Not joined up thinking

As part of the Dundee Literary Festival, top children's authors Philip Pullman and Jacqueline Wilson (Britain's Children's Laureate) are appearing later this month.

I told a friend of mine whose ten-year-old daughter recently did a talk at school on Wilson, and whose slightly younger son is a huge Doctor Who fan and would undoubtedly enjoy Pullman's 'Dark Trilogy' books in a couple of years.

Unfortunately (and rather oddly) the talks are during school hours, so my friend asked the kids' school if they could be excused for a few hours to go and attend the talks. Given that it's the end of term and nothing new is being covered in the curriculum as everyone winds down, it would appear to be a reasonable request, notwithstanding the status of the speakers.

The answer? "No". Apparently listening to two of our foremost authors isn't viewed as being educational enough.