Teachers chant Corbyn’s name as he vows to scrap SATs in primary schools
A PLEDGE by Jeremy Corbyn to scrap SATs in primary schools was met with a standing ovation by cheering teachers yesterday – but triggered a furious backlash amid warnings it would send education standards plummeting.
The Labour leader’s announcement, made during the National Education Union’s (NEU) conference in Liverpool, promised to abolish the ‘regime of extreme pressure testing’ if he wins the next election, claiming SATs give pupils ‘nightmares’ and harms their mental health.
While it was met with celebratory chants of Mr Corbyn’s name during a standing ovation, outside the conference the policy was branded ‘terrible and retrograde’ that would allow failing schools to hide.
SATs are taken by children aged 11, before they leave primary school, in numeracy and literacy skills including spelling. The tests date back to 1991 and the results, which are published by the Department for Education, allow the Gov worked ernment and parents to see which schools are underperforming – encouraging them to raise standards.
Schools minister Nick Gibb said: ‘Labour plan to keep parents in the dark. They will prevent parents from knowing how good their child’s school is.’
SATs were implemented under John Major and continued under New Labour. Although the format has been tinkered with frequently, they have always been hated by Left-wing teaching unions, which have led several campaigns to have them abolished or boycotted.
During his speech, Mr Corbyn said: ‘We need to prepare children for life, not just for exams. SATs and the regime of extreme pressure testing are giving young children nightmares and leaving them in floods of tears. I meet teachers who are totally overn and overstressed. These are dedicated public servants. It’s just wrong.’
Under the Tories, the tests for 11-year- olds were made much tougher two years ago in a bid to raise standards in numeracy and literacy. Teachers complain that it means other subjects get squeezed out of the curriculum.
Mr Corbyn said his move would reduce workloads for teachers because they would not have to spend time preparing children for tests. ‘We will raise standards by freeing up teachers to teach,’ he told delegates. ‘Labour trusts teachers. You are professionals. You know your job. You know your students.’
Dr Mary Bousted, NEU joint general secretary, welcomed the pledge, saying: ‘Jeremy Corbyn gets it. He recognises the damage that a test-driven system is doing to children and schools.’
However, Mr Gibb said SATs have been ‘part of school life’ for 30 years and pointed out that even New Labour had championed them. ‘They have been pivotal in raising standards,’ he said. ‘That’s why Labour governments led by Tony Blair and Gordon Brown supported them. Abolishing these tests would be a terrible, retrograde step. It would enormously damage our education system, and undo decades of improvement in children’s reading and maths.
‘Under Labour, the government would simply give up on ensuring all children can read and write.’
Mark Lehain, director of campaign group Parents And Teachers For Excellence, added: ‘SATs are the fairest way of checking how pupils have done during primary school. It is entirely possible that the reforms will end up most disadvantaging children already dealt a tough hand in life.’
Yesterday, a survey by the NEU found 83 per cent of teaching staff saw a rise in children with mental health problems in the past two years, with many respondents blaming the SATs.
Paul Whiteman, general secretary of school leaders’ union NAHT, said: ‘We welcome Labour’s approach. SATs do not tell teachers or parents anything they didn’t already know about their child or school. Fewer tests would leave more time for a broad range of subjects and activities.’
Julie McCulloch of the Association Of School And College Leaders added: ‘SATs are a flawed way of measuring performance and a new approach is long overdue.’