§ "Black Paper on Education"
§ 1. Mr. McCrindleasked the Secretary of State for Education and Science what is his policy towards the proposals contained in the publication entitled "Black Paper on Education ", a copy of which is in his possession.
§ The Secretary of State for Education and Science (Mr. Reg Prentice)I welcome discussion on educational issues but 1 have not found the Black Paper helpful or constructive.
§ Mr. McCrindleBearing in mind that one of the contributors to the Black Paper is herself a committed Socialist, does not the Secretary of State think that this indicates that comprehensive education is not always or necessarily in the best interests of the working-class child and that his Department has a case to answer which is not answered by the scorn it has poured on the authors of the Black Paper so far?
§ Mr. PrenticeThe answer to the criticisms levelled at the comprehensive system is to be found in the experience of the comprehensive schools themselves, which have provided such a successful service to our children for many years.
§ Mr. FlanneryDoes not my right hon. Friend agree that the Black Paper would take us on a backward course from the reality of education today? Does he not agree, for instance, that examinations at the ages of 7, 11 and 14 are irrelevant to education today and that, in particular, the reading examination at the age of 7 is totally unnecessary because every teacher at a primary school knows that reading is listened to daily by teachers? Does he not agree that a continuous daily assessment cannot possibly be supplanted by an examination at the age of 7?
§ Mr. PrenticeYes, Sir. I believe that the dogmatic proposal for examinations at the ages of 7, 11 and 14 takes no account whatever of the fact that individual children develop at different rates.
§ Dr. BoysonIs the Minister aware that last week the Black Paper was the sixth best selling paperback in the country, something which has never occurred to an educational document before? Whatever the Minister says, does not that show the degree of public discontent? Does he agree that, since practically all newspapers and periodicals reviewed and talked about the Black Paper at length and are still doing so, there is massive discontent? For a Government who talk about participation, might a participatory discussion and analysis of what the Black Paper says be to the advantage of the Government and the children of this country?
§ Mr. PrenticeI have already said that I welcome discussion on these matters. The interest which the Black Paper has attracted is a symptom of the fact that very large numbers of people are intensely interested in education, and the whole House would welcome that. What I find at fault is that the Black Paper gets the whole problem out of perspective. It takes no account of the tremendous achievements of the majority of our teachers who do devoted work of a very high standard, which is rising year by year. So far as it identifies real problems. the solutions that the Black Paper proposes are totally irrelevant to those problems.