REGARDING your article on education (LET, July 28), I can draw a parallel from what happened at the school where I started teaching.

Each form teacher registered the students' attendance, collected meal money and tried to be a general guide and mentor, etc.

At the beginning of each week, staff had to present to the head a record of the work they hoped to achieve with each class.

Throughout each term homework was set by the subject teacher to a timetable and at the end of term an exam was also set and marked by the same teacher.

The results, with comments, were then entered on the term report, countersigned by the form teacher and head and sent to the respective parents.

The school had one secretary who coped amazingly well; but most test and exam papers etc., were hand-written and copied on a copying machine by individual staff.

So, considering everything, does the present day teacher really do more 'paper' work than we did?

From year-to-year the subject matter was continuous, so do we really need a national curriculum and 'key stages' etc., especially at junior level?

Finally, after raising a large amount of money for the privilege, Habergham is to be granted more than £500,000 of taxpayers' money to specialise in science and engineering.

My heart and pocket bleed for the erstwhile Towneley Technical High School, killed off by the equalitarian idiots -- and where does the College of Further Education come in, anyway?

To paraphrase: "It's one damn gimmick after another!"

ROY BRACEWELL, Ormerod Street, Worsthorne, Burnley.