I Know My Place

The Guardian reports that the Tories are "losing the battle over class" and that one third of voters see the Tories as the party of the upper classes. There is a huge debate to be had over the issue of 'class' in the UK and where the divisions fall. For example, a lot of people consider themselves to be working class socially although their income and standard of living is middle class e.g. a train driver on the London Underground earns £40K a year but would probably say he is working class. And not many people admit to being upper class for fear of being labelled arrogant.

But in any case, David Cameron scored a 'class issue' own goal last week on the subject of teacher training when he showed himself up as a toffee-nosed snob by saying it will be the Tories' policy that teachers should ideally have 'first class' degrees and that candidates with only a third class degree would be denied funding for teacher training. He actually said he wants it to be an elite profession.

What's wrong with this?

First, there is no evidence that having a First, a 2:1 or 2:2 would necessarily make you a better teacher than someone with a third class degree. Being a good teacher requires something more of a person than merely being brainy or good at passing exams. You have to be able to communicate enthusiasm for learning to children from all backgrounds and social classes. Many of us will have had experience of teachers who, although extremely well qualified academically, are just no good at (or couldn't care less about) getting it across to others and inspiring otherwise disinterested children. And yet I've known others without a degree who could get children involved and enthusiastic within minutes. Moreover, there are many good teachers (now approaching retirement) who do not have a degree at all but instead completed a three-year teacher training course - I think it was 1976 when it became a requirement for teachers to have  a degree. Basically, Mr Cameron is missing the point of what makes a good teacher.

Secondly, if you want to employ the 'high-flyers' you're going to have to pay 'high-flyers' wages or else they'll all be off to work for J P Morgan after the first difficult teaching practice. But more more importantly to be a good teacher you have to want to be a teacher and not just interested in money.

Thirdly, Mr Cameron's views imply a criticism of all those unfortunate wretches who have only managed to get a third. This casts a bit of a slur on some otherwise useful members of society such as:

Carol Vorderman - a maths whizz and TV presenter.

Fiona Shackleton - Paul McCartney's divorce lawyer, and solicitor for Princes William and Harry.

Stanley Baldwin - three times Prime Minister (a Tory).

W H Auden - quite good at poetry, and he actually worked as a tutor and schoolmaster for a while. And he was Professor of Poetry at Oxford.

Philip Pullman - successful author, and he was a teacher in Oxford and at Westminster College before that.

It would appear that this is indeed a 'class' issue for Mr Cameron resulting from his own educational experience in independent schools and at Eton, where teachers generally have not been through the usual route for teacher training. Unlike State schools, those in the independent sector require only that teachers have a 'good degree' from a 'good university' (although they no doubt prefer candidates also to have Qualified Teacher Status).

Mr Cameron, of course, does have a First Class degree. It's surprising that someone  apparently so clever should come up with such half-baked ideas.