Shadow education secretary Bridget Phillipson has said the government should not “micromanage” the books teachers use in classrooms.
Speaking to the NAHT school leaders’ union annual conference in Telford, she said that there was an “irony” that the government was seeking to take politics out of the classroom but simultaneously telling teachers what books to teach.
“I think we need a school curriculum that inspires and supports every young person…I think children should expect to see their lives, their communities, their experiences reflected in that,” she said.
“I think it is not for secretaries of state to dictate which books should or shouldn’t be taught within a school. I think you all have expertise and professionalism that allows you to deliver that,” she added.
Speaking after her address to school leaders, Ms Phillipson said that “it’s not the role of the secretary of state to micromanage which books teachers choose to teach within the classroom” and that the government’s “attention will be better focused on what’s within their immediate control, such as delivering a proper children’s recovery plan that allows all of our children to make up for that lost learning”.
“Too often ministers seem fixated on smaller issues that…don’t reflect the concerns of most parents,” she said.
Earlier this month, Nadhim Zahawi said that children were not “snowflakes” and should be allowed to read books featuring racial slurs.
Mr Zahawi warned against creating “false filters” for pupils, arguing that “those in a position of responsibility should be teaching young minds how to think, not what to think”.
Speaking to the Chopper’s Politics podcast from The Telegraph, the education secretary was asked if children should be able to read racial slurs such as those contained in Harper Lee’s To Kill A Mockingbird.
He replied: “Totally. I think it’s really important that children are allowed to be able to be curious…to understand where this stuff comes from, rather than (where you) create these sort of false filters for them.”
The government guidance on political impartiality in schools, published in February, suggested teaching of the British empire should be presented in “a balanced manner”.
Plans for reforms for Ofsted
Speaking to delegates at the conference, Ms Phillipson also laid out how Labour plans to reform Ofsted.
She said it was time for “Ofsted to turn a corner”, and said there should be a “clearer focus on the schools that need support to improve”.
She said that schools needed inspections “where the intensity of the experience is reasonable and proportionate, that point heads and teachers to the support they need to improve, that consider the broad context for schools and recognise when progress is being made, and that celebrate what’s great as well as identify what’s not.”
The comments were similar to those made at the NEU teaching union conference earlier this month.
At that event, Ms Phillipson’s remarks were met with anger from some delegates, who began to shout that Ofsted was “not welcome”.
White Paper ‘devoid of ideas’
Speaking about the recent Schools White Paper and the SEND review, Ms Phillipson said they were “devoid of ideas”.
“Why did the government bring forward a White Paper so shockingly devoid of ideas, so hollow, so thin?” she asked.
And she added: “Why has the government’s special educational needs and disability review been so long delayed and why has it taken them so long to even acknowledge the problems they have themselves created?”
Speaking about the White Paper’s flagship policy - to have all schools in or moving towards joining a “strong” multi-academy trust by 2030 - Ms Phillipson said that if she was education secretary, she would be focusing on other issues, such as addressing retention of teachers, and “not tinkering with structures”.
Heads leader ‘disappointed’ at Zahawi no show
Meanwhile, Paul Whiteman, general secretary of the NAHT, expressed anger that the education secretary did not decide to make an appearance at the conference in Telford in person on Friday, while he attended a separate event for the local Conservatives less than five miles away.
He said: “We are very disappointed that the secretary of state was not able to find the time to come and talk with school leaders this weekend. Following the publication of the government’s White Paper this represents a serious missed opportunity to hear directly from those he will ultimately rely on to implement the government’s proposed reforms.”
A Department for Education spokesperson said: “Mr Zahawi had a longstanding speaking commitment arranged by the constituency office that predated his appointment as education secretary, which he rightly honoured.”
“He recorded a video message to be played at the event to thank NAHT [members] for their support in helping the government deliver its ambitious plans to help every child get a great education.
“The secretary of state spoke in person at the NAHT conference in October, and he meets fortnightly with the association leadership.
“Any suggestion that the NAHT is treated with anything other than the utmost respect by the secretary of state is clearly incorrect and disappointing.”
