Workhouses

"Are there no prisons? Are there no workhouses?"
—Ebenezer Scrooge, in Charles Dickens' "A Christmas Carol"


Finding people work (or getting people to work when there is an alternative) is one of society's age-old problems.

Recent reports show the unemployment rate in the U.K. at around 7.9%, and the U.S. at about 7.7%, give or take. I doubt those figures. I think they are both low,  because, while they derive from the number of people receiving unemployment payments from the government (at least in the U.S.) they do not take into consideration the number of people whose "benefits" have run out and who have given up looking for work, but are still definitely "unemployed." (Again, in the U.S., at any rate.)

In Victorian times, there was, theoretically, no such thing as "unemployed." You either had a job, working for yourself or for someone else, or you were employed by the government in a workhouse. For the latter, you were housed and fed and clothed, after a fashion, and schooled or trained for employment. The fruits of your labor is what produced or purchased the aforementioned food, shelter, clothing and education.

We all know it didn't really work, although it looked good on paper to those who were searching for a way to help the poor. In reality, it was pretty heartless.

Our President Clinton and legislature tried to bring back that concept through a system called "Workfare" in which those who were physically able were required to do work or school themselves in return for their welfare check. That hasn't set too well with the liberals. President Obama really doesn't like the concept of mandatory working in return for a paycheck, and has tried to change the law to where thinking about looking for work should be credited as actual work. None of this stuff seems to be working in the U.S. (although conservatives SAY it is working, and point to the large numbers of people who have managed to break the cycle of welfare dependancy through being assigned a job or training before they can eat.) I think it is being tried in Britain as well, or being talked about. With my humble knowledge of the British entitlement society, that isn't going to fly at all over there. I don't know if you've tried it or are just talking about it. I recommend you do NOT put it into practice.

Any suggestions on how to humanely replace the old workhouses? On the surface, I personally favor vocational training for those who are (truly) able-bodied -- but even as I say this I know that won't work. There are just too many unemployed who already have a skill and don't need training. They just can't find work in the field they are trained for. Mandatory retraining is repulsive to me because being retrained into work you hate kills the soul. There are probably other ideas. Of course, this assumes the reader of this is in agreement that it is good for a person to earn his own way in our society whenever possible, and that holding up liquor stores and selling drugs for a living is not good for society.

A good article on British workhouses is at http://www.workhouses.org.uk/Leeds/

Walk your child to school today

Today is International Walk to School Day.

Do it today. But also do it at least once a week. Want some exercise? Do it every day!

Read this.

Also, in an email from the British Embassy in Washington, here are some things going on that affect British schools. An interesting read.

Charlie starts primary school

I'm taking you through the education of a little English boy by the name of Charlie. He is an ordinary little boy whose parents have decided to put him through the state system, which will be free until the age of 18/19.

He will very probably have gone to play school, nursery school or kindergarten before starting at a "real" school. There is provision for 12.5 hours free early learning for 3 and 4 year olds but this is optional. It isn't compulsory that he attends any school at all as long as he receives "education otherwise". The local authority has the responsibility to ensure that other appropriate provision is being made.

Charlie has to wear a uniform of a grey or white shirt, grey shorts or trousers, black shoes and a school jumper. He chose to have a grey jumper but he could have chosen red. Although he worries that he has the same as all the other children he will find that people interpret the uniform in all sorts of ways, to the head teacher's despair.

The legal age to start formal education is the term after Charlie reaches his fifth birthday. In practice though, most schools will take rising fives, so off Charlie goes to the local primary school the term after his fourth birthday. The school, although it goes right up to the age of eleven, is divided into infant (4-7) and junior (7-11) sections.

Charlie will start off in the reception class where he will stay until the following September when he will transfer to year 1, ages 5-6. Depending on when children's birthdays fall, they will have one, two or three terms in the reception class. Generally children who have had three full terms find the transition easier.

I should explain at this point there are generally speaking three terms a year, September to December, January to whenever Easter falls, Easter to July, with half-term breaks of about a week each term. The Christmas (we still tend to use the word although not always) and Easter holidays last two weeks. The summer holiday lasts six weeks.

