During the Conservative Party Conference in October 2023, the headlines were understandably dominated by the controversial decision to cancel the northern leg of HS2. However, the proposed introduction of the Advanced British Standard, which was announced by Rishi Sunak during his conference speech is no less interesting and could have a profound impact on the English education system. But what could this mean for vision impaired young people?
Regardless of your political persuasion, Rishi Sunak’s assertion that “in our country, no child should be left behind” is one that everybody would agree with. Yet if we assume that sustainable employment is one’s ultimate destination, the much used statistic of one in every four vision impaired people of working age being in sustainable employment suggests that the current education system is leaving plenty of young people with this disability behind.
If the ABS lives up to its billing in this respect, it would be hard to argue against such a change. However, the devil is always in the detail and there are a few questions that need answering in order to ensure that vision impaired young people do not end up being even more disadvantaged than they already appear to be.
- How will the government ensure that Maths, which young people will be expected to study in some form up to the age of 18, is accessible for vision impaired young people? Nobody would dispute that Maths is crucial. But there are aspects of the subject, such as Geometry, which can be extremely challenging, particularly if you are born with little to no useful vision. Should a young person’s ability to gain a national qualification be defined by the accessibility of a given subject?
- In his speech, Mr Sunak claimed that 16 to 19-year-olds spent “around a third less time in the classroom than some of our competitors” and that this had to change. Vision impaired people need more time, particularly where a subject is challenging or content-heavy, to master information and concepts than their sighted counterparts. So less time in the classroom, particularly at A-level, is actually helpful. If students are to spend more time in the classroom, will those who need it be given the required additional time in their timetables?
- If we are serious about levelling up, specialist provision cannot be a postcode lottery. What steps will be taken to ensure that vision impaired students taking the ABS have EHCP’s that are truly fit for purpose?