LGA fails English comprehension exercise
Memorandum submitted by LGA (CS 23)
Thus it is our understanding that councils have a statutory duty to promote high standards, ensure fair access to educational opportunity and promote the fulfilment by every child of his or her educational potential. This applies whether or not children attend school.
And? So what? I’m fairly confident that government guidelines don’t generally use slang so ‘promote’ is unlikely to mean “to get possession of by doubtful means or by ingenuity” on this occasion. No, I suspect it means “to help or encourage to exist or flourish”, which is NOT the same as ‘ensuring’ or ‘enforcing’. You can promote something without controlling it, without monitoring it, in fact in the case of home education doing either of those things will achieve pretty much the opposite of encouraging it exist or flourish. As an excuse for more power this is a really, really lame argument and simply demonstrates how some people in local government need things explained very slowly and carefully, using only short, simple words.
Carlotta Said on February 6th, 2010 at 6:54 pm quote
Good point, though am quite sure they will never understand the difference, and therefore shouldn’t even try to promote this or that. It really isn’t up to them to appropriate parental responsibilities, even in the promotion of a standard of education. They can offer, they can advertise a great service, but that is as far as it should go, since it is up to children whether they use that service or not.