Could do better – but how?

It would be illogical if there was not ministerial concern in reaction to indicators in recent weeks signalling that Welsh education is failing to deliver. However, establishing if there is going to be a plan of action - let alone what form it might take – is proving tougher to decipher than your average quadratic equations. So far all the signs from the One Wales government imply that we should expect more of the same only better. No word however on how this is going to happen – nor are there any proposals, realistic or otherwise, from opposition benches.

Leighton Andrews clearly had something to say at Wednesday’s debate regarding what he thought were the linkages that need to be developed and what he considers cul-de-sacs. Many would agree that “funding is not an alibi for poor performance” but no-one has so far proved that a £605 underspend per pupil in Wales compared with English schools is an immaterial factor either.

With the Assembly’s enterprise and learning committee expressing "deep concern" about the delivery of STEM subjects - science, technology, engineering and maths – and some harsh criticisms of reading age abilities among Welsh pupils, the challenge to achieve a turnaround is a considerable one. In agricultural terms, the objective for ministers is to establish a sustainable means of fattening the pig rather than a more sophisticated method of weighing it – or applying lipstick.

If this can be done without extra money or resources then not only will it be a landmark achievement for devolved government, it will also prompt physicists worldwide to annotate their works with the observation that Newton’s Laws do not apply in Wales. Or is that being just a bit too sceptical?