I live and work in the capital city of Scotland, Edinburgh, which at various times has been called the Athens of the North and the Aids capital of Europe. Perhaps a bit of hyperbole in both these opposing titles, I have seen one or two Greek colonnades and have noticed the presence of a few dubious looking massage parlors.
But may I suggest another title for my adopted city: the educational zenith of Britain.
The statistics are depressing: 93% of all British children are educated by State-funded schools and the remaining 7% go through the independent fee-paying schools. In socialist-minded Scotland, the independent figure is worse at just under 4%.
In Edinburgh, the proportion of secondary children (i.e. aged 12 upwards) educated in private fee-paying schools is 24%. There are 12 such private schools in a city of 440,000 people. The Scottish trend is bucked by 20 percentage points.
So, by what anti-statist wizardry do we come upon this happy estate? Was Edinburgh once declared a State-free zone? No, the presence of Edinburgh City Council and their crackpot political correctness disproves that theory (Did I say that said council has now threatened employees with disciplinary procedures if they invite some colleagues to private functions but exclude others? Something to do with "inclusivism" and it reeks of control freakery – but that is an article in its own right.)
The answer lies in Edinburgh's history. While Glasgow in the West was regarded as an industrial city with its shipyards and factories, Edinburgh in the East evolved to be the city of administration with its banking and professional classes. In fact, this is still reflected today in the various major financial headquarters and the growing IT sector along with the famous Edinburgh International Festival to satiate the cultural demands of that class of people. In other words, Edinburgh is a prosperous city with an average salary that is 12% above the national average and 18% above that in the west and south of the city. So, Edinburghers have some money to throw around and education seems to be a favorite target.
The remarkable thing is that the parents could simply send their children to the local State school and get it all for "free" instead of paying around 5000 per annum on private fees per child. An attractive bait one would think, until the examination results are compared. The benchmark of the minimum required results to gain a university places gives an average success rate for the State schools in Edinburgh of 21% whilst the average for the Edinburgh private schools is more like 80% and even the worst private school is better than the best State school by a margin of 12% (better buck up its act!).
So, I take my hat off to them. In fact, I will do more. I will send my cheque off to them – my eldest child starts private schooling in August. That in itself is a tale. We have 12 private schools compressed into an area of 20 square miles. Like the gravitational collapse of a star, the close proximity of each just heats up the price competition more and more and down come the fees. Contrast this with the rarefied atmosphere of scattered private schools in England where 17000 per annum is not unheard of.
Of course, such a thing savors of death in the socialist nostril (which one I know not). It is regarded as divisive, elitist, and triumphalist. It is nothing of the kind. It is an encouraging thing to see free market forces rise up so markedly despite the customer having to effectively pay twice for their child's education through taxation and then private fees. The basic fact is that the consumable product of state education has passed its sell-by date and consumers wants a better product. The annually published examination league tables are the carrot and so much so that many have agitated for an end to their 10-year life. This is because it is argued that they do not truly reflect the quality of the schools listed. This is trumpeted for two reasons:
- Exams do not reflect how good a school is at making socially skilled citizens.
- Private schools use entrance exams to solve the problem of over-subscription and hence get the cream of the Edinburgh crop.
For good citizenship, read "inclusivist social engineering." State schools now are moving towards citizenship subjects, which we must interpret as indoctrinating the "Statist status quo." Meanwhile, indiscipline and terrorization by delinquent pupils continues apace in such schools (so much so that strike action has been threatened by the teachers). Frankly, the parents, who can afford it, do not wish their children to be disrupted, assaulted, or offered drugs by such peers, and have moved out of the public sector. Many call it elitism; I call it common sense.
The second point is more reasonable but the veneer is easily scratched. Admittedly, the results of private schools are not skewed by the under-achievers that State schools are forced to take on. But, firstly, the benchmark results mentioned above for 16-17 year olds would not include a lot of deadwood that would have given up long before then.
Secondly, private schools do not have first choice on every bright kid in Edinburgh, most of them still go to State schools either because their parents will not pay or cannot pay the private fees.
Thirdly, the teacher to pupil ratio is lower in private schools with an average of 9 secondary school pupils to one teacher as opposed to 13 in the public sector. This has been proven to improve a child's educational chances.
Finally, and perhaps most importantly, there is the work ethic associated with private education. The expectation of the parents is higher and they and the child are thus motivated. This is seen to be worked out in such things as more homework than the State schools and parents who make sure it is done!
The school and teachers themselves are competing for customers and are also motivated to not see a child go to another private school. Thus, we see free market forces come into play as parents and pupils who do not share the united goal are asked to go and efficiency is increased. An end of year report is an essential tool in the company brochure.
The total, driving force which moves towards the goal of prime, educated children is completely different to that of the state school which passively receives its subsidies no matter how bad it is and is subject not to the laissez-faire judgement of paying customers but rather to the infrequent visits by school inspectors. Contrast this also with the State school teachers unions and their determination not to see incompetent colleagues sacked.
Thus, we see the private schools of Edinburgh armed with the sword of free market innovation and efficiency deflecting the arrows of the State with the shield of top-ranking exam results. Not in our lifetimes, but perhaps in the lifetime of our children, that sword will eventually deal a blow from which the State school will never recover.
March 26, 2001
Roland Watson writes from Edinburgh, Scotland.
