An inappropriate curriculum has a part to play, says Michael Pyke. Plus, Peter Downes suggests the emphasis on Stem subjects is counterproductive
Sally Weale provides an excellent summary of reasons for the alarming decline in school attendance (From Covid to poverty: why pupil absence in England is rising, 28 June). However, there is also an underlying and chronic reason for this: throughout this century, but especially since 2010, school has become an increasingly uncongenial experience for children. In one recent survey, 39% of 11- to 14-year-olds said that they disliked school, a figure that rose to 52% for 15- and 16-year-olds.
The reasons why it has become an unsatisfactory experience are not hard to discern: lack of resources; an inappropriate curriculum, the teaching of which is almost entirely geared to external examinations; the disappearance of practical and creative activities; an increase in bullying and feelings of inadequacy promoted by social media platforms; overworked and exhausted teachers who have no time to deal with these problems or even recognise, let alone attend to, the needs of individual children, and who increasingly leave the profession at the first opportunity.
