It's not 'received wisdom'. It's first hand observation - and no, that doesn't mean that EVERYONE is illiterate or cannot add up. Delighted your sons are doing well, but perhaps things are done better in Jibrovia............. There has been a decline in literacy and numeracy, although I'm sure...
The failure of the comprehensive education revolution is glaringly obvious - whole generations who can't spell, do not understand grammar and punctuation, cannot perform simple mathematical calculations and know nothing of history (apart from the holocaust and the fact that we're all descended...