Steve I suspect for the majority of voters their voting intent is solidified months before the vote. The last minute megaburger diet of propaganda probably has as much impact on the outcome as exit polls have on predicting the winners.
When I was at school lessons on life skills were nonexistant. A curriculum that covered such things as personal finance, diet, healthy lifestyles, civics, the role of government etc. etc.... should be part of the birthright of the citizen and your profession should have demanded it. Only a fool would advocate the rationing of education. The openings for the unskilled are becoming fewer by the day. Is there not a reason illiteracy rates in the prison population are sky high. We have developed a society that demands basic literacy and numeracy skills, yet are failing many black and white males. Why is the same not true of Indian and Chinese scholars? Nothing to do with respect, aspirations and fully functional family life of course.
This failure is not labour or tory, it is a complete failure of all governments for decades. I am not a teacher ( I have only taught in house courses) but it seems clear to me that a radical overhaul is required especially to help those that have been failed. Modern society cannot afford the complete waste of a totally disfunctional alienated segment of society.
You know far more about the problem that I do, what do you propose doing about it? offering carrots for attending remedial classes? insisting on a minimum qualification in order to quit fulltime education? creating a volunteer force to help backward kids?
I know a few young adults that have been totally failed by the educational system so I would be very interested in seeing some potential solutions for the future.