As parents, pupils, students, schools and colleges in Wales prepare for the first term in a new education year, BBC Radio Wales takes an in-depth look at the state of education in Wales and what is widely regarded as a crisis in the education system.
Learning Lessons is a week of special programmes and features on Radio Wales, starting next Tuesday (August 30), looking at whether children in Wales are really getting the best education and asking what lies ahead for future generations of students.
As well as features and discussion across its main programmes, Radio Wales’ Learning Lessons also features special commissions, such as Testing Times, which takes broadcaster John Humphrys back to his old school in Cardiff, whilst educationalist Professor David Reynolds introduces a four-part series exploring what he believes is a crisis in Welsh education.
In Learning Lessons, starting Tuesday 30 August, Radio Wales’ main daytime programmes, Good Morning Wales, Jamie And Louise and the Radio Wales Phone-In will all be discussing education in Wales, exploring questions such as, is the Welsh way the right way, what’s happening elsewhere in the world, are we teaching the right things and can Wales afford a world-class education system.
The quest for answers takes the station’s flagship morning news programme, Good Morning Wales, to Finland (Wednesday 31 August) where the education system is viewed by many as a model to be copied in other countries. There, no one evaluates teachers, no one evaluates schools, and individual schools’ test results remain confidential. Broadcasting live from Helsinki, the programme will feed into other programmes throughout the day.
In Testing Times (Tuesday 30 August, 11.30am) John Humphrys revisits his former school, Moorland Primary in Splott, Cardiff, to assess education in Wales today. The decade since devolution has seen the educational performance of Wales fall behind the other nations of the UK and the Principality emerged particularly poorly from a recent international test of educational ability. What is Wales doing wrong?
Wales abandoned the controversial SAT tests and school league tables in 2001. Could this move be at the heart of the nation’s poor performance? Humphrys goes back to the classroom to ask: What is education for and what part should testing and tables play?
Is Welsh Education In Crisis? (Tuesday 30 August to Thursday 1 September, 7pm; Sunday, September 4, 1pm) is a major four-part documentary in which education expert and now senior policy advisor to the Welsh Government Professor David Reynolds takes a look at education in Wales over the last 30 years, and predicts its future. Last year, in a worldwide table-ranking student performance, Wales languished behind international averages on maths, reading and science and well behind the other UK nations. Professor David Reynolds explores why and what can be done to reverse the situation.
Monday 5 September, what is for most of Wales the first day of the school term, sees Good Morning Wales, Jamie And Louise and The Radio Wales Phone-In programmes broadcast live from Connah’s Quay High School in Flintshire. Interviews with teachers, parents and students will reflect the realities of today’s education in Wales.
“Whether it’s the state of teaching, pupils’ performances, performance tables, funding, grants or targets, not a week goes by without a story in the media about education in Wales,” says BBC Radio Wales Editor, Steve Austins.
“We want to look at what shape the education system is in here in Wales, in a way that helps parents understand what the country is providing for their children. We want to inform and engage the listeners in a valuable and honest discussion about our schools and learning institutions. Ultimately, education is the one thing that affects us all and has an impact on the fibre of our society.”
