Peter Inson

A long article in today’s Times deals with a dramatic rise in the divorce rate. It considers the age at which people marry, and the age at which they get divorced. It considers where they live and in what sort of accommodation; apparently outside lavatories are now a thing of the past. There is one …

Children ignored Read More »

At Barking Station in East London, in the late seventies, we were returning from an afternoon trip to the theatre, a group of my fifteen year-olds from Barking Abbey School. There we were greeted by members of the National Front, one at each of the staircases leading up from the platforms, handing out leaflets telling …

Could Marcus Rashford learn from this lad or should he simply go home? Read More »

We were reminded recently (By Libby Purves in The Times 10 May 2021) of the importance of young people finding the confidence to speak out in public. I once sent a reluctant reader to stand away from his classmates on the chancel steps in the school chapel, knowing that he would be expected to read out aloud. …

Confidence to speak out in public Read More »

At grammar school I spent Latin lessons reading the Farmer’s Weekly; aged forty-two I passed the subject at GCSE level and, by way of contrition for my adolescent shortcomings, I started a Latin club in two comprehensive schools.The Scottish Classics Group’s “Ecce Romani” is to be recommended. A former pupil of mine was asked at Sheffield University …

Latin for the underprivileged Read More »

In her Times comment piece on April, 13th Melanie Phillips wrote, “Correct English, it appears, is a tool of cultural oppression,” and reported one lecturer who saw notions of accuracy as based on unequal relations between teacher and taught.  Perhaps we should ask whether those advocating the abandoning of elitist academic accuracy would happily undergo surgery …

Correct English – cultural oppression? Read More »

In a recent report on the need to protect younger pupils in secondary schools  (The Times – Tuesday May 4th 2021) there are references to “behaviour management,” “educational technology training” and “controlled environments,” more appropriate for prisons rather than schools.Schools invite the trust of parents and with this trust goes the expectation that schools will keep children safe and …

Protecting younger pupils in secondary schools Read More »

Reported last week, the words of Tony Sewell, chairman of the government’s race review: “culturally African people transformed themselves.” On duty at my school’s front door I once refused admission to a young man who had not bothered to buy a ticket for a concert; he was black. He called me a racist and attempted …

Concerned for Others – beyond stereotypes Read More »

It is perhaps telling that on St George’s Day I encountered the House of Commons Prayer, composed by the Speaker in the sixteenth century, Among other things it speaks of members, laying aside all private interests, prejudices and partial affections …. the public welfare, peace and tranquility of the realm, and …. the uniting and knitting together …

HOUSE OF COMMONS PRAYER – a joke Read More »