Opinion: Broad and balanced? Not from where I'm standing

There has been a trend recently in secondary schools to adopt the English Baccalaureate (EBacc) – a government-encouraged initiative for students in Years 10 and 11. It is described as a performance measure for ‘any student who achieves good GCSE or accredited Certificate passes in English, mathematics, history or geography, two sciences and a language.’ The claim is that this recognises the importance of ‘a balanced curriculum’, though with one glaring and obvious omission – that of arts subjects and, in particular, music.

Many without artistic or musical leanings may look at the above list and see it as a perfectly reasonable template for children to work towards – particularly those who are ‘academic’. I would argue that the inflexibility of this is not only unhelpful, but it could potentially be damaging to students of all abilities. The weakness lies in the fact that only one option is left from a potentially vast list of ‘others’, ranging from economics and IT through to art, drama and music. The consequence is obvious: fewer children can opt for these subjects, with the result that they are downgraded in status and standard. I offer you a specific example from a head of music who went from having 26 students in a GCSE Music class – every one of whom gained at least a B grade – to a class of nine – none of whom played an instrument. Aside from the demoralising effect on the teacher concerned, this gave a clear message to the rest of the school community that music was no longer valued as a ‘serious’ subject.

At this point I should confess that my objection to this is personal as well as professional. Our oldest child who is in Year 9 has a passion for both sports and music and wanted to be able to opt for GCSEs in music and PE. The school he attends initially refused to allow these two options because of the EBacc requirements, and it was only after kicking off in a way that I would have preferred to avoid that we managed to get the right combination for him. However, most parents (many of whom were also devastated at the inflexibility of the system) had neither the resources nor the time to jump through the appropriate hoops, resulting in real distress and – I can be certain – less successful long-term goals for their children. It cannot possibly be fair that, as usual, it is only a few ‘pushy’ parents who get the appropriate curriculum for their child.

While it is true that many schools have decided on this dubious path, there seems to be little evidence that choosing a combination of subjects that children are either weaker at or dislike results in a positive result. Most of us now know that the benefits of music on the development of children – ‘bright’ or otherwise – are very well documented, and a range of studies show that improvements are seen in language, maths, science, confidence and creativity. Yet these are repeatedly ignored. The benefits of music on the individual are indisputable, but for reasons of either ignorance or prejudice, they are grossly underfunded and unsupported, increasingly and most obviously in state schools.

State education has been a political football ever since the formation of comprehensive schools, and policies have seemingly been formed by the ill-informed who have little experience of education or the state school system. It is likely, therefore, that this policy will be changed on a whim like so many before. Some have pointed out that there is an expectation from Russell Group universities of adherence to the EBacc, but, crucially, this is not a rigid requirement. I am quite sure this is because they recognise that student entry requirements should be nuanced; indeed, higher education establishments are looking to encourage a diverse set of candidates. Musical skills are clearly valued given the UCAS points earned by graded music exams.

After what has been a deeply damaging year for many, but perhaps most profoundly the young, now is surely the chance to start anew and to respond on a holistic level to their personal and educational growth. ‘Build back better’ is already a well-worn cliché, but this really is an opportunity to look at fresh initiatives, revise absurd, ill-thought-out and whimsical government policies, and genuinely serve children.

The Education Select Committee report can be read at bit.ly/3Akx5Nk