Conservative Party (UK) (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

This is an excellent, must-read article from the BBC. Check it out!

via BBC News – Nicky Morgan announces ‘war on illiteracy and innumeracy’.

This is a good initiative from the UK’s Conservative Party.

It’s worth reflecting on the challenge and putting it in context.

Firstly, the Conservatives have been leading the Coalition Government for four years, so what have they achieved? Also why should they be more effective next time? Where’s their strategy?

Secondly, let’s look at the stakeholders, namely politicians, the teachers and the children themselves.

The politicians and the bureaucrats have introduced excessive bureaucracy and red-tape, and have failed to benchmark against the World’s best. Most critically, they have concentrated on short-term political wins rather than effective strategy.

Teachers are still a bastion of union power that is primarily looking after the teachers’ best interests, again with very prescribed view on the challenges, with absence of strategy.

Finally, look at the children. By and large, they have a poor diet, inadequate exercise and too many unhealthy pastimes.  There’s a need for a strategy to reduce childhood obesity and help children to follow more active prusuits.

Thoughts?

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