Lengthening the School Day: A Populist Policy

 Critics of the present government, of which I am one of a multitude, often have particular targets for their antipathy. I don't share in this, as I would like to see the whole bunch turfed out. However, the MP above, Gavin Williamson, Secretary of State for Education, was regarded with particular contempt until the Matt Hancock scandal broke. I hadn't followed his career, until our beloved prime minister announced three days ago that he thought that extending the school day, to make up for time lost during the pandemic, was "the right thing to do". 

The relevance of Williamson to all this is that he was floating the idea back in March. The BBC reported:

"Longer school days and shorter holidays are among the measures the government is considering to help pupils in England catch up on lost learning, the education secretary has said".

Neither of these men - Johnson or Williamson - has any experience of working in schools. Boris was a journalist (of a kind); Williamson was manager of a pottery firm and worked for an architectural design firm until 2010, when he became an MP. As every teacher and teaching assistant will tell you, only by working in schools can you properly understand the pressures on the staff and the needs of the children. Don't expect any such understanding from these two. Johnson almost certainly sees the school day issue as a way to pander to the prejudices of the pub loudmouth/white van man/populist bigot who thinks that teachers have an easy time of it. Williamson probably views children as being empty pots that need filling to capacity.

As a retired teacher and serving school governor, I oppose this measure for a number of reasons. Firstly, children are not vessels to be filled with knowledge. They have been emotionally and educationally affected by the pandemic and need time to get back into a normal school routine. It is ridiculous to expect them to react positively to spending longer in school. In fact, the opposite is only too likely to happen. From experience, I predict that this will only lead to increased pupil resentment and possibly serious discipline problems. As a study by the University of Kent said in June:

"Extending the school day, and the expectance of pupils to concentrate on academic learning for longer periods may result in the opposite effect to that desired. With an increase in overtired pupils and LLCD (Low Level Classroom Disruption) having the potential to reduce teaching and learning time.’

Besides this, a recent study by a University of Cambridge academic casts doubt on the benefits of a longer school day. As The Guardian said in May:

"With the government in England considering extended school hours as part of its catch-up plans, the research found that schools already timetabling longer teaching time in subjects such as English and maths see only modest improvements that may not justify the extra cost".

The researcher, Vaughan Connolly, suggested that the government should give children more time for recreational activities. Don't hold your breath, mate.

Paul Whiteman, NAHT leader, was quoted in The Guardian:

“The marginal gains that might be possible through extending the school day must be weighed against the costs of such a strategy, including the impact on pupils’ mental health, reduced family time and less time for extra-curricular activities".

None of the union leaders featured in the article mentioned teacher welfare, so I shall do it.

Speaking from knowledge and experience, I can attest that teachers are already working long hours - not in the classroom, but at home, They prepare lessons, mark books and carry out assessments. I know for a fact that many - if not all - teachers are working flat out to meet the extraordinary needs of their schools in the pandemic. Many have become ill and many work in isolation, because of Covid restrictions, with potentially serious consequences for their mental health.

How can we expect children to be prepared to work longer hours when adult staff returning to work from furlough are going back to their normal working day? No-one is requiring them to work extra hours, and there will be no shortage of children willing to point this out. By the same token - why should teachers be expected to work longer hours, when all have worked without furlough right through the pandemic, teaching the children of key workers and both preparing and delivering online lessons for children locked down at home? Teacher unions should consider the legality of the extension of school hours. I would have thought it to be a breach of contract.

Lastly, I would like to issue a challenge to the two ignoramuses we began with: Boris and Gavin. As they find it so easy to plan to extend the school day, I would like to challenge either or both of them to take an end of school day lesson on a Friday afternoon. The subject I would choose for them would be a double period of Religious Education, to teach to a Year 10 secondary school class in  an inner city comprehensive. I would love to watch the proceedings on video.

Do you think he will accept the challenge?