Is the education system in the UK fit for purpose?

Neurodiversity

Is the education system in the UK fit for purpose?

From my experience and research, because of societal pressures, league tables and the national curriculum, pupils are most likely to reach their potential in UK schools if they fall into the following categories:

  1. They are neurotypical
  2. They fit society’s preference for skin colour
  3. They fit society’s preference for how they look
  4. They fit society’s preference for how they speak
  5. They receive moderate to good parenting
  6. They follow an accepted religion

The more a pupil excels in each category the greater the chance of them reaching their potential.    These pupils might be considered “privileged”.

Any pupil that struggles in any of the above categories  will have a harder time at school.  In general, society tends to reject anyone who falls outside the accepted norms.  This is usually amplified at school especially at an age when pupils are going through change such as puberty when self confidence is low.  In my experience the 2 categories that have the biggest influence on a pupil reaching their potential are 1) and 5).

Neurodiverse pupils, that is anyone who is outside the narrow range of neurotypical, are likely to suffer the most, because their difference is not easily apparent or understood by the neurotypical.  The more obscure the neurodiversity the greater the suffering.

It is common practice within western societies that if someone feels uncomfortable for whatever reason, they attack someone else to make them feel uncomfortable which in turn makes the first person feel less uncomfortable.  This is how an adversarial society works.

If we consider that “privileged” pupils are relatively few in number, then schools in general can be considered toxic places. The degree of toxicity is dependant on 3 things. 1) The distance the pupils are neurologically from the neurotypical, 2) the quality of the parenting of the pupils and 3) the inclusivity culture of the school.  If a pupil is some distance from the neurotypical, if parents prioritise the earning of money over the welfare of their children and if the school sticks avidly to the national curriculum and high achievements in the league tables, the pupil/s are in for a torrid time.

This happened to me 60 years ago and it is still happening to children today.  In my view this is totally unacceptable.  Radical change needs to be made to the education system to maximise the potential of every pupil, not just the privileged.  The difficulty is, the people who designed the education system do not understand children, their wide variety of differences and struggles.

The education system should be designed by those who have struggled within the existing system not by those who thrived within it.  The needs of all children must be met. They must be listened to. So how do we do this?

In my experience and looking back in history, providing well formulated arguments to those in power or who have influence produces very poor results.  Radical action forces change.  Women didn’t get the vote by suggesting to their husband, father or MP  that this would benefit the nation. They rioted, got arrested and died in front of the kings horse, It still took years for women to achieve the vote.

With regards to women’s pay being on a par with men’s, recent research has shown that at the current rate of progress women should reach parity with men for paid work in 134 years time.  If we consider 87 seamstresses who worked at the Ford factory in Dagenham and went on strike in 1968 for equal pay against all odds, shutting down the factory where 55,000 men worked, was the start of this process, then it will take 189 years to produce a result.

Children who don’t fit into the system are rejected by it and then the children reject the system.  I went to supposedly good schools but left with very poor qualifications. I was considered bright but lazy, whilst I considered that the schools did not provide me with a proper eduction and that teachers were the lowest of the low.  This outcome means that the pupil who feels alien becomes even more alienated.  With poor mental health and breakdowns at practically every job, I underachieved compared to my peers.  At the age of 49, I found the world of work and society in general  impossible for me to function in and I was diagnosed by an established mental health professional as having an extreme intelligence.  This was not recognised, by my parents, my schools, my friends or my places of work.

This is still happening to children today and it is just not good enough.   It is likely that these children’s lives will be as difficult as mine has been.  They are being abused by the very system that should be supporting them.  Those that designed and implement the education system are culpable in the harm that has and is being done to these children who will be scarred for life as I have been.

Change needs to happen within society so that it is more inclusive for the betterment of all within it.