Comprehensives, anyone?

Fascinating article by Kate Pickett in today's Education section of The Guardian, making the case for comprehensive education. Remember that? Everyone's kids get a decent education, and it isn't all about competition or selection.  Treated in the UK as a kind of wild dream, there are places which actually manage this quite efficiently (Finland, for instance) and the long-term gains are substantial - some can even be measured in test scores, though they don't go in for the luidicrous kind of testing we currently inflict on our kids. Pcikett's point is that there's good evidence for this substantial change. But she's only raising the possibility because Jeremy Corbyn sees this as a crucial part of social justice - and that hasn't been true of any Labour leader for more than 20 years. I remember. I saw it happen. And this is so exciting, even as a remote possibility. (No, I don't underestimate the massive forces of privilege and self-interest standing in the way, but it's still good to see the case made.)