So parents are being encouraged by England’s schools inspectorate, Ofsted, to send children to “school” at the age of 2 (news.tesconnect.com, 4 November). Presumably, this is to enrol them as “performance data points” at the earliest opportunity. I do not see any evidence that the current Westminster government’s education policy is based on nourishing the development of the child as an independent, critical-thinking individual - rather, the policy is one of labelling a child and their school as a “success” or “failure”. Should we not be focusing our professional educators on honing their analytical and supportive skills so that “they make the tiny adjustments which can release the genius in any child” (Albert Einstein)?

Professor Bill Boyle, Chair of educational assessment, University of Manchester.