Room for improvement in our schools and colleges

Topic of the week: education matters

THE article on homophobia in schools seems to suggest all would be well if only teachers talked about LGBTI issues (Revealed: The culture of classroom silence over homophobia and bullying, News, September 11). This points to a misunderstanding. Secondary schools operate on a subject basis, with specialist teachers responsible for the teaching of English and physics. Personal and social education (PSE) is probably the only subject not taught by specialists, but largely by teachers with time available on their timetable – not all of whom will be suited to the task, or able to discuss personal issues with teenagers appropriately. Many will be conscripts, terrified at the thought of mentioning sex.

A few schools use only suitably trained and qualified staff to deliver PSE and these teachers are well placed to begin a positive discussion about LGBTI issues with pupils. Until these specialists are in place throughout secondaries, forcing staff to deal with LGBTI issues in PSE may do more harm than good. Bullying is another matter. Senior staff in all secondaries must deal appropriately with bullying, ensuring the victim is protected and the culprit effectively dealt with. I know little about the workings of PSE in primary schools but would imagine it is dealt with in a more holistic way, included in lessons about “family life” where all families, whatever their composition, are accepted without question.

I am not suggesting any of the above is a reason not to discuss LGBTI issues in schools. One child harmed by bullying or discrimination is one too many. I simply urge caution. Talk to guidance teachers, use their expertise to determine the best way forward and put in place the staff and training necessary to ensure a positive outcome for all pupils. Ann Ballinger Cumbernauld IAIN Macwhirter’s report card on the educational record of the SNP Government in the field of education is a model of selective endorsement (FM has the radical edge on education, Comment, September 11). As a lecturer and lay trade union official working in the further education sector, I see on a daily basis the consequences of a financially driven reorganisation of our colleges: low staff morale, resources scythed to the bone, governance colonised by unaccountable boards of management, cultures of bullying and a retreat from the core principles of academic pursuit, all amplified by years of funding cuts.

Further education remains a critical means whereby those the system has otherwise failed can see their dreams salvaged, validated and realised. But dreams need resourcing, and those working to deliver on them demand governance that is transparent, democratic and willing to facilitate rewards consistent with the public service staff provide. If our First Minister really does possess a “radical edge”, the sooner she wields it on behalf of the neediest communities in Scotland, the better. Mike Cowley Leith