Each year Charlie's teacher will change, but the same teacher with or without a teaching assistant will stay with the class for the whole of that year. In this primary school the teacher will almost always be a woman in spite of efforts to encourage men into teaching. There may be more than one class per year group, depending on the size of the school. On the other hand, in a very small, usually rural, schools, there could be more than one year group per class. The average class size is roughly 27.

The National Curriculum determines the subjects taught:
English, maths, science, design and technology, information and communication technology, history, geography, art and design, music, physical education. Schools must also teach religious education but parents have the right to withdraw their children from this subject. Personal, social and health education, citizenship and a foreign language are advised.

At the age of seven, at the end of infant school, Charlie will start being tested using Standard Assessment Tests. Emphasis at this stage is on teacher assessment but there are tests for reading, writing and maths.

The school day generally lasts from 9:00 in the morning until 3:00 in the afternoon, and that is every day from Monday to Friday. There is a morning and afternoon playtime with a break at midday for lunch. Charlie can choose whether to have a cooked lunch at school, or to take a packed lunch, or go home. If Charlie's parents don't earn very much, he can have free school meals. Many schools also run Breakfast Clubs and after school groups to help parents who work.

Now Charlie enters Junior School. This may be physically separate from the infant school he has been attending, either a separate building on the same site, or on a different site. In some schools there is no noticeable differentiation. He is now in Key Stage 2 and year 3. He will be tested again at the end of this key stage, in year 6, but there will be less teacher assessment and more national testing. He will, as last time, be tested on English and maths, with the addition of science. These tests are not pass/fail tests. They are used for national statistics and to assess the child's progress.

The results of these tests will usually determine which stream Charlie will be entering at his new secondary school. Charlie's parents will have chosen which school they would like him to attend, but schools can reject an application if they are full. In practice, most children go to the school in their catchment area. Charlie's time at secondary school until the end of compulsory education will be covered in a future post. This year students starting secondary education will be the first to be legally required to stay until the age of 17. The change will not mean that pupils have to stay in the classroom, but they will have to continue to receive training.

The UK has one of the earliest school starting ages in Europe, along with Malta and the Netherlands. Northern Ireland has four as the age to start compulsory schooling, and in practice, this is the same in the rest of the UK. It was first determined in 1870 merely to enable an early leaving age. There has been a lot of debate on the subject, but no firm evidence to support either early or late starts.

Susie's American Education, Part One

Susie is an imaginary American young woman who has just graduated from college. Susie has received her new degree from the University of Michigan. Susie has attended only public schools all her life. Public means "free" at first, and "subsidized" at the college level. Public also means, in the USA, that anyone can attend without regard to religion, race, or other social status. There is a "right" to education in the U.S. This "right" is compulsary until the student reaches an age set by the individual state, usually age 16, at which the student can decide not to continue in school.

Susie was born in a small rural town in Michigan and went through the entire educational system there. She would have begun school in the fall at age five, graduated from high school at age 18, entered college that same fall, still age 18, and taken 5 years to graduate college, at age 23. It is almost rare to complete college in 4 years now, although 4 years was the norm not long ago. Susie will likely continue her college education until she has enough credits for her Masters Degree, but it is unlikely she will continue to go to school full time. It is much more likely that she will now enter the work force and work on her Masters little by little by taking courses in the evenings or once a week at the university. Susie has not chosen a profession which will require a doctorate.

In her rural town of 5,000, there would have been only one high school, one junior high school, and probably two elementary schools. Susie would have entered Kindergarten - perhaps only half-days, but not necessarily - at age 5. In times past, this would have been a time of socialization and getting used to being around other children; of listening to stories and music; of snacks and rest periods; of practicing motor skills by drawing pictures and coloring, and perhaps learning how to tie her shoes. Not quite so easy in today's world where actual learning would be taking place from day one, and Susie would have been expected to already know her ABCs and recognize many word sounds. In some schools, the youngsters are reading simple things before being passed on to first grade.

Susie will proceed through six grades (after Kindergarten) in elementary school. At the end of the sixth grade, she will be 12 years old. Then she will move on to Junior High School. During those six grades she will grow and get used to the other children who live in her town that are in her age group. If she stays in her home town, she will know many of the people on a personal basis from having grown up with them and gone through long years of schooling together.

