The enemy of learning.

When the chief executive of the Girl's Day School Trust - Helen Fraser says something about education, you listen. Fraser is the inspirational head of Oxford High School for Girls. She has this somewhat novel idea that "being perfect is the enemy of education" Good schooling is a process of life education, that its about getting use to the idea of - the ups and downs of life. I remember when my children were young we would play that the well known family game - snakes and ladders - it was the perfect guide to life. The pressure on kids today is especially keen as they are competing for jobs in a recession. However girls are particularly vulnerable as they can displace this need for perfection on to their bodies and looks - thereby expecting these to be also perfect - causing body image problems. This can also translate into the concept of the super-mum. As a result many women feel they are failing on all fronts, not a good mother, wife or colleague. We need to address this pernicious circle, and help our kids more with the realities of life.