YP Letters: Education problems started before Michael Gove's arrival

Do teachers spend too much time on paperwork and targets?

From: John G Davies, Alma Terrace, East Morton.

JAYNE Dowle hits the nail on the head in condemning Michael Gove’s “rigorous reforms”, however the problem has deeper roots (The Yorkshire Post, October 15).

Kenneth Baker’s 1988 Education Reform Act created the environment for Gove’s changes.

Lessons were no longer taught, they were “delivered”. Every thing that could be measured was measured and recorded.

Things that couldn’t be measured were ignored and devalued.

How do you measure a pupil’s painting, poem or story? This has led to the abandonment of the Arts in schools

Selective schools have long protected their images by easing out “failures” and controlling exam entry to maintain a high pass rate, that noxious approach has now infected the whole system.

Back in the 80s, many of my colleagues strongly opposed the introduction of computer-generated reports because that narrow system deprived them of a real opportunity to exercise their judgment. Currently, the obsession with rigorous data is depriving teachers of the chance to make important subjective assessments of the children.

The job of schools is to teach children, not to measure them.