The Priestley Lecture with speaker Sir Tim Brighouse

The English Schooling system - yesterday, today but especially tomorrow 

- a Baker's dozen of urgent reforms essential if we are to win
H.G. Wells race against catastrophe

The Priestley Lecture this year will be given by Sir Tim Brighouse who for ten years was Chief Education Officer in Birmingham. He will reflect on four ‘ages’ in English State funded schools since its inception through Forster’s Education Act 150 years ago and will argue that, with new found political agreement about the desirability of ‘equality of opportunity’, ‘equity’ and ‘social mobility’, it is essential to make changes to arrangements in and especially out of school which get in the way of our schooling system realising such ambitions.

His talk will suggest radical approaches to the curriculum, exams and testing, inspection, governance and much more. Controversially he will argue that ‘equity’, ‘equality of opportunity’ and ‘social mobility’ will remain a pipe-dream unless we tackle the elephant in the room which he describes as the ‘continuing conveyor belt of privilege which is the independent private/public school sector’. He will outline urgent reforms of the sector to make the playing fields of schooling more level for all our future citizens’ 

Programme

5.00 pm Introduction by Julie Allan
5.05 pm Lecture by Sir Tim Brighouse, 'The English Schooling system - yesterday, today but especially tomorrow'
5.50 pm Q&A to be hosted by Colin Diamond (Professor in Educational Leadership)
6.00 pm Event will close
6.00 pm Drinks reception for attendees

Biography

Sir Tim Brighouse retired from the post of London Commissioner for Schools in 2007 after 5 years of leading the London Challenge. Before that he spent 10 Years as Chief Education Officer in Birmingham and 10 years also as CEO in Oxfordshire separated by 4 years as Professor of Education in Keele University. Earlier he worked in a number of authorities and schools.  Since 2007 he has continued speaking and writing mainly about school improvement.

Cost: Free of Charge but online registration is essential 

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Sir Raymond Priestley was the Vice-Chancellor of The University of Birmingham from 1938 to 1952. He was a great supporter of the education of teachers and in 1959 it was decided to name this annual lecture after him.