In elementary school, there will be probably 3 classes for each grade, even though her town is small. Three third grade classrooms, for example. But each year she will have some of the other children in her class, and will get to know all her contemporaries by the time sixth grade is finished. Each year she will take the same basic courses, and more will be added as she grows older. For example each year she will study reading, penmanship, English, Spelling, Arithmetic. Each of these subjects will get more difficult as she progresses, but none of them will be "finished" in elementary school.

Susie is lucky that she is in a small rural school system. The school buildings will be modern and the teachers will be very good indeed. She will have the opportunity to broaden her life with music and sports. Very good equiment and supplies will be at her disposal. She will come to take this for granted, as she takes for granted the personal attention and nurturing she receives from her teachers and school administrators. This is not always the case in large inner city schools.

In the USA, schools are run by local boards of education. Community leaders serve voluntarily on the school board. They establish the school curriculum and oversee the students progress. They are responsible for making changes to insure success. The school system superintendent and top administrators are hired by, and serve at the pleasure of, this local school board. The school board will consist of farmers, business owners, and involved parents. Their word is law when it comes to what the children will learn and the environment in which they will learn. There are other school boards at the regional level and state level, but these serve larger concerns and act as sources of information for the local school boards. Membership in the state school board will consist of representatives who have served, usually on local school boards, and the membership is rotated over time. At the state level, these people will constantly evaluate needs and materials and chart overall directions. They will, for example, review new textbooks and make suggestions to the local school boards. They will gather information about what schools in other states are doing that is successful, and make that information available to the local boards.

I give this information for two reasons. First, to explain that in the USA, much more is done at a state level rather than federal level than foreigners perhaps assume. And, second. that the real power is at the extreme local level. For example, if parents don't like a certain text book, the local board will heed their wishes and the text will disappear from the schools.

There is indeed very general input from a federal level, but that is beyond the scope of this post. Susie will take tests from time to time throughout her school career because of this federal input, but she will probably not even think of these tests as being special. They will simply be one more tests among many for her.

Educational differences

One large (I think) cultural difference between the U.S. and the UK is the educational systems. It occurs to me that, although I have heard you speak of differences in your various comments, I have never really delved into it that deeply. Maybe someone can clarify. Don't worry about comparisons right now - I just want an over view of the British general system. Let me give you an overview of the U.S. system, as I know it anyway, and someone can then do the same thing with the British system.

In the U.S. (and here I am talking about the public schools, not private schools) a child goes through 12 "grades", one per year. Often the school year is 9 months long, with summers off. I think this is a throwback to days when children were needed to do farm work in the summertime. Many school systems also offer Kindergarten, frequently only half days. In that case, the child would begin school at age 5 rather than age 6. Of course, there is also "pre-school" in some communities as well. But, basically, before University, one is talking about a 12-grade/12-year course of instruction.

Generally, the children attend different schools, depending on how old they are. For example, grades 1-6 are most often called "Elementary School." Some cities (notably New York) call them "Primary schools" and name their school buildings simply "PS #23", etc. Elsewhere, it is common to name the Elementary school after some important person's name, often a U.S. President, for example. A child begins to learn how to read immediately, in first grade or even before. Parents are, of course, encouraged to teach the child letters and letter sounds before he enters school.

Probably this is would be similar to your schools, but perhaps you don't call them Elementary Schools. And perhaps you don't number the grades, or even call them grades.

Since this is a pretty large area I want to try to learn about, I'm going to stop right here for the first post, and get whatever feedback and descriptions you care to give. After Elemenatry School (or "Grade School") the child advances to Junior High School and then on to High School. Sometimes Junior High School is replaced by something called a "Middle School" where grades 6, 7, and 8 are taught (rather than simply grades 7 and 8 as in a traditional Junior High School.) After High School comes University or a trade school or nothing more.

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Of course I also seek comments from Americans and others as well. You may enlarge upon what I have said about the American system. But please, if you are British, tell me about your school system, starting with the younger children. Thanks.