"We don't need no education" sang the kids on Pink Floyd's 1979 No 1 single, thereby disproving their assertion (as any pedant will happily point out).

There has been far too much written and spoken about the Big Brother Racism incident in the last week, so I will confine myself to commenting about one particular aspect of this sorry event. Many commentators have remarked upon the main protagonists' obvious ignorance, and most have then gone on to blame this on the UK's education system.

Whilst clearly there are some very poor schools, I'm afraid this argument just doesn't wash