TES Readers’ Manifesto

8th April 2005, 1:00am
Free children from the regime of testing and targets

* Allow teachers to create an imaginative and engaging curriculum tailor-made for the pupils they teach

* Reduce the number of tests, which erode enthusiasm for learning

* Scrap league tables, which force schools to become exam factories and narrow their curricula Give schools the resources they deserve

* Ensure no teacher has to work in dilapidated, overcrowded classrooms

* Provide textbooks and computers for every child, laptops for every teacher and interactive whiteboards for every class that wants them

* Reduce class sizes to allow teachers to spend more time with every student, and ensure the workforce agreement is funded and implemented in full Respect teachers as professionals

* Ensure no teacher has to deal with violence, criminality or persistent disruption to classes

* Cut paperwork and marking to give staff a reasonable work-life balance and offer pay that reflects the importance of the job

* Stop the attack on teachers’ pensions and keep the retirement age at 60

* Reduce the pace of change and end the overload of short-lived new initiatives