Schools: Literacy and Numeracy Strategies (Hansard, 14 January 2003)

§ The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, Department for Education and Skills (Baroness Ashton of Upholland)
My Lords, there are no substantive changes to the core literacy and numeracy strategy. We will continue to develop and to raise standards. We will intensify support to schools, examine further the success of phonics teaching in the light of good practice, and introduce a major new leadership programme for primary head teachers. Our literacy and numeracy strategies will be at the centre of our over-arching strategy for improving teaching and learning within a broad and enriched curriculum.

§ Baroness Blatch
My Lords, I am grateful to the noble Baroness, but her colleague Mr Stephen Twigg in another place did, in fact, announce changes to the literacy and numeracy strategy. Why are the Government so prescriptive? Why can they not leave the best schools and the best teachers to teach literacy and numeracy in the way they know best and at the time they believe appropriate, and instead concentrate their efforts on failing schools and teachers?

§ Baroness Ashton of Upholland
My Lords, my honourable friend Mr Stephen Twigg announced that we would appoint a national primary strategy director and bring together the field forces. The Question that I answered was about the substantive changes in schools. There will not be substantive changes. We believe that the numeracy and literacy strategies have been successful.
As for prescription, the results speak for themselves. The literacy and numeracy strategies were based on good work undertaken by teachers and developed to enable other schools to benefit from that good practice. The results have been good. We will continue to build on that work and enable schools to develop the strategies in the way that best suits them and their pupils.

§ Lord Tanlaw
My Lords, do the Government's strategies in this area include the use of broadband communication? In the rural and upland areas of Scotland and northern England, access to broadband looks as if it is a long way off. That must include schools. Will any financial help be given to small 135 communities not big enough to influence BT and other companies to produce broadband? How will schools in those areas produce the strategies referred to by the Minister without access to broadband?

§ Baroness Ashton of Upholland
My Lords, broadband is an important part of the ICT strategy in the department. It will be important as we develop Curriculum Online to ensure that schools can access broadband. That is part of a strategy towards which we shall move.

§ Baroness Sharp of Guildford
My Lords, will the Minister confirm that Ofsted, in recent reports, said that numeracy and literacy strategies work best and achievements are highest when teachers combine them within the general curriculum? Why, therefore, do the Government continue to pursue the strategies as independent programmes rather than encourage teachers to broaden out and do what they want and so bring the strategies within the curriculum?

§ Baroness Ashton of Upholland
My Lords, I hope that I partly addressed that question in my Answer. We believe that there is one primary school curriculum: it is an enriched curriculum. It is very important, as the noble Baroness said, that we build on the success in the primary schools that have strengthened and developed the literacy and numeracy strategies right across the curriculum. It is our wish to build on the best and to ensure that all schools are involved.

§ Lord Rotherwick
My Lords, the Minister talked about leadership programmes for primary head teachers. What do those programmes consist of? What would be the cost of funding them?

§ Baroness Ashton of Upholland
My Lords, my honourable friend Mr Twigg is holding conferences with primary head teachers. The ambition within the Government is to ensure that primary head teachers have the opportunity to develop leadership skills. I do not have the figures before me. I will write to the noble Lord. I can tell him that this year we have made available £42 million to support head teachers in providing booster classes for children. We have made available a further £11 million to enable local education authorities to develop the kind of workshops that will support classroom assistants and enable schools to have booster classes and teaching within the Easter period if they so wish.

§ Baroness Howe of Idlicote
My Lords, does the Minister agree with me that, in today's world, literacy includes foreign language literacy? Given that, and the considerable shortage of teachers in this area, does she agree that the BBC's approach to producing help with online curriculum studies is a plus rather than, as some people think, a minus?

§ Baroness Ashton of Upholland
My Lords, the Department for Education and Skills has been 136 involved with the BBC in determining the proposals that have come forward. We have been supportive of the work that my right honourable friend Tessa Jowell has done with the BBC in Curriculum Online. Having said that, we recognise that many companies and organisations make an enormous contribution and will continue to do so as we progress. We believe that, with Curriculum Online, we will be able to provide opportunities for teachers to have greater teaching materials and for students to access the kind of high-quality and, dare I say, exciting teaching materials that will enhance their skills in English, other languages and other subjects.

§ Baroness Blatch
My Lords, the Minister said that there would be more exploration of phonics teaching. Until a greater proportion of teacher training deals with phonics teaching, that progress cannot be made. Are there any plans to beef up the proportion of phonics teaching for teachers in teacher training?

§ Baroness Ashton of Upholland
My Lords, in the next few weeks, the department will be looking at bringing together experts on phonics to help to examine how best we might develop a more supportive framework for those in teacher training and teachers themselves. I can tell the noble Baroness that, in the next financial year, we are supporting year 3 teachers, in particular, in attending training on phonics. We think that year 3 is the right point to focus on at this time. I shall come to the House and talk further about our phonics strategy as it develops. The noble Baroness's point is well made.