I read with interest a story recently about a father who is attempting to sue his son’s private school for £125,000 after he achieved just one GCSE. On the surface at least, it sounds rather concerning. What interested me though, were the comments of the father who was emphatic about the blame lying firmly with the school, rather than with his boy.

There is a popular meme shared by my teacher friends on social media. It is a cartoon, split into two time periods. In the first section, a teacher holds up a paper marked with a large red “F” and, scowling at the child and parents demands “explain this” with pointed finger accusingly directed at the cowering student. In the second, little Bobby stands smugly, bolstered by his glaring parents. The father points his finger at the teacher who wears a look of “please, just let the ground swallow me up” as he demands “you explain this”.

The sketch may be a simplification but it is certainly no fiction that there is an expectation on teachers to ensure that students achieve what they are capable of. It would be foolish to pretend that this has not always been something expected of educators.