The Decline of Education

Proceedings of The 5th International Conference on Advanced Research in Education

Year: 2022

DOI:

[PDF]

The Decline of Education

Anthony Lewis

ABSTRACT: 

The volume of research and experimentation into the purpose and delivery of the United Kingdom’s education system is enormous. An examination of the research being conducted in the Departments of Education in its Universities and the launching of such initiatives as the Times Education Commission reveals the extent to which there is concern at what is perceived to be a decline in performance. Many reasons have and are being expressed as to why this should be, notably the extent of political and other external interference. The most significant change in the last few years has been the consequential effect of devolution. England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland are now embarked on different journeys. However, neither the research nor the changes being implemented take account of a basic truth – ‘the quality of an education system cannot exceed the quality of its teachers’ (Barber & Mourshed-2009). This paper examines the current state of education in the secondary school sector in Wales where the changes are representative of the proposed solutions to the concerns being expressed across the United Kingdom. It reviews previous performance, current actions and their effect on the roles and responsibilities of front-line teachers and considers potential additional actions to improve overall performance.

keywords: Analysis, Initiatives, Inspections, Performance, Teachers.