What a media day

Thursday, 08 November 2012 22:58

Written by Peter Read

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Every now and then I have a media storm, but never one like the last two days (a little licence in the title). It began on Wednesday morning when I was invited to comment on Radio Kent about claims by the headteacher of Bromstone Primary School in Thanet that some headteachers were going out of their way to discourage children with a poor reputation and some with Special Education Needs from applying to their schools. Although I often disagree with him, he is absolutely right in this case. I have talked with parents of children with SEN who have visited schools and been told they can't cope and to go the school up the road "which is good for such children". A good way of keeping the SEN budget down! At primary level the HT talked of primary schools that identified difficult children through the nursery and set out to put them off. Again, I have come across parents reporting such experiences. Unprofessional schools, but looking out for one's league table and OFSTED performance, together with a more easily earned reputation for good discipline . Next, ...

I was telephoned by Kent and Sussex Courier which is covering a story on the additional primary school places being made available in Tunbridge Wells, an issue I have covered several times here. Shortly afterwards, I was contacted by Meridian TV to record an interview on 11 plus coaching for a programme that went out last evening.

Yesterday, Kent on Sunday phoned me to go through the snowballing story about coaching for the 11 plus. Then BBC SE asked me to contribute to a story about Michael Gove putting unreasonable pressure on East Sussex Council to turn underperforming primary schools into academies. I carried out some research and found amongst other things that currently, they have four primary academies. These are all sponsored by an American profit-making company, Mosaica, which has a chequered reputation, so one can understand East Sussex' reservations; another television interview, planned for the early evening news, but the interviewer got stuck on the M25, so it went out on the late news. A pity, as I had waxed eloquently on the issues, and most of my good words were axed!

Read 5685 times Last modified on Friday, 16 November 2012 23:12