When I was at school about sixty years ago, education was oh so simple.

We all sat in class whilst the teacher got us to remember stuff - learning by rote. No explanations, no in depth discussions. Some of us listened some of us didn't. That was education in the bad old days of the fifties and sixties. Nothing much has changed it seems. Not even in the brave new world of alternative education in the 21st century.

And unlike nowadays, where far too many teachers and their political masters continue to shout out the ridiculous mantra that all children have equal outcomes and tell them that they can achieve anything they wish for, back in the days of yore - long before it was fashionable for politicians and the liberal minded elite to stick their respective oars in the simple act of mass eduction for their own ends, once upon a time children were not told that if they raise their aspirations the world is their oyster. Rather than being disappointed when they ended up digging ditches instead of going to university. And most of them were not. Me included.

It is far better to tell children the truth about their academic abilities rather than lull them into false ideas that they can achieve whatever they choose. One reason why many children find it difficult to accept they can't all be famous. Or earn vast amounts of money one day sat behind a desk doing very little. The fact is, and it hasn't changed since I was at school, some children are thick and some aren't. And no amount of fancy educational shenanigans will ever change that rule. Not self-financing 'Academies' or any other hair-brained scheme put forward to improve the UK education system.

Yes, educational funding can be a factor in some circumstances. However, school funding is not the silver bullet that many believe it to be. We have to move away from propagating equal outcomes for all. Also the idea that raising aspirations will magically turn every pig's ear into a silk purse. We 'must do better'.

Andrew Martin
Kitchener Road
Weymouth