NotSheep

There’s been a lot of talk this week about the government’s proposal of a “National Curriculum” for children aged birth to three years. BBC News Education Correspondent, Mike Baker, writes that “this does not amount to extending the national curriculum to babies. It is simply a requirement on childcare providers not to leave children sitting in front of the television but to ensure they are talked to, stimulated, and encouraged to express themselves and to play.”

Government shouldn’t be pretending it can offer any guarantees about childcare, because it can’t. And it shouldn’t. Part of parental responsibility is making sure that your children are well cared-for when you’re not there. The registration system offers a false sense of security, and this proposal will increase that, while doing nothing to improve the quality of care. Good childminders already ensure children are talked to, stimulated, and encouraged to express themselves and to play - and they don’t need the extra paperwork.

But I’m not so sure it’s the thought of babies doing worksheets which has caused the backlash.

Mr Baker goes on to say: “I suspect most parents, and carers, would welcome that and would hardly regard it as a Big Brother exercise.”

Maybe, in itself, a “toddler curriculum” doesn’t smack of Big Brother, but I think a lot of people are realising the extent of the control of government of various aspects of their lives, and are starting to resent it. It’s this, rather than the “toddler curriculum” itself, that is getting under people’s skin. I think people are starting to object to being told how to manage more and more of their lives. They’re feeling that the government doesn’t trust them. Parents don’t want to be told what’s best for their children.

So while those who’ve written this week to criticise the proposals are focussing on the idea of testing very young children, I think it’s the general too-much-control feeling that’s triggering their feelings about the whole issue.

If so, that’s a good thing. If the government has shot itself in the foot with these proposals, and the result is that the population as a whole wakes up a bit more and starts asking more questions about exactly how much government intrusion into people’s lives is justified, that, in my opinion, it’s a great result.