Monday, January 5, 2009

Sign the Apocalypse Is Overdue # 12,739

Headteacher Linda Kingdon may be criminally insane, or she may be that strange and nearly inexcusable breed known as "an educator": The Complete Nutter

We decided we didn't want to use the word 'school'.

One reason was many parents of children here had very negative connotations of school.

Instead we want this to be a place for family learning.

There are no bells or locked doors. We wanted to de-institutionalise the place and bring the school closer to real life.
The £6 million "learning experience" in Sheffield, South Yorks, called Watercliffe Meadow, is therefore known as a "Place for Learning" because staff say "school" has a negative impact on some mums and dads.

Fortunately, not everyone in the vicinity is a complete nutter.

Local mom Kimberley Dunne, 26, said: "A school is a school. Seriously. The word 'school' doesn't have negative connotations, it's just where you go. A school’s always been a school, why change it?"

Marie Clair, of the Campaign for Plain English, said: "It's laughable. Do they think by changing the name they will change the environment? We all know what the building is. There is this whole political correctness agenda."

She added: "Using unfamiliar words instead of a simple one, like 'school', will get in the way of children's ability to learn."

Andrew Sangar, Sheffield Council cabinet member for children's services, said: "It's a school. We consider it a school and that's how we refer to it."

Meanwhile, Kingdon encourages all 481 pupils, from nursery to Year 6, to wear slippers instead of shoes, while their minds grow as soft as their soles.

I vote we check the staff for Krillitanes.

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