With regard to the five-fold increase in teachers refusing to teach disruptive pupils, Graham Lane (Association of Metropolitan Authorities) claimed that this undermined the rights of children (BBC News, September 9).
It is important to remember that the main motivation of teachers in taking such action is a concern for the rights of children and particularly the right of children to come to school to learn. The rights of children with problems should not supersede the rights of children without problems.
The political party which works with the teaching profession to establish “the right to learn” in British schools will do more to promote equality of opportunity, and raise educational standards, than any reform of curriculum, teacher training, assessment or teaching methods.
TERRY HAYDN Lecturer in Education School of education and professional development University of East Anglia Norwich
