Walter Scott took time out in his novel ‘Waverley’ to caution against gimmicky educational methods that do not inculcate habits of self-discipline. He recognised that the pill of learning may sometimes need to be sweetened, but he felt that the fashion was getting out of control, and that before long even religion would be treated with levity.

The trouble with making education relentlessly entertaining, said Scott, was not only that pupils might refuse to study unless someone made it entertaining for them; it was that serious subjects might be turned into a standing joke. In Edward Waverley’s case, he said, an unwillingness to apply himself to the grind certainly had a most harmful effect.

114 words