Comments on: New Diplomas win backing of small businesses https://leftfootforward.org/2009/09/new-diplomas-win-backing-of-small-businesses/ Left Foot Forward is the home for UK progressives. We provide evidence-based analysis on British politics, news and policy. Fri, 04 Sep 2009 07:47:39 +0000 hourly 1 https://wordpress.org/?v=6.9.5 By: Pockets https://leftfootforward.org/2009/09/new-diplomas-win-backing-of-small-businesses/#comment-22 Wed, 02 Sep 2009 11:09:11 +0000 https://www.leftfootforward.org/?p=590#comment-22 Might it also be worth mentioning the many daunting problems facing diplomas? Yes, diplomas could prove to be the most important reform to English education in years – but they could also fail horribly. You only have to type the word ‘diploma’ into Google news to see that:
– fewer pupils than expected are taking diplomas (11,400 kids – around a quarter of the orginal estimate)
– in the diploma results announced last week, a quarter of students failed
– Most 15 to 16 year olds don’t know what diplomas are, and among those that do they are still viewed as an alternative for those who “can’t do A-levels”

If I might make a broader point, as one who wishes this blog well: this is meant to be an ‘evidence-based progressive blog’ (at least that’s what the blurb says). Yet this post and several others look suspiciously like callow cheerleading for government policies, citing only supportive evidence and entirely ignoring the rest. That is not, I’m afraid, ‘evidence-based’.

These are early days, and this blog can choose to be a place of informed, nuanced debate, or else to become a government mouthpiece. I urge you to choose the former course.

]]> By: Mark Harrison https://leftfootforward.org/2009/09/new-diplomas-win-backing-of-small-businesses/#comment-21 Tue, 01 Sep 2009 16:41:16 +0000 https://www.leftfootforward.org/?p=590#comment-21 Testing for Shamik!

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