Latest news with #LatinExcellenceProgramme
Spectator
13 hours ago
- Politics
- Spectator
Bridget Phillipson can't be trusted to fix Britain's schools
If relationships between Ofsted and schools are already frayed, then we may officially be about to reach the end of the rope. Headteachers are now threatening to quit as part-time inspectors unless Ofsted delays and revises its changes to how schools and colleges are graded in England. Ofsted relies on around 900 part-time inspectors, who are mostly serving headteachers and senior leaders, to assist its 300 officers in carrying out thousands of inspections each year. The new Ofsted 'report card', set to be brought in this September, is a rushed botch job which promises semantic tweaks rather than actual reform. Ofsted was tasked with creating a new system that would reduce the pressure on schools, but this achieves the exact opposite. Rather than a single-word judgement, schools will now be graded on nine areas, with each being ranked as either causing concern, attention needed, secure, strong, or exemplary. By broadening the assessment criteria, the process will become more complex, more onerous, more demanding: once again, schools must demonstrate more and more with less and less time. By taking away academies' freedoms, Labour is embodying the worst of the Left Currently, inspectors are usually only in schools for one or two days, which is nowhere near enough time to make a trustworthy, holistic and contextualised judgement about a school. Before 2005, inspectors were there for at least a week, in teams of up to fifteen people; now, on average, there are around four. Reforming Ofsted was one of Labour's key manifesto promises, and it's easy to see why the government is reluctant to make yet another U-turn. Yet steamrollering ahead with these proposals would be a disaster: not just for teacher workload and our worrying teacher recruitment crisis, but also for the government itself. Why? Because it perpetuates this (ever-more-credible) narrative that Labour cannot be trusted with schools. Education was one of the few success stories that Labour inherited. Schools face significant challenges, but in the last decade England had climbed up international league tables, was ranked fourth in the world for reading, and boasted 86 per cent of schools ranked as either 'Good' or 'Outstanding', an increase of 18 percent. Yet rather than capitalise on this positive momentum, Labour has made a series of increasingly incoherent decisions that seem to validate their critics' accusations that they prioritise ideology over pragmatism. For example, take the clumsy top-down directives, like the decision to cut the Latin Excellence Programme mid-year, or the indecision around whether to cut funding for BTECs. Then there's the state over-reach, like limiting branded uniform items or mandating free breakfasts and tooth-brushing lessons for all primary school pupils. Labour has also continually promised to prioritise diversifying the curriculum and making it more 'accessible' when teachers across the land are screaming instead to look at more urgent issues like attendance and struggling staff levels. With the teacher shortage now at crisis point, an ambitious recruitment drive would have been an open goal for Labour. Yet where are the promised 6,500 extra teachers the government said they would recruit using the money raised by adding VAT to private school fees? Of course, this was never going to happen overnight, but we are almost a year into Keir Starmer's time in office and we still have no idea how Labour plan to reach such a pitifully small target (last year, 13,000 fewer teachers were hired than required, and each year 40,000 teachers leave the profession). In fact, Labour may have actually made the situation worse, as Bridget Phillipson wants to change the law so that all teachers have, or are working towards, qualified teacher status (QTS). We need to protect against cheap, exploited labour, but this new stipulation may discourage outstanding outsiders from joining the profession (especially career-changers looking to make a move later in life). QTS is also no gold-plated guarantee of good teaching, and the last thing schools need is more barriers to entry. There is also the thinly-veiled vendetta against academies. By taking away academies' freedoms (such as not being constrained by the national curriculum or being able to set their own pay scales), Labour is embodying the worst of the Left: its tendency towards command-and-control, justifying centralising everything in the name of 'fairness'. I am a floating voter, and last summer I was genuinely hopeful that a new government may bring a new sense of focus and direction for schools: the revolving door of education secretaries (seven in four years) had left the sector with a feeling of inertia and malaise, a yearning for a new education 'champion'. Yet Phillipson's determination to fix everything that isn't broken – and yet ignore a crucial part of the system that is (Ofsted) – is yet another timely reminder that we should be careful what we wish for.
