Grammar Schools: the Sequel

Y'know, I'm no great Daily Mail enthusiast but I think this columnist is right on the money. That's an old, old policy to which he is referring. The Tories were in power for eighteen years and, while they made all the right noises, they did very little at parliamentary level to actively support Grammar (note the spelling) schools. And before other forumites protest that they were stymied at every turn by Labour-controlled local authorities, you may care to remember that this was also the case with the Right to Buy policy (council housing) and the reforms of the NHS. Labour local authorities opposed them on ideological grounds at every turn yet the Tories managed to steamroller their policies through. One might ask why they failed to do this with Grammar schools.

Maybe it's because Grammar schools weren't so high on their list of priorities, after all.

In Response to the Tories' U-turn on Grammar Schools

I'll wager that your grammar school was more intellectually and socially diverse than my Catholic school which had an unfortunate habit of selection via the backdoor. (With lots of ehttp://www.blogger.com/img/gl.link.gifmotional consequences for the pupils of that school even if they did go on to excel in higher education. Catholic Guilt, anyone?)

BTW: Many left-leaning middle class parents of school aged children wriggle out of the dilemma they have created for themselves by reverting to their childhood religion, feigning commitment and sending their children to some Catholic school miles away from their homes which just happens to be highly-placed in the league tables. But they'll stop at nothing a get their children a 'decent' education, whatever the cost, in the long term, to that child's emotional well-being, while preserving (ostensibly, at least) their political integrity.

They have their cake and devour it with relish.