1 June 2023 Wackford Reeves Loopy loopholes. By Robert Kilconner Biff, Bang, Wallop, Thrash. Dickens’s anti-hero Wackford Squeers certainly had his theories of education. Rachel Reeves follows the same model but in her case the biffing, banging, walloping and thrashing is of the private educational sector rather than of the pupils. Still, there is a… Continue reading Wackford Reeves
Article Category: Comment
The Nephew Also Rises
1 June 2023 The Nephew Also Rises by J.R. Thomas In the latest episode of “Succession – White House” a shock manoeuvre against President Joe sees his son Hunter stand against his father for the Presidential nomination. Can he win? Joe rings Kamala to ask her views – but Kamala has gone out. Maybe back… Continue reading The Nephew Also Rises
Keeping Sane
1 June 2023 Keeping Sane The advance of AI. By John Watson Competition leads to extremes and the fiercer the competition the harder it is to restrain the tendency. Take phone hacking as an example. At a time of dwindling newspaper readership, intrusive reporting boosts circulation so, guess what, each round of hacking and spying… Continue reading Keeping Sane
Fat
1 June 2023 Fat is more than a feminist issue. By Lynda Goetz The other day I was sent a two-frame cartoon which made me laugh. The issue it raised, like many things which make us laugh, is serious. The first frame showed a male figure, clearly intended to be a father, (I do hope… Continue reading Fat
The Wolf and the Goat
1 June 2023 The Wolf and the Goat A Russian folk tale. By Neil Tidmarsh Just to show that the Shaw Sheet (ever striving to be fair-minded) isn’t no-platforming Russian culture, here’s a Russian folk tale: Once upon a time a nanny goat and her kids lived in a little hut in the middle of… Continue reading The Wolf and the Goat
How the Mighty are Risen
1 June 2023 How the Mighty are Risen by Paul Branch Every dog has its day, and in many cases that day can be a long time coming. Some days can go on seemingly without end; for others it is but a flickering candle, burning brightly for a second or two and then a puff… Continue reading How the Mighty are Risen
Mathematics
4 May 2023 Mathematics The BBC at its worst. By John Watson Some things are inevitable and it was no surprise that the BBC’s reaction to the Prime Minister’s plan to increase the nation’s mathematical skills by requiring everyone to continue with the subject until the age of 18, was to focus on those, 6%… Continue reading Mathematics
Battle of the Titans
4 May 2023 Battle of the Titans by J.R. Thomas Yes; the headline is indeed more than a little satirical, though neither Mr Biden or Mr Trump would read it that way. Joe has finally declared he will run in ’24, and that does seem to have reinvigorated him; at the White House Lobby Correspondents… Continue reading Battle of the Titans
Venison
4 May 2023 Venison The Bambi problem. By Lynda Goetz For a long time now the Brits seem to have had a problem with eating meats like deer (venison) or rabbit. This is not really the case elsewhere in Europe and did not used to be the case here. Now it seems ministers are urging… Continue reading Venison
Ofsted
4 April 2023 Ofsted Hard cases. By Robert Kilconner One cannot but be sorry for the family of Ruth Perry who committed suicide following an Ofsted downgrading of her school but I am afraid that this tragic incident, and indeed the challenging by a school in Cambridge of procedures used in its Ofsted review, cannot… Continue reading Ofsted
Another Smacking
4 May 2023 Another Smacking EU and China. By Neil Tidmarsh It’s the politics of the playground. The cunning little kid might think it’s a clever move to crawl up to the school bully and beg “Can I be your friend? Can I be in your gang? Please, please, please?”, but he’s handing the big… Continue reading Another Smacking
Rishi figures it out
4 May 2023 Rishi figures it out by Paul Branch The state of our education system leaves much to be desired in many ways, but Rishi Sunak has picked on mathematics as an area to zero-in on, where we are so far behind many other countries that it’s becoming an embarrassment as well as holding… Continue reading Rishi figures it out
The Casey Review
6 April 2023 The Casey Review Missing the point. By John Watson Findings of the Report The final report of the Casey Review of the Metropolitan Police has certainly made people sit up. And so it should. While acknowledging that there are many excellent and committed officers, something which chimes with the experience of most… Continue reading The Casey Review
