| Title | : | A Revolution Betrayed: How Egalitarians Wrecked the British Education System |
| Author | : | |
| Rating | : | |
| ISBN | : | 1399400037 |
| ISBN-10 | : | 9781399400039 |
| Language | : | English |
| Format Type | : | Kindle Edition |
| Number of Pages | : | 225 |
| Publication | : | Published November 24, 2022 |
In his new book, Peter Hitchens describes the misjudgements made by politicians over the years that have led to the increase of class distinction and privilege in our education system. This is of course the opposite of what was intended, especially by former Minister of Education Shirley Williams and Margaret Thatcher, her successor in that role, who closed down many more Grammar Schools than Williams.
Given that the cost of private secondary education is now in the region of £50,000 a year and the cream of Comprehensive Schools are now oversubscribed (William Ellis, Camden School for Girls, The Oratory, Cardinal Vaughan), parents are spending thousands on private tutoring and fee-paying prep schools in order to get their children into these academically excellent schools. Meanwhile hypocritical Labour politicians like Diane Abbott send their children to expensive private day schools. So, what alternatives – if any – are there?
Peter Hitchens argues that in trying to bring about an educational system which is egalitarian, the politicians have created a system which is the exact opposite. And what's more, it is a system riddled with anomalies - Sixth Form Colleges select pupils on ability at the age of 15, which rules out any child who does not have major educational backing from home (heavy involvement by working parents or private tutors, for example) and academies also are selective, though they pretend not to be.
This is an in-depth look at the British education system and what will happen if things don't change radically.
A Revolution Betrayed: How Egalitarians Wrecked the British Education System Reviews
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Polemical, oddly structured, an assertive but often careless argument, depending on rhetoric rather than facts at crucial moments.
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Peter Hitchens is by far the best political commentator in the country IMO.
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This one feels a bit loose. His overall point is probably the right one: that you can have better education I'd you target it at those who need it, not at those who can't, and that trying to create a fully comprehensive, fully egalitarian system tends to produce the second outcome, not the first.
But he doesn't really make it in a very thorough way. He doesn't attbeot to tease out, for example, to what extent grammars produced better results because they were better vs better results because they selected the best pupils. Probably there's a but if both but he's not really saying what the magic is. What is it that they'd do right besides selection?
I went to a school that called itself a grammar but in fact was a fee-paying school in Blackburn, so I had to keep reminding myself what was under discussion.
Oh and I wouldn't have has a frigging clue who won the Battle of Plassey. -
This is one of those books that is tough to review as an American because it is about something happening overseas in a way that doesn't match perfectly on to how education is done here in the US. Hitchens' prose and bite are great as ever, but I feel unqualified to really judge the merits of the book well due to my own ignorance on a lot of the issues.
This book does ask some good questions: what is the purpose of education and is that actually being achieved, or is the educational system just one more place where political goals must come first even at the expense of the student.
Wouldn't recommend it unless you live in the UK or have some affinity with Hitchens or what he is talking about. I just like the Hitch so I'm always here for him. -
Solid and extensive polemic by Hitchens, though fans will find little surprise in the arguments he has espoused for many years, and enemies will no doubt continue to turn a blind eye. As usual he lays his opponents arguments on the table respectfully before explaining why he regards them to be catastrophically wrong. A subject that is now rather unfashionable and little understood by the British public, but worth a read for anyone with interest in the debate over academic selection and social mobility. I found plenty that I previously didn’t know, but would probably get more pleasure from seeing the arguments thoroughly debated.
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Interesting read about the life times and decline of the British education system. I say decline as it was fairly obvious to me back in my GCSE and a level days that the talk of dumbing down at the time had foundation. This book focuses on the loss of grammar schools and there ideology of those that wanted this - there was no reason to do it from an educational standards point of view. The main reason is egalitarians who didn't like the fact that it churned out conservative minded people. What a shame and a waste and ultimately loss for the poor.
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My least favourite of his books so far.
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I don't like education but I sure like Peter Hitchens.
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Enjoyed reading about an issue I didn’t knew existed and being given a history lesson about how good intentions (or perhaps beliefs) can lead to suboptimal results.
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An engaging and thought-provoking book, researched with zeal and written brilliantly.
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Interesting, engaging and insightful
This is a good book, though seems lighter fair than Hitchens usual authorship. There are some extremely valid points, but I am not convinced by their rigour as yet (I need to re-read). I am sure that many will find the holes in the various arguments that Hitchens’ makes, but essentially, he pokes and prods at the issues surrounding the education system in, I assume, a valid attempt to provoke the argument. This is a worthy cause.
