Sir, I am appalled that David Cameron has announced he will improve education by not allowing graduates with a third-class degree to become teachers (“Cameron starts with the Finnish in drive to make teaching a job just for the elite”, Jan 19). There is no correlation between academic excellence and teaching ability. Indeed, in the ability to understand and deal with the difficulties some pupils have in grasping a subject, the opposite may be true.
I have a third-class degree from night school. I have taught in RAF Singapore, where I was a senior teacher at 26, and in Hackney, where I established discipline in a school with great difficulties. In Highgate I sent several pupils to Oxbridge for the first time.
I became the head teacher of the Jews’ Free School, and it became one of the best comprehensives in the country. I have been happy to have the respect of my colleagues, and the gratitude of my pupils and their parents. I was appointed OBE for services to education.
All through my career I met Oxbridge firsts who were brilliant academics, but had no idea how to teach.
If Mr Cameron had his way, I should never have been allowed to teach. I am proud enough to say that would have been not only a great loss for me, but also for all the pupils I taught so happily for more than 40 years.
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Like many others in my profession, I have learnt to dread the invasion of education by politicians of all colours who know nothing about education, schools or teaching.
Jo Wagerman
Head Teacher, JFS (1985-93)
London NW4
Sir, In the late 1940s I qualified in civil enginering at Loughborough College. Our first-year maths lecturer had a pass degree from Manchester. He was a brilliant teacher — clear small steps at a time, which we had no difficulty in following. All passed the important year-end exam with ease.
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The following year our lecturer had a double first from Cambridge. Every lecture started with “It is obvious that . . .”, followed on the board by some excruciatingly difficult equation. We had one natural mathematician in the class but the rest were nowhere and together failed the second year-end exam, which fortunately was not mandatory.
So I am sorry but I find Mr Cameron’s proposals no more than just another gimmick. Anything for a headline, eh, Mr Cameron?
E. G. Brisley
Salcombe, Devon
Sir, While I applaud the Conservatives’ intention to raise the quality of teaching via better qualified teachers, I am concerned that they have taken a rather simplistic view of the situation. From my own experience as a pupil and subsequently as a parent and governor, I can safely say that qualifications are not everything.
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Quality of teaching is not always the product of a teacher’s qualifications. There are many well qualified teachers who should not be in our schools and others who have minimum qualifications who turn out to be excellent teachers. Sometimes it is a case of “be careful what you wish for”.
Ian Carman
Newport Pagnell, Bucks