Following the revelation by Naric that equivalence with Cambridge International qualifications can be established without reference to curriculum content (“Fundamentalist exams on a par with A-levels,” July 31), might I propose a science module on that most elusive of beasts, the wild, hairy haggis?
Folklore contends that this fascinating creature has longer legs on one side of its body than the other, designed as it is for standing sideways in its hillside habitat. Males, it is said, run one way round the hills, females the other. From time to time, the two sexes collide, at which point mating occurs (somehow).
I can see little difference between such content and that of the ICCE, in which the Loch Ness monster undermines evolution and apartheid turns out to be a good thing after all. Both contain assertions many would find risible; both remove the right of children to a science education based on the principles of science; and both are designed to appease the psyche of believers in the unbelievable through the indoctrination of a captive audience of children.
Hurrah for agencies that certify curricula without considering content, and politicians who allow them to do so. Without them, the Middle Ages would be history.
Mike Lim, Bolton, Greater Manchester.