When ordinary young people in this country are being targeted by government cuts in such an unfair way and facing radical and unnecessary changes to their education, they need a strong voice. Unfortunately in Michael Gove they haven’t got one.
However, in Andy Burnham they do have.
Whenever I hear Andy Burnham speak, he never fails to get the aspiration running through my veins.
He maybe the fourth worst-dressed man in Britain according to GQ but Burnham is a modern, forward thinking politician which sadly can’t be said for his opposite number.
As he told conference: ‘In the 21st century, why is Latin and Ancient Greek in, but engineering, ICT and business studies out? It’s a sensible question to ask in today’s society.’
In the real and modern world I don’t see a place for the kinds of subjects that Michael Gove wants to bring back.
Gove’s vision for education are lightning years out of date and, in addition to cuts to EMA, the trebling of university fees and the lack of apprenticeships, it’s no wonder young people worry for the future. Being only 20 myself I care about the chances and opportunities for young people and I don’t like what the government are doing.
I do agree that more could have been done during Labour’s year in office for those who didn’t want to attend university. During my time in sixth form I was only ever told about university and those who had no intention in going were often just left to one side. However, the course I study, journalism, looking back I would have liked to have seen what other options were available to me, other than just university.
In my opinion, the best suggestion to come out of Burnham’s speech was when he called for an ‘Ucas-style’ system for apprenticeships. For me this showed that he was in touch with ordinary young people and unlike Michael Gove, he didn’t see a vocational route as somewhat less significant than an academic route.
I will end by referring to something that Ed Miliband speaks of a lot: that being ‘the British promise’, that every generation does better than the last. I worry that under Michael Gove and his educational revolution there will be a ‘lost generation’ that does worse than the generation gone before it. That would be breaking the promise of the ‘next generation’.
We cannot let this happen and we need more people like Andy Burnham to carry on being the strong voice that he already is for young people.
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Gove is in awe of the kind of developed mind that indeed has been shown to model itself on Olymiads where yoof attempted to emulate the cavorting of the gods on the sacred mount,that never had to weather any storm !
aaaaah such protected divinities who could reach out and flick the mortals about hither and thither as any whim might dictate. (YOU GET THE PICTURE ?)
Olympiads. beg pardon
Much more important is getting some apprenticeships which are of some use. To many are in retail and it is beginning to look like the German scene were they are a subsidy to firms rather than a path into a career. Better try Volkswagen at Crewe as a model.