.. And we are those little white dandelion heads that blow away in the wind.” It is with these words that Tracey, a pupil with cystic fibrosis, introduces the audience to new version of “Death of a Nightingale.”
Just what is the value of a right to mainstream education for children with special needs if they are then left in the hands of classroom assistants instead of trained teachers, and if they are bullied?
I quote here an article in the Times Educational Supplement by Kerra Maddern on 20 November 2009 under the heading “Teen bullying victims get two grades below the norm – Researchers claim first statistical correlation between abuse and levels of achievement.”
A picture alongside the report carries the caption “A link between self-esteem and school performance has been made.”
Would all those who were so keen to close special schools in pursuit of a policy of Inclusion, would all of them own up to a really bad mistake that took no account of human frailty? Will they stop thinking that it will somehow all come right in the end? And no-one will notice.
Their number include the Tories who are currently holding themselves out as the best people to make necessary savings today – they thought there were savings to be made here, the Labour Party who thought that Inclusion promoted Equality, now two very dead holy cows especially when you see how much bankers are taking home with them and what little value Inclusion actually offers many children with special needs, and the Lib Dems who, in their simple minded way, thought it would lead to a better world.
Here is the article:
Bullied teenagers attain significantly lower exam results than other children, according to a study that claims to prove a statistical correlation between abuse at school and educational achievement for the first time.
The GCSE results of children bullied at 14 and 15 are two grades lower and their total score is 13 fewer points, the government-backed report says.
It also found victims of bullying were less likely to attend school full-time at 16, and that more became Neets – not in employment, education or training.
The study “The Characteristics of Bullying Victims in Schools”, claims it is the first in-dept investigation of the impact of the problem on GCSE age pupils. Researchers studied 10,000 children; the full findings are to be published in January.”
Almost half of the 14 year-olds who took part said they had been bullied; this figure fell to 41 per cent at 15 and 29 per cent at 16.The most common form of bullying at all ages was name-calling and cyber bullying, followed by being threatened with violence, social exclusion and being attacked.
Bullies were most likely to target those with special educational needs, young carers, pupils with a disability and children in care.Girls were more likely than boys to be bullied at age 14 and 15, although gender became less important at 16. ….Previous studies have established that bullying victims have lower self-esteem and are at greater risk of suicide….” (My bold type and see also Post 11).
It is of course quite possible that the lower attainment also correlates with the extra 100,000+ teacher assistants they suddenly realised they had to employ to help teachers in mainstream schools cope with the influx of children with special needs as they closed 100 special schools. See the Extracts from Education Policy Partnership, December 2003 Review – The impact of paid adult support on the participation and learning of pupils in mainstream Schools that I quote in Note 7 Quotes and Notes in Death of a Nightingale.
The end result is, of course, is the same. It matters not one iota whether lower attainment is due to bullying, the presence of teacher assistants or, most likely, a combination of both.
It is not entirely surprising that the author of the Times Ed report above gave a full page to her report on the rehearsed reading of Death of a Nightingale at the New End Theatre in the same edition.
And to add just a little more spice to this, to bring home the relevance of Death of a Nightingale to so many people’s lives, in the last seven days:
On page 17 of the Times today, 8 December, 2009 “Head teacher was found dead after critical school inspection report, inquiry is told.”
The article began ” A ‘strong, determined and forceful’ primary head teacher who was found dead after a critical school inspection, had been overwhelmed by bureaucracy and believed that the inspectors’ findings had undermined her as a professional, an inquiry heard yesterday.”
And this is a headline in the Telegraph on 6 December “Teenager ‘killed herself after suffering depression over her weight’. A teenager took her own life after suffering depression cased by an eating disorder, her family have said.”
And this was the lead story on the BBC on 7 December: “Depression targeted in government policy shift”
“Depression or anxiety affect one in six people at any given time, but only a quarter of those is in treatment. It is not clear what, if any, funding will be available to back the plans.
Professor Louis Appleby, the government’s mental health tsar, said depression had a huge impact on society. He said: “We need to be better at preventing depression, better at treating it and better at reducing the impact of depression.” Professor Appleby said depression affected physical health, raising the risk of conditions such as stroke, and the likelihood that people would not seek treatment if they became ill. He said it was important to tackle the issue as early as possible, for instance, by providing the right atmosphere for children to thrive and build self esteem at school.” (My Bold type)
After Tracey watches the demolition of her school these are her closing words in the latest version of Death of a Nightingale that can soon be downloaded here:
“Remember the little white dandelion heads blowing away in the wind.
Well, a couple of weeks ago, in the next street to mine, a boy of twelve – I think he was a bit overweight – well, he tried to take his own life.
Thank you for coming to listen to my story.
Can I leave you with a really naughty thought to take home with you.
There are some little creatures that build and defend their own nests but they cannot move on and they cannot do anything else. That’s what they do. They build and defend their own nests. That’s all they do That’s all they’ve ever done. That’s all they’ll ever do. There is a name for them. “Termites”, yes “Termites.” If there are any of them here tonight, let them go to their beds and sleep peacefully … if they can.
Good night.”