Pathological Assessment

Sue would have made a model Nazi.
I said so at the time and more than once.
Small, slight and mousey, but with a
glint in her eye when it came to
targets, assessment, performance,
excellence in cities, performing
people, rationalizing, downsizing
upsiding, capsizing..

She liked to refer to DOG - division
officers group - for budgets, she knew
PUD: predictable unpredictable
discretionary.

She had two cats. She ought to have
had a large dog, but she did have a
large bloke who padded around after
her.

Now she is dead - done, dusted -
and I hope when she died she felt
she had met all her targets -
no scrub that last line - I hope she
had found a little fun and recognition
and love - even from the large bloke
who padded around after her.

And it is not just young people who
are turned off education by too much
emphasis on targets and assessment -

and Sue did occasionally smile - the
half-real one not the fixed one - and when
I left she gave me a little smiley
face - not on the official reference
you understand - just on a hand
written compliment slip.

And it is not just young people who
are turned off education by too much
emphasis on targets and assessment.

People need names not numbers
People need names not numbers
People need names not numbers