Up and Coming: Education Bill outlines shake-up

Thursday, January 27, 2011

Education Bill outlines shake-up

The government is bringing in wide-ranging changes

The government is to set out further details of plans to overhaul England's schools system in its Education Bill, due to be published later.

The Bill paves the way for the legal changes needed for plans on testing, curriculum and teacher training.

The government says a key element will be to give teachers the power to "restore order to the classroom".

The bill also includes a clause to make higher-earning graduates pay a higher interest rate on their student loans.

That was unexpectedly added to the Bill, which mainly relates to schools and colleges.

The government says this is because it needs the change to be in place before the new university funding regime - and higher tuition fees - come in in 2012.

From then, graduates earning more than £41,000 a year will be charged 3% interest plus inflation (RPI).

In general, the Education Bill is expected to reflect the Education White Paper, which was published in November.

This gave details of plans to shake up the national curriculum, the exam and test system, teacher training, school funding and the ways in which schools are held accountable.

It also included further changes to enable the government to expand its free schools and academies policies.

An Academies Act, passed in the summer, paved the way for groups of parents, teachers and charities to set up their own "free schools", and for the expansion of the academies programme, under which schools are being encouraged to "opt out" of local authority control.

The Bill is expected to include proposals which the Education Secretary Michael Gove says will give schools greater powers to discipline pupils and cut bureaucracy.

These include:

The removal of the power of appeal panels to force schools to re-instate pupils they have expelledThe granting of anonymity to teachers who have been accused of misconduct by pupilsThe extension of heads' powers to discipline pupils if they misbehave on the way to or from schoolThe granting of the power to schools to impose a detention without giving 24-hours' notice.

Mr Gove said: "Under the last government, thousands of great people left the teaching profession because behaviour was out of control and they were forced to spend far too much time on paperwork.

"That's why we're taking action to restore discipline and reduce bureaucracy," he said.

"Teachers will be free to impose the penalties they need to keep order, and free from the red tape which swallows up teaching time, so they can get on with their first duty - raising standards."

Teaching unions are opposed to many of the government's changes - particularly the expansion of the academies programme and free schools - which they say will fracture the school system.

Christine Blower, the general secretary of the National Union of Teachers said: "This Bill rides roughshod over the premise of a democratically accountable education system.

"It will see the rights of parents and pupils vastly reduced and it is a backward step for society."

This article is from the BBC News website. � British Broadcasting Corporation, The BBC is not responsible for the content of external internet sites.