Oral question asked in the House of Lords, by Baroness Walmsley (Liberal Democrat). It was answered on Wednesday, 4 July 2007.

Schools: Boys’ GCSE Results

Question: My Lords, is the Minister aware that I have not been placed yet? The Minister is right to concentrate on literacy, and of course boys very often lag behind girls. However, does he accept that the national literacy scheme, welcome though it is, leaves some students behind, and that the reading recovery programme and other initiatives he mentioned are very expensive, because they are one-to-one? Will the Government now do some research on the excellent computer-based diagnostic literacy programmes which are available regarding their effectiveness in helping children who for one reason or another are not learning to read and getting their reading up to the level required to really benefit from the materials that are put before them when they go to secondary school?

Answer: My Lords, first, may I first say how devastated I am that the noble Baroness has not joined us on this side along with many of her noble friends? There are many more advisory posts that we could create. Indeed, I sense that she could fill one very well on the use of computer techniques in the teaching of literacy. I shall take her comments very closely to heart and see that we do the assessment that she called for.

Secondary information