The Government consultation on how to implement the English Baccalaureate (EBacc) closes on Friday 29 January 2016.
The EBacc proposal means every pupil taking GCSEs would have to study a minimum of seven GCSEs: English literature and English language, maths, double or triple science, a modern and/or ancient language, history and/or geography.
Currently the average number of GCSEs taken by pupils in England is eight. If these plans become a reality, there would be little room left for pupils to study creative subjects and the Arts, including music, could be squeezed out of schools altogether.
Making Music has been active in this campaign and co-signed the letter published by The Times on 6 January; has responded to the government consultation; written to its MP; and actively disseminated the petition via social media.
But what can YOU do, as a concerned individual? We know many of you are worried about music in schools now, mentioning this topic frequently in your contact with us.
Do three things this week!
- Respond to the government consultation
Whilst the consultation does not ask whether or not the EBacc is a good idea it still provides us with a vital opportunity to make our voices heard. If possible, write a personal response to the consultation. However, should you wish to use the Bacc for the Future campaign team’s outline template consultation response to inspire your own consultation response, please feel free to do so.
- Write to your MP
You can also write to your MP to express your concern. Again, the campaign team have produced a template letter you can use.
- Sign up to the campaign petition
www.baccforthefuture.com/sign-the-petition.html
And: pass on this information to others who may have similar concerns. Together, we have already once achieved a positive outcome on the Ebacc (2013) – surely we can do it again?
The Bacc for the Future campaign is coordinated by the Incorporated Society of Musicians (ISM) and is backed by 159 organisations from across the arts.
