Prince Charles' teachers' institute

Jun 7, 2006, 14:17 GMT

Britain's Prince Charles is to unveil his plans for a new teacher training institute today (07.06.06).

The royal - who has suggested in the past he wants to 'fill the gaps in the field of education' - will unveil his long-term programme at his annual Summer School at Robinson College event, at Cambridge University.

The Summer School - set up five years ago - gives teachers a chance to debate their issues of concern with leading academics and writers in an informal environment.

At the moment around 80 English literature and history teachers attend the event free of charge.

The initiative is supported with a Government grant and donations.

However, according to The Press Association, heir to the British throne has expressed interest in setting up 'a more permanent kind of teacher training institute'.

The prince's plans come after he announced last year (05) that schooling in Britain is becoming 'genetically modified'.

He said at the time: 'Teaching must not become a 'genetically modified' hybrid, which cuts us off from all our cultural and historical heritage and depends for its continuing existence on ceaseless 'clinical' experimentation.'

Charles has stressed his disappointment with Britain's education policies on several occasions in the past.

In 2004, he questioned main teaching theories and criticised the government's target to send more students to university.

A year before that, the concerned prince implied Britain's education had seen a 'destruction of our cultural, linguistic and historical habitat' and suggested the country had become 'culturally disinherited'.

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