.
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