Time to give secondary education a sense of vocation

The appearance of the Yellow Book on Education which formed the basis of the Prime Minister's speech at Ruskin College in October 1976 has revitalised the debate on the nature of the Secondary School curriculum. If the resulting dialogue between the various elements within the educational system is controlled and sensible, then much of value for our children might result. If, however, the outcome is a polarisation of ideas at the two ends of the theoretical spectrum between common core and free development in the curriculum, then the children in our schools will yet again become pawns in the educational chess game. Worse still, we will be further away than ever from the provision of a secondary education which allows them to take a meaningful and useful place in industrial society.