Education
Protecting
the
Island’s
future
p ro s p e r i t y. . . .
‘We must always be
aware to address the
needs of a child and
not an agenda’
n Simon Richardson talks to
Deputy Director of Education - Margaret Britton
S
uccessive governments in the UK
and elsewhere are waking up to
the simple truth that throwing
money at a problem doesn’t
necessarily make it go away. In the case of
education Tony Blair made it his personal
crusade to improve both standards and
infrastructure. To some extent he has
succeeded, but the correlation between the
scale of the improvements and the
additional funds they have required has –
it could be argued – raised more questions
than answers.
In funding terms the Isle of Man is
something of an educational nirvana,
but is the undoubted commitment in
budgetary terms matched by the end
product we receive?
Deputy Director of Education
Margaret Britton believes there is always
room for improvement and is working
with colleagues to push ahead with a raft
of initiatives aimed at introducing greater
accountability, flexibility and plain
common sense into the system.
Born at St John’s and brought up in
Douglas Margaret attended Murray’s
Road School before progressing to Park
Road and Douglas High School for Girls.
After teacher training in the UK she spent
the next 34 years there encountering the
system at the sharp end as a head teacher
in Leeds, as an educational advisor, a selfemployed OFSTED Inspector and latterly
as a consultant for individual schools: ‘I
had felt no deep desire to return to the
Isle of Man, but when I saw a Senior
Advisor Post had become available within
the Department of Education, it suddenly
became important to me’, explained
Margaret.
Within the Department’s framework
for improvement a root and branch
assessment of services, systems and
procedures has been carried out and new
strategies are being embedded. Several
changes are beginning to bear fruit.
One of the most significant initiatives
was the development of a team of
advisors with the specific purpose of
monitoring – in a structured way – the
quality of the education being delivered
in local schools. At the heart of the
strategy was the creation of a self review
and evaluation framework for the
schools: ‘A ‘link advisor’ has
responsibility for a number of schools
and makes regular visits to monitor
standards. Where the schools need
support the advisor and colleagues in the
Education Improvement Service can
offer it, but they are also expected to
challenge schools to identify areas for
improvement’, explained Margaret.
Her promotion to the post of Deputy
Director of Education came about 18
months ago and within her remit is
responsibility for the Educational
Improvement Service, Youth and
Community Services, The Careers
Advisory Service and the Special Needs
and Psychology Services.
‘The Department of Education
recognises the importance of seeking
objective views through external reviews
and inspections. The most recent reports
highlight the strengths and weaknesses of
the Special Needs and Psychology Service
and of the Careers Service’. Margaret
says that ‘the reports recognise the skills
and commitment of people within the
services but also give the Department a
very useful agenda for development. The
aim is to ensure that children and young
people get the best opportunities for
learning that the Island can offer’.
Margaret Britton’s underlying
philosophies have striking parallels with
those of the Island’s new Education
Minister Anne Craine. Both are
committed to developing a system which
balances the need for academic
excellence with the requirement to
properly serve young people whose
talents are in other areas: ‘Not everybody
will go, or want to go to University,
therefore we must look at vocational
skills and to producing well-rounded
young people equipped with the life skills
they require’, said Margaret.
Developing teachers to meet the needs
of our schoolchildren is another area that
has fallen within Margaret’s areas of
responsibility. Under another new
initiative second year teachers who have a
desire to progress to management roles as
Deputy Heads or Heads, are encouraged
to embark on a leadership and
management programme made up of five
distinct stages. All the training is handled
by other teachers, heads or advisors
within the Department of Education
service. The programme has been in place
for two years and already the knowledge
and skills of people applying for Deputy
Headships from within the Manx system
is noticeably different. ‘They are more
confident and better prepared for
promotion. We hope that in another 3 or
4 years these people will be applying for
headships’, said Margaret.
Running parallel with the succession
training initiative is a programme for the
professional development of teachers.
Each year the programme focuses on
areas identified by the Education
Improvement Service as needing support
and development.
The support for staff is a major part of
the Department’s reform package. It also
involves putting structures in place for
Education Support Officers to attain
qualifications. For example, a Higher
Level Teacher Award (HLTA) has been
introduced at the IOM College. In
response to changes to teacher training
practice in the UK, where it’s now
stipulated that to work in England
teachers must carry out a minimum 51 per
cent of their teaching within the English
system, the Department of Education has
developed ‘Manx Qualified Teacher
Status.’ Those who enter into the local
programme will be fully qualified, at the
end of the course, to teach in the Island’s
schools.’.
‘The much-vaunted ‘Freedom to
Flourish’ slogan adopted by the Manx
Government was already alive and kicking
within the new curriculum framework
being developed by the Department of
Education. It allows schools greater
freedom to teach the curriculum as
appropriate to their schools within the
constraints of their legal requirements’.
At the hub of the new approach is the
personal and social development of the
children rather than just academic
subjects. The children leaving school
go further...
be nearer
should have the confidence to solve
problems, work as a member of a team
or alternatively be equipped to become a
self-starter. To this end, the Department
of Education is working much more
closely with the DHSS, the Department of
Trade and Industry and the Department
of Home Affairs: ‘It is also important that
those within the system know why we are
asking them to do things and to change.
What we must avoid is an ‘us and them’
scenario’, said Margaret.
‘We have made some great steps
forward, and are adding to our
preparedness to be a centre of educational
excellence. We have the potential to be so
and have high aspirations to address the
needs of all children’.
The concept of making young people
think about the world in which they will
live and work, is nurtured by projects
such as the Junior Achievement
Programme (formerly Young Enterprise).
Margaret Britton recently travelled to
Norway where entrepreneurship training
is a fundamental part of the school
curriculum. Programmes designed for
youngsters from five upwards encourage
them to think broadly and deeply: ‘I
found it interesting and thought that
maybe we should be weaving
entrepreneurship into our citizenship
teaching’, she explained. The idea has
been viewed positively by the
Department and is likely to be developed
in the near future as an element of the
Department’s contribution to ensuring
the economic success of the Island.
Despite approaching the age of 60
Margaret Britton has no plans to retire:
‘There is much still to do. I’ve already
been granted a one year extension to my
contract and I want to see things further
along the way. There are always exciting
things happening in education….after all
what would be more exciting than
having a positive influence on the
learning opportunities for children and
young people!’.
…and with our new
prospectus out now, there’s
never been a better time to
consider continuing your
education on-Island, at the
International Business School.
To request your copy, call
Lacey on 693709 or email
[email protected]
www.ibs.ac.im
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