Steve - "The Children's Encyclopedia made me what I am." But... but... Yer old!! ;-)

Re the earlier comments, I wouldn't then have had the perspective to think about what was what or why it was. I was more or less happy with the education I was getting, whilst I was getting it, I think. But with hindsight I suggest two reasons for the "halcyon days" notion.

First, Time & Motion, metrics, and other such things (that ultimately lead to bloody league tables) had scarcely been thought of, if it all. Across the whole country, no-one was thinking about "efficiency", "share-holder value", and all that crap. I suspect that, in general, you were assumed to be at least OK at your job, provided you didn't screw up, so were mostly left to get on with things.

Second, from the political angle, the left have always been into education. "Only by lifting the blinkers from the proletariat's eyes!!!" Etcetera... ;-) But I've always been of the opinion that back in the day, the left were more interested, in education anyway, in being able to control policy, rather than in proselytising on the shop floor, if you see what I mean. It was an achievement to be able to direct budgets, set curricula, etc; to influence more subtly, rather than to browbeat.

The two factors combine with the result that you were not subjected to the micro-management of metrics & league tables that seems to be the norm these days. There's a third factor, too - no blame culture back then. If the kid was unruly, the teacher / school wasn't automatically blamed for it. Management didn't permanently have half an eye on "will I / we be blamed for something going wrong" which pervades absolutely every industry these days.

Not so much "halcyon days" as just... A simpler world!