A HEADTEACHER has hit out at the Government over the future of teaching.

Simon Spiers, of King Alfred’s School, Wantage, said the Government’s planned changes to education were frustrating.

He added his school was now looking to become an academy to steer clear of the alterations.

Secretary of State for Education Michael Gove wants to change the curriculum, scrap modular exams and give teachers more power to control unruly pupils.

But Mr Spiers said: “He will significantly narrow down the curriculum and opportunities for young people. We will go back to an education based in the 1960s.

“For the most able there will be no difference, but for everybody else the activities and opportunities will be significantly scaled back and we are very concerned about that.”

In a letter to Mr Gove, he said: “This ‘traditional’ approach to academic study caused huge numbers of students to leave school with feelings of failure, a lack of self-esteem and unable to find work after years in an education system which favoured bright students.”

He said the plan to abolish modular exams was “setting people up to fail as students would not get a second chance.

And he complained about Mr Gove’s belief that teachers should have more power to deal with badly behaved students.

He said: “My concern is you are painting a picture which is simply incorrect for many schools in England.

“The result is many parents will start to believe their children are being educated in unruly classrooms with poorly trained and badly educated teachers where heads are frustrated because they feel they cannot take action.”

In last month’s announcement about the changes, Mr Gove also suggested axing the £162m Schools Sports Partnership, which is made up of 450 joint initiatives between primary, secondary and specialist state schools to increase sporting opportunities for children But after a public backlash, the Government said it would provide £47m to keep the scheme running until the summer.

It also pledged £65m to promote competitive sports in schools over the next three years.

Carolyn Murphy, Vale Schools Sports Partnership development manager, said the scheme made sport and competition accessible to all.

She said: “We are not going to get them away from their computers unless they are offered a variety of sports.”

But Department for Education spokesman Giles Mason said the changes would make England a top nation for education.

He said: “As a nation we have lost ground to other countries in recent international tests in terms of literacy, mathematics and science.”

Becoming an academy would give King Alfred’s the freedom to set its own budget and curriculum Consultation on academy status began on Thursday, December 16, and the 20 governors will meet on Tuesday, January 25, to make a final decision.