First week back in schools

I've just spent the first week for 2013 back in schools. A few things have popped into my mind this week as I've been dealing with the setting up of programmes and stuff.....

The children are genuinely excited to see their music teacher. They are keen to get back into it. The kids I see are not the sort that are polite and do things because they think they should. They want what I can give them. So why isn't this stuff in every school? Why doesn't every school have a qualified music teacher? I know that there would be far less behavioural problems in schools if there were more creative arts taught in an engaging way. If kids had a twice-weekly music lesson, and twice-weekly art lesson, and maybe also some drama classes, how good would that be? We'd come up with a nation of creative thinkers. Kids with low self-esteem would blossom. Kids would want to come to school. I know this first-hand. I've seen these things happen, just with the little bit of music teaching I do.

I also keep reading reports about 'equality in education'. This is total and utter rubbish. Equality in education will never, never be achieved until every fee-paying school is closed. This won't kill society. It's worked in Finland. Equality in schools will never be achieved until teachers are trained better, paid more, and respected more. No government can fix this in the short term, and certainly not by some report. Have these government people seen some of these schools? Classrooms without heaters, or fans? With awful desks? And then gone to other schools with indoor swimming pools, shooting ranges and grand pianos all over the place? I mean, really......

I'm now climbing off my soapbox and going to eat some dinner.....