David Cameron

[Reidy's Bottle Of Grecian]

Well a quick glance at exam results and so on would suggest that in a great many cases public school students are better than us, at least in an intellectual sense. Sadly many state run schools are little more than exam factories now, dictated by league tables. The notion of learning for the sake of learning is long gone and students rote learn in order to pass exams in far too many instances. Universities for instance traditionally gave the student the time and space to learn of their own fruition and expected them to use that to read widely on the topic of their choosing. Alas now universities regularly bemoan the quality of freshers who arrive having been mollycoddled by the state system and often expect things handed them on a plate. That so many institutions now see fit to offer booster courses in basic skills is a damning indictment of the state education system.

Which company do you work for? That certainly doesn't sound like any company I've ever come across in the last decade. I thought that kind of management went out in the 70's.

i work for myself.

the working conditions in factories are getting worse tbh with rules being introduced to make it worse for the shop floor worker, with every second having to be accounted for, whereas the man in the suit can walk around with a sheet of paper all month. the shopfloors have never improved tbh, and it's a case of like it or lump it. to say it went out in the 70's is incorrect, it's there now but without any unions to represent the workers.(effective unions) australia seemed to work well with trade unions tbh.

 

[Nebbiolo]

i work for myself.

the working conditions in factories are getting worse tbh with rules being introduced to make it worse for the shop floor worker, with every second having to be accounted for, whereas the man in the suit can walk around with a sheet of paper all month. the shopfloors have never improved tbh, and it's a case of like it or lump it. to say it went out in the 70's is incorrect, it's there now but without any unions to represent the workers.(effective unions) australia seemed to work well with trade unions tbh.

It's another world over here, mate. Conditions in factories are amazing in comparison to the UK. But here the unions are incredibly strong. But the they're not like the old fashioned British unions, they promote workers' rights, not ideological struggle. In that sense, employers and employees tend to get along really very well. There isn't an ideological gulf to separate them.

 

[Bruce Wayne]

The teachers get it in the neck from all sides these days. They've got the kids to cope with, their parents and the educational authorities. My wife even had parents phone up the headmaster to tell him, to tell her, not to give their little dears so much homework! These were the parents of 17 year olds for goodness sake. And you know what, instead of telling the parents to bugger off, she indeed had to give them less homework. And why is this? It's because the school is worried that it won't attract children if the work is seen as too hard. So what the hell is the point of it existing? As well, what about the young people who really want to be given a good education but get held back because the school is littered with individuals that have no intention of doing any work? In my day sixth form was for two things: (1) retaking your O levels; and (2) taking A levels and being prepared for university. It wasn't about babysitting kids until they're legally adults.

It's all changed.

Bring back the cane.

I quite agree, education is increasingly political. In much the same way as the Bank of England was freed from political influence I see no reason at all why schools shouldn't be equally freed. If the state still want to provide 'free' (pah) education for all then they can provide the money and leave the educators to do the educating free from their interference.

As well, what about the young people who really want to be given a good education but get held back because the school is littered with individuals that have no intention of doing any work?

Quite, and this forms the basis for my disquiet over the welfare system. We have given every child in the country a few thousand hours of 'free' schooling for the past century. If people balls that up, abuse the privilege, and then expect the tax payer to give them money to live on, why on earth should we? Once again, people need to start taking more responsibility for themselves.

 

[Jamo Martinez]

*UCK to Brown. seconded, thirded and fourthed. he flogged our gold reserves to the chinese at record low prices as well.

the man is a moron. he hasn't even been voted in.

To distant lands, takes both my hands,
never a frown, with Gordon Brown

 

[Nebbiolo]

To distant lands, takes both my hands,
never a frown, with Gordon Brown

Gordon Brown texture like sun
Lays me down with my mind he runs
Throughout the night
No need to fight
Never a frown with Gordon Brown

I could do with a bit of "Gordon" to cure this back pain.