Grammars just fuel privilege, claims Welby
THE Archbishop of Canterbury criticised grammar schools yesterday as he warned ‘the children of privilege are continuing to inherit privilege’.
The Most Revd Justin Welby said academic selection that separates high achievers from their less well-performing counterparts is ‘ contrary to the notion of the common good’.
In an attack on proposals to expand selective schools in the Tory manifesto, which have since been abandoned, the archbishop insisted ministers must not ‘waste our time rummaging’ in the past for the ‘solutions of tomorrow’.
Leading a debate in the House of Lords on the role of education, he said the trend towards a ‘ more inclusive approach’ to those with disabilities or special educational needs was ‘witness to the way that comprehensive education has improved’.
He labelled this a ‘welcome step towards an education that seeks the fullest and most abundant possible life for each human being, regardless of their ability’.
The archbishop, who was educated at Eton and Cambridge, added: ‘The academic selective approach to education, which prioritises separation as a necessary precondition for the nurture of excellence, makes a statement about the purpose of education that is contrary to the notion of the common good.
‘An approach that neglects those of lesser ability or, because of a misguided notion of “levelling out” does not give the fullest opportunity to those of highest ability… will ultimately fail.’
The archbishop’s comments were dismissed by Tory MP Andrew Bridgen, 53, who said: ‘He is obviously entitled to his own views, but the evidence is that grammar schools are a great way for under-privileged children to escape poverty.
‘It is well known that they provide social mobility for the under-privileged.’ Fellow Tory Conor Burns, MP for Bournemouth West, who represents an area with several grammar schools, said: ‘Perhaps the archbishop is reflecting his age in his comments. I think he’s speaking of a time when he was 11 when there was complete separation, which no longer really exists.
‘Many grammar schools provide invaluable opportunities for children from both poor
‘Absolutely wrong’
and rich backgrounds and give them opportunities they may not otherwise have.’
The Church of England affirmed its opposition to grammar schools earlier this year after Theresa May’s pledge to allow more to be set up.
The archbishop said Brexit would provide ‘unforeseeable challenges’ and ‘we need an education system that can bear the weight of the changes that are coming’.
But he added: ‘We must be sure that while we may find some inspiration in our past we don’t waste our time rummaging there for the solutions of tomorrow. The children of privilege are continuing to inherit privilege. This is true not only in our education institutions but also the whole country. It is also true globally.’
The archbishop also warned that a secular education without religious input leaves children vulnerable to ‘peddlers of extremism’. He said: ‘ For schools that are not of a religious character, confidence in any personal sense of ultimate values has diminished.
‘Functionalism or utilitarianism offers neither a meaningful alternative to those who are threatened by peddlers of extremism nor a confident framework within which to educate those of different cultures and beliefs.’
But Stephen Evans, of the National Secular Society, said: ‘Welby is absolutely wrong to attack community schools over their lack of transmission of values. Non- faith- based schools actively promote the same universal values as church schools.’