Children fail test on Europe

TEN per cent of British primary school children think Jacques Delors is editor of the Sun newspaper and 64 per cent have never heard of the European Community, according to a survey, writes Diana Hinds.

Forty per cent of children think ERM refers to 'European Road Map', with only 20 per cent knowing it is the Exchange Rate Mechanism; 24 percent think an Ecu is a French taxi; and 27 per cent know the President of Ireland is Mary Robinson, but 23 per cent think it is Bill Clinton.

The Shell Education Service Survey asked 300 eight to 12-year-olds questions, with multiple-choice answers, about European current affairs, geography, culture and sport.

Knowledge about European institutions and personalities was sketchy and confused, and there was little difference between the youngest and the oldest children.

But all the children were better informed on basic aspects of 'tourist Europe', such as currencies, famous landmarks and flags; 75 per cent knew that a Franc was French; 45 per cent that a Drachma was Greek; 89 per cent knew the word 'bonjour'; and 65 per cent 'guten Tag'.

Professor Gordon Bell, who has helped Shell compile a special teaching pack to promote a deeper understanding of Europe in schools, said: 'I would be interested to know how the survey would fare with adults. I don't think it is just a question of children being ignorant.'