>
>
> > I suspect that is the reason why imperial made a return to the
> > curriculum in the UK from the 90's (when I was at school in the 80's I
> > can't remember being taught any imperial, although I can imagine
> > teachers 'spoke it' so to speak).
>
> I believe the real reason was that those who were anti-EU successfully linked
> metrication in the
> public mind with European integration (despite the fact that metrication was
> initiated as a British
> Commonwealth wide project). Thus retention of these units became part of
> defending British culture,
> rather than ensuring that British people and industry could enjoy a better
> tool by which to conduct
> commerce. Pupils have since paid the price in terms of additional baggage
> they have to endure in
> schools.
>
It was under Blair that the current curriculum was formed - arguably the most
pro-EU and pro-metric government we've had since Heath in the early 70's
> By all means teach both sets of units if your desire is to end up with the
> mess of units used in the
> UK, but if you want to lay the foundations for a complete transition in the
> long run, international
> experience would suggest removing them completely from the classroom as soon
> as possible.
>
It's really not perceived as a "mess of units" by the ordinary punter in the
street. Only those with an interest in the subject might hold that opinion -
but for obvious reasons. It's a bit like the "imperial measures makes us a
laughing stock in the world" quote. I've yet to hear a Barbadian say "Ha ha!
You said 'mile' ! "
However I fully understand why some people might think this way if they have a
strong opinion on this - but let's balance that with how the wider community
views it.
Just a thought.
_________________________________________________________________
Use Hotmail to send and receive mail from your different email accounts.
http://clk.atdmt.com/UKM/go/167688463/direct/01/