Yahoo
23-03-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
I'm no fan of Latin but in any language this pronoun fiddling is ridiculous
Did I mention I wasn't too keen on Latin? I'm still battling to come up for air after the pile-on you beasts gave me recently when I cried hurrah at the news that the Labour government had cut the £4 million Latin Excellence Programme in state schools. Well, now one of our most prestigious educational establishments has issued an edict that positively defaces the very columns of that ancient patois. Each year, since its founding some nine centuries ago, Oxford University has conferred its degrees upon graduating students in Latin. But now it has been deemed wrong that the wording used in this ceremony is not inclusive. Specifically, it is not gender neutral, and therefore does not cater to those who identify as 'non-binary'. And so changes are afoot. Indeed, using correct and ancient procedures, a gazette has been issued to alert faculties that a gender-neutral degree ceremony is necessary. Dons will soon vote to change the Latin ceremonial text, unchanged since about the time King John affixed his seal to the Magna Carta. Unchanged for some 800 years until it was decreed in 2025 that a message of congratulations grammatically gendered masculine or feminine might offend people who very possibly couldn't understand the words anyway. These graduates having likely completed a degree in the forward-thinking subfields of LGBTQ+ histories and gender as a plural category of historical analysis at the university's Centre for Women's, Gender and Queer Histories, for which the study of Latin may have been deemed non-essential. Consider the low blow of being conferred a degree with the Latin word of 'magistri' (for masters) or the word 'doctores' (doctors), both of which are uniformly, violently, masculine. One would have to rush to one's gender-neutral toilet to sob gently, before repairing to a café to be consoled by family and friends over sips of, doubtless, alcohol-free, fermented botanicals and resuscitating bites of vegan jackfruit wraps. All of which must leave the Oxford classicists in a state of desperate flummox. For is not Latin so gloriously dead? Is it not as fixed in history as William's defeat of Harold in 1066, as Queen Victoria's ascent to the throne in 1837? Latin may be tiresome and painful, or, if you're deluded, intellectually dreamy and the base of English, redolent of the beauty of Catholic compositions of Adoro te devote or Ave verum corpus. What it is not is fluid, it cannot evolve. Its sublime perfection lies in its death. If it were a parrot, it would be most definitely deceased. Yet now, as black holes bend light so Latin must be warped to adhere to the vain manifestations of some of our nation's brightest snowflakes. To whom I'd suggest, you grab your wretched degree, then pile into the boozer for a proper drink and get yourself ready for the real world. Broaden your horizons with award-winning British journalism. Try The Telegraph free for 1 month with unlimited access to our award-winning website, exclusive app, money-saving offers and more.
Telegraph
23-03-2025
- Politics
- Telegraph
I'm no fan of Latin but in any language this pronoun fiddling is ridiculous
Did I mention I wasn't too keen on Latin? I'm still battling to come up for air after the pile-on you beasts gave me recently when I cried hurrah at the news that the Labour government had cut the £4 million Latin Excellence Programme in state schools. Well, now one of our most prestigious educational establishments has issued an edict that positively defaces the very columns of that ancient patois. Each year, since its founding some nine centuries ago, Oxford University has conferred its degrees upon graduating students in Latin. But now it has been deemed wrong that the wording used in this ceremony is not inclusive. Specifically, it is not gender neutral, and therefore does not cater to those who identify as 'non-binary'. And so changes are afoot. Indeed, using correct and ancient procedures, a gazette has been issued to alert faculties that a gender-neutral degree ceremony is necessary. Dons will soon vote to change the Latin ceremonial text, unchanged since about the time King John affixed his seal to the Magna Carta. Unchanged for some 800 years until it was decreed in 2025 that a message of congratulations grammatically gendered masculine or feminine might offend people who very possibly couldn't understand the words anyway. These graduates having likely completed a degree in the forward-thinking subfields of LGBTQ+ histories and gender as a plural category of historical analysis at the university's Centre for Women's, Gender and Queer Histories, for which the study of Latin may have been deemed non-essential. Consider the low blow of being conferred a degree with the Latin word of 'magistri' (for masters) or the word 'doctores' (doctors), both of which are uniformly, violently, masculine. One would have to rush to one's gender-neutral toilet to sob gently, before repairing to a café to be consoled by family and friends over sips of, doubtless, alcohol-free, fermented botanicals and resuscitating bites of vegan jackfruit wraps. All of which must leave the Oxford classicists in a state of desperate flummox. For is not Latin so gloriously dead? Is it not as fixed in history as William's defeat of Harold in 1066, as Queen Victoria's ascent to the throne in 1837? Latin may be tiresome and painful, or, if you're deluded, intellectually dreamy and the base of English, redolent of the beauty of Catholic compositions of Adoro te devote or Ave verum corpus. What it is not is fluid, it cannot evolve. Its sublime perfection lies in its death. If it were a parrot, it would be most definitely deceased. Yet now, as black holes bend light so Latin must be warped to adhere to the vain manifestations of some of our nation's brightest snowflakes. To whom I'd suggest, you grab your wretched degree, then pile into the boozer for a proper drink and get yourself ready for the real world.
Telegraph
20-03-2025
- Politics
- Telegraph
Oxford set to make 800-year-old Latin ceremony non-binary
Oxford is set to make an 800-year-old Latin ceremony gender-neutral for the benefit of non-binary students. The university has conferred its degrees in Latin since the 12th century, but the wording used could be changed to make it more inclusive. Dons will vote on a proposal to change the Latin ceremonial text to cater to those 'who identify as non-binary'. In a gazette issued to alert faculties to the planned changes, the introduction of the first gender-neutral degree ceremony in Oxford's almost 1,000-year history is deemed 'necessary'. The changes involve stripping a Latin message of congratulations of words that are grammatically gendered masculine or feminine. Instead of referring to masters students as 'magistri' (masters) – a masculine word – the proposed text uses the term 'vos', which is neutral terms for 'you'. The word 'doctores' (doctors), which is also masculine, could be changed. For undergraduates, the word for 'who', which has a masculine and feminine form, will be replaced with a neutral word. Similar changes have been proposed for the specific wording used in degree ceremonies for awards in arts, music, medicine, law, philosophy and other specialisms. The push for gender-neutral language will not only apply in degree ceremonies, but other formal occasions at Oxford. In a ceremony for the admission of a new Vice-Chancellor, the retiring Vice-Chancellor will say a few words in English not about 'his/her' tenure, but about 'their' time at the helm. Gender pronouns will also be stripped for other formal occasions including for the admissions of staff, if plans are voted through by Oxford's Congregation, which acts like a parliament for the university. A vote will be held on April 29 and will affect all ceremonies from October this year. The linguistic changes have been approved by Dr Jonathan Katz, a Latin expert who serves as the university's Public Orator. The proposals come amid a general push by public bodies to become more inclusive of varying gender identities, which has seen universities introduce gender-neutral toilets and inclusive language guides. Oxford's own Equality and Diversity Unit has urged staff and students to be mindful about discussing certain issues, stating 'all members of the University should be sensitive when discussing transgender topics'. The proposals also come after a modern reckoning with Latin. The Labour government cut the £4 million Latin Excellence Programme which supported the teaching of language in state schools, raising concerns about an attack on subjects often deemed 'elitist'. This led to accusations that Sir Keir Starmer was 'pulling up the drawbridge behind him' by axing Latin, despite himself studying the subject. In 2022, the textbooks of the Cambridge Latin Course books, which had been used in classrooms for five decades, were earmarked for revision because of their depictions of slaves. In the wake of Black Lives Matter protests, the didactic character of Caecilius used in the course was flagged, as he was shown to own several slaves. In one educational vignette, he was shown buying a young girl. Some scholars have raised concerns in the past that these domestic slaves were shown living 'happy' and carefree lives. One 2019 academic article in the US argued this was a 'sanitation and normalisation of slavery'.
Yahoo
20-03-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Oxford set to make 800-year-old Latin ceremony non-binary
Oxford is set to make an 800-year-old Latin ceremony gender-neutral for the benefit of non-binary students. The university has conferred its degrees in Latin since the 12th century, but the wording used could be changed to make it more inclusive. Dons will vote on a proposal to change the Latin ceremonial text to cater to those 'who identify as non-binary'. In a gazette issued to alert faculties to the planned changes, the introduction of the first gender-neutral degree ceremony in Oxford's almost 1,000-year history is deemed 'necessary'. The changes involve stripping a Latin message of congratulations of words that are grammatically gendered masculine or feminine. Instead of referring to masters students as 'magistri' (masters) – a masculine word – the proposed text uses the term 'vos', which is neutral terms for 'you'. The word 'doctores' (doctors), which is also masculine, could be changed. For undergraduates, the word for 'who', which has a masculine and feminine form, will be replaced with a neutral word. Similar changes have been proposed for the specific wording used in degree ceremonies for awards in arts, music, medicine, law, philosophy and other specialisms. The push for gender-neutral language will not only apply in degree ceremonies, but other formal occasions at Oxford. In a ceremony for the admission of a new Vice-Chancellor, the retiring Vice-Chancellor will say a few words in English not about 'his/her' tenure, but about 'their' time at the helm. Gender pronouns will also be stripped for other formal occasions including for the admissions of staff, if plans are voted through by Oxford's Congregation, which acts like a parliament for the university. A vote will be held on April 29 and will affect all ceremonies from October this year. The linguistic changes have been approved by Dr Jonathan Katz, a Latin expert who serves as the university's Public Orator. The proposals come amid a general push by public bodies to become more inclusive of varying gender identities, which has seen universities introduce gender-neutral toilets and inclusive language guides. Oxford's own Equality and Diversity Unit has urged staff and students to be mindful about discussing certain issues, stating 'all members of the University should be sensitive when discussing transgender topics'. The proposals also come after a modern reckoning with Latin. The Labour government cut the £4 million Latin Excellence Programme which supported the teaching of language in state schools, raising concerns about an attack on subjects often deemed 'elitist'. This led to accusations that Sir Keir Starmer was 'pulling up the drawbridge behind him' by axing Latin, despite himself studying the subject. In 2022, the textbooks of the Cambridge Latin Course books, which had been used in classrooms for five decades, were earmarked for revision because of their depictions of slaves. In the wake of Black Lives Matter protests, the didactic character of Caecilius used in the course was flagged, as he was shown to own several slaves. In one educational vignette, he was shown buying a young girl. Some scholars have raised concerns in the past that these domestic slaves were shown living 'happy' and carefree lives. One 2019 academic article in the US argued this was a 'sanitation and normalisation of slavery'. Broaden your horizons with award-winning British journalism. Try The Telegraph free for 1 month with unlimited access to our award-winning website, exclusive app, money-saving offers and more.
