Bookworm Room

The headline made it sound as if another British school was abandoning any pretense of teaching children about their own nation: “Brighton College drops history, geography and RE [whatever the heck RE is]“  The article’s body, though, tells a different and heartening story:

Lessons in the “story of our land” will replace history, geography and religious education at a leading independent school.

Richard Cairns, the Headmaster of Brighton College, told a conference there that he wanted to inspire children and teach how Britain influenced the world. He likened the current teaching of history to a car journey that stopped on only three occasions — 19th-century women, the First World War and Nazi Germany — and said that there was too much focus on other cultures. “We should stop being ashamed of being British,” he said. “We should be less embarrassed about our past.” His focus is at odds with the state sector’s national curriculum, which has been seen as dominated by a social agenda.

[snip]

Mr Cairns said: “Our poor children have no sense of their history and no sense of the historical landscape that surrounds them. The majority of white British children have lost touch with their own culture. We’re hesitant about talking about the past because people did things we wouldn’t do today. Slavery existed — that was wrong — but Britain had an important role in the development of the world and children should be aware our culture spread across the globe, for good or ill.”

Yay, Mr. Cairns!  I wish there were more like you.

Trackback URI | Comments RSS