32 OPINION

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Eastern Daily Press, Friday, September 30, 2011

OPINION&COMMENT
READERS PICTURE OF THE DAY
No 43,682

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Ferdinand puts ball in his own net

Page Four

The phone-hacking allegations and continuing inquiries have made these very difficult times for the press. But a battered and beleaguered industry was given something to cheer about yesterday when the High Court rejected the case of England and Manchester United footballer Rio Ferdinand against MGN Ltd over a Sunday Mirror article about his private life. The paper ran an article about an alleged affair between him and designer Carly Storey having paid her 16,000 for her account and asked whether he was the reformed character he claimed to be, and whether he had been an appropriate appointment to the position of England captain. He asserted that the article violated his right of privacy under article eight of the Human Rights Act, and asked for 50,000 damages and a worldwide gagging order. MGN defended itself using the right of freedom of expression under article 10 of the same legislation. Mr Ferdinand is not a politician, let alone one elected on a traditional family values ticket. Some and perhaps many these days will contend that what a footballer gets up to in his private life is his business, and that there can be no public interest (a very different concept from what is interesting to the public) in revealing it. Others will counter that if a football star is living a life very different from a carefully constructed image, he can reasonably be accused of hypocrisy, and that the England captain is expected to be an upholder of good values off the pitch as well as on. There are inevitably many fine lines and grey areas in such matters. But if there is to be error of judgment in dealing with celebrities seeking to gag, it should be on the side of disclosure and transparency Like his team. mate Ryan Giggs, Mr Ferdinand now has double cause for regret. A free press can behave very badly, and the case for selfregulation has been seriously weakened by the hacking scandal. But it remains far better than the alternative.

MARTIN FRY EYES FRONT: These images were shot this week in a field in Loddon. The heifers were extremely nosy, said Martin, and want to

know why this idiot is laying on the floor taking their pictures. They are for possible use in Calendars & greetings cards. If you would like to submit a picture for this feature, visit our website www.edp24.co.uk and click on the Contact Us tab for details.

Power play

Page eight

Most people have a much-loved relative who lives by the philosophy waste not, want not, with everything recycled or adapted. They will surely be united in their admiration of the Norwich Biorefinery project that could turn millions of tonnes of waste material into power for our nation. Projects such as this one are essential if we are ever to embrace sustainable energy creation. The fact that the idea has been both planted and nurtured by experts in Norfolk gives another clue to the remarkable work that is carried out here. Nelsons County is far from a rural backwater. It supports some remarkable research-based organisations and professionals whose expertise and invention promise to have a positive impact on billions of lives. Experience tells us that we must be careful to not get carried away by this promising development. The scheme is a long way from realising its potential. And that potential does not promise to completely end our need to use the dwindling stocks of fossil fuels and deal with the effects of their harmful emissions. But it is a significant stride in the right direction.

Baccalaureate helps us give it our best shot

More intemperate and unconstructive comments have been made about the new English Baccalaureate than there are schools in Britain. Why do we always debate change endlessly rather than offering solutions? Our Academy culture is Yes, we can, turn whatever we can into opportunities for students. The Ebacc, which simply acknowledges good grades in English, maths, the sciences, a language and a humanities subject, has spurred us into thinking about what we teach. We have written a brilliant new curriculum embracing astronomy, law, classical Greek and Mandarin. Music, art and performing arts have all been strengthened. Ill get to vocational in a minute. There is much discussion up and down the country about ways to restore respect and prestige to our exam system and the Ebacc is a step forward. It is one part of the progressive, flexible exam system I would like to see develop. The main game remains the GCSE 5 A*-Cs including English and maths. The Adonis reforms of adding English and maths were right. Look at the figures. Last summer, 56pc of students achieved 5 A*-Cs, once you take out equivalents, sport, travel and tourism, etc. Thats very close to the 53.4pc who achieved 5 A*-Cs including English and maths. In other words, English and maths are a good indicator of the right academic standard. Flaws in 5 A*-Cs including English and maths are common currency. I, for one, cant see the logic in GCSE gradings having three pass grades and five fail grades.

RACHEL DE SOUZA

Ruff justice

Page Three

He couldve been a contender. But poor Jack Sprats life as a greyhound sprint king was soon ended when his near-blindness made it impossible for him to chase the rabbit. But the end of a promising race career does not, thankfully, mean the end of Jacks life. The Dogs Trust in Snetterton has done what it does best and given Jack a second chance. He sounds like a fine canine, and would make a great pet as long as nobody tries to keep up with him on his daily runs. It is only a shame that there is not an animal paralympics for Jack to enter. He would surely be the star of the show.

BIBLE VERSE
I wont lay anything heavy or ill-fitting on you. Keep company with me and youll learn to live freely and lightly. Matthew 11:30

Some say the emphasis on the percentage passing hides the numbers who fail. Sorry, theres a danger in that statement of accepting mediocrity . Every student at Victory is capable of achieving 5 A*-Cs including English and maths. We never give up on any student. Weve achieved 96pc A*-C English in our first year and that is with existing staff. With a lot of hard work and motivation, much can be achieved. Victory is absolutely committed to a relentless focus on best possible results. As part of a flexible mix, I would also choose to introduce iGCSEs for my most able students, a better and more vigorous preparation for A-Levels, particularly in mathematics, and university than the normal GSCE route. Let me illustrate the importance of flexibility with two examples from my Academies. Presilia was one of six daughters of a family without English who didnt work. She approached me one day. Miss, I would like to go into politics. We did it the Academy way, put her on the most

rigorous courses, took her to Parliament with our local MP, ran a campaign to get her elected as Youth MP. Now she has a place at Oxford. Luke, our Victory head boy, has studied engineering as well as his science, maths and English. In a strong field of 300, he managed to secure one of two apprenticeships with British Sugar. Those are two contrasting examples of Academy success. We do need a range of demanding craft and trade courses for 14-19s, developed in conjunction with industry and commerce. We also need real vocational qualifications, VRQs and NVQs, in the secondary sector. I opened a fully-professional beauty therapy salon in Ormiston Victory Academy last year that runs as a business, preparing our students to be work-ready . Technical academies or schools must play a key role in this vocational side; we must grasp the nettle and begin opening them and opening up re a dy - fo r- wo rk opportunities for students in the betterperforming schools. The government has thrown the pebble into the pool with Ebacc; all creatures, great and small, are circling and snapping. A polarisation of views is not helpful to our children. A flexible, progressive exam system, open to new ideas and better ways, is what our children, our education system and our economy need. By the governments new measure of international comparison, we will be firing our best shots at the competition with such a system. Rachel de Souza is principal of Ormiston Victory Academy, Costessey.