14th October 2009 9:00
By Blue Tutors
Tesco's CEO, Sir Terry Leahy, expressed concern that standards in too many schools are "woefully low," according to the Times. The government has refuted this; a spokesperson has claimed that "Standards have never been higher in our secondary schools."
Sir Terry Leahy, an education advisor for the prime minister, has also said "From my perspective there are too many agencies and bodies, often issuing reams of instructions to teachers, who then get distracted from the task at hand: teaching children."
Mike Baker, of the BBC, reported in an article earlier this year that there has been a decline in the rigid control our schools and government have over our teachers, resulting in a movement towards more autonomous lessons.
It certainly appears that there has been some progress towards a greater flexibility for teachers to choose their own teaching methods, especially with the recent abandonment of the national test for 14 year-olds, but it seems unlikely that this shift will affect the continued and strong demand for private tutors.