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| Gove's claims of teenagers' ignorance harpooned by retired teacher | Gove's claims of teenagers' ignorance harpooned by retired teacher |
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| The education secretary, Michael Gove, has come under fire for citing PR-commissioned opinion polls as evidence of teenagers' ignorance of important historical events. | |
| In a Mail on Sunday article published in March, Gove said: "Survey after survey has revealed disturbing historical ignorance, with one teenager in five believing Winston Churchill was a fictional character while 58% think Sherlock Holmes was real." | In a Mail on Sunday article published in March, Gove said: "Survey after survey has revealed disturbing historical ignorance, with one teenager in five believing Winston Churchill was a fictional character while 58% think Sherlock Holmes was real." |
| This prompted Janet Downs, who describes herself as a grandparent and retired teacher, to send a Freedom of Information (FOI) request to the Department for Education asking for the evidence to support Gove's claim. | This prompted Janet Downs, who describes herself as a grandparent and retired teacher, to send a Freedom of Information (FOI) request to the Department for Education asking for the evidence to support Gove's claim. |
| Three weeks later, the department wrote back to say "unfortunately, I am not able to provide you with the details of the survey as it was commissioned and conducted by UKTV Gold". | Three weeks later, the department wrote back to say "unfortunately, I am not able to provide you with the details of the survey as it was commissioned and conducted by UKTV Gold". |
| The survey, which dated from 2008 and had been written up by several newspapers, was released alongside a quote from the channel director saying it showed the strength of the UK's fiction. The statistics on teenagers were a subgroup from a poll surveying all UK adults. | The survey, which dated from 2008 and had been written up by several newspapers, was released alongside a quote from the channel director saying it showed the strength of the UK's fiction. The statistics on teenagers were a subgroup from a poll surveying all UK adults. |
| Downs then further challenged the department, asking why Gove's article had referred to "survey after survey" if only one poll had been used. | Downs then further challenged the department, asking why Gove's article had referred to "survey after survey" if only one poll had been used. |
| After another four weeks, she received a response detailing "the other survey's [sic] the secretary of state referred to". | After another four weeks, she received a response detailing "the other survey's [sic] the secretary of state referred to". |
| These included a poll commissioned by Premier Inn, which used its research to suggest historical ignorance was something that "can be rectified by visiting all the fantastic landmarks and places of interest the UK has to offer", and an article in the London Mums magazine. | These included a poll commissioned by Premier Inn, which used its research to suggest historical ignorance was something that "can be rectified by visiting all the fantastic landmarks and places of interest the UK has to offer", and an article in the London Mums magazine. |
| None of the pieces included links to the original research, and none of the articles cited stated whether the research was commissioned by professional polling companies, or met the standards of the British Polling Council. | None of the pieces included links to the original research, and none of the articles cited stated whether the research was commissioned by professional polling companies, or met the standards of the British Polling Council. |
| The response to the FOI request also cited research commissioned by the Conservative peer Lord Ashcroft and a poll commissioned by the Sea Cadets, though it linked to a newspaper writeup rather than the original research. | |
| Labour's shadow education minister Tristram Hunt said: "Any good historian will tell you that it is critical to base your analysis on multiple, credible sources. Before he rushes to judgment about young people, Michael Gove should make sure he has researched the evidence thoroughly. Otherwise he risks coming across as Mr Sloppy." | Labour's shadow education minister Tristram Hunt said: "Any good historian will tell you that it is critical to base your analysis on multiple, credible sources. Before he rushes to judgment about young people, Michael Gove should make sure he has researched the evidence thoroughly. Otherwise he risks coming across as Mr Sloppy." |
| Dozens of people have taken to Twitter to criticise the sourcing for Gove's claims as weak, including the poet and former children's laureate Michael Rosen, who tweeted: "When Gove said: 'Survey after survey' showed teenagers' historical ignorance he meant to say: 'I'm making this up.'" | |
| Establishing the quality of different types of evidence, and of different source material, is a core component of the national curriculum for history. | Establishing the quality of different types of evidence, and of different source material, is a core component of the national curriculum for history. |
| The current history curriculum for 11- to 14-year-olds states students should learn to "evaluate the sources used in order to reach reasoned conclusions", while the draft curriculum for history from 2014 notes students should "understand how evidence is used rigorously to make historical claims". | |
| The Department for Education had not responded to a request for comment by the time of publication. |