By Aidan Silcocks

Last updated at 14:08, Monday, 09 January 2012

THE shadow education secretary, Stephen Twigg, appears to have caused a bit of a stir by suggesting the school day be extended.

Aidan Silcocks

A lot of those who have commented on his suggestion have been opposed to the idea but I believe it has some merit, although perhaps not for some of the reasons Mr Twigg has given.

Among his reasons for having an extended day are suggestions it would keep children off the streets and stop them being sucked into local gangs. I don’t think he has thought that one through properly as I’m sure the evenings, weekends and holidays will still provide ample opportunity for those activities.

Another suggestion is that an extended school day would give the most deprived pupils a place to study away from “chaotic” home lives. It is also claimed a longer school day would acclimatise pupils to a “work-like timetable”.

With these last two points in mind I think the idea should be given some consideration.

I don’t think extending the school day should be seen as a way of cramming more lessons into the day. Instead, time should be made available within the school day for pupils to complete all of their work so they don’t have to take any home. This would go some way to acclimatising them to a work-like timetable while giving consideration to “work-life balance”.

Often pupils are unable to get involved in extra-curricular activities because of transport issues such as using a school bus. If they stay after school, they need to have alternative arrangements for getting home which may not be practical or affordable. The introduction of a longer school day would allow time for all pupils to have the opportunity to take part in a variety of activities for pleasure rather than for assessment.

Now I can hear the outcry from some parts of the teaching profession as they worry about being given an increased workload, but that doesn’t have to be the case. The extra study periods wouldn’t be formal lessons so they wouldn’t require a teacher, just a supervisor. Similarly, other activities could be provided by external providers, as happens with some extra-curricular activities at schools already.

Of course, there will be additional costs involved which the government will need to fund to ensure all children in state schools have equal opportunities. Unfortunately, that is where I see the idea falling down. Education policy, started under the last government and continuing with the coalition, seems to be undermining the concept of equality of provision.

The introduction of academies and free schools appears to have put ordinary state schools at a disadvantage financially. Perhaps the situation in the state education system could best be described by modifying a quote from George Orwell’s Animal Farm. “All schools are equal but some are more equal than others”.

First published at 13:32, Monday, 09 January 2012
Published by http://www.nwemail.co.uk