England and US ‘falling behind on shift to values-led education’

A prominent former British diplomat and foreign policy adviser has warned that England and the US risk losing their near “monopoly” over a reputation for quality higher education because they are failing to engage over how to instil values and curiosity in young people.

Tom Fletcher, now principal of Hertford College, Oxford, warned that the countries were lagging behind “new ways of teaching” as culture wars in both countries risked narrowing education in a blinkered and nationalist way.

“The UK, US and others have had almost a monopoly of the kitemark we put on quality education. I think that’s an area that’s under threat,” he told delegates at the British Council’s Going Global conference during a debate on knowledge diplomacy.

“I think that the UK has probably been far too complacent at the leadership level, at the political level, about the advantages where we still have them in higher education,” he warned.

One of the most “exciting” current shifts in higher education was a move to teach students not just knowledge, but also skills and values, he said, a focus on “global competence” being spearheaded by the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD).

This agenda is about teaching young people critical thinking, curiosity, emotional intelligence and empathy, explained Mr Fletcher, who previously a foreign policy adviser to several UK prime ministers.

It was about reclaiming the “original purpose of education” which is “to be good ancestors”, he told the conference.

But England and the US had failed to cooperate with the OECD in this push, he said, and in some cases had “basically fallen back on wanting to teach history as a list of the battles we happened to win”.

“There’s a danger that some of our own governments are holding us back from being part of that effort to teach our kids to be kind, curious and brave,” he said.

“It’s absolutely crucial that we get on board and ahead of that debate,” he added – but there was a risk that getting into an “identity and culture war” would stymie efforts to reform higher education.

david.matthews@timeshighereducation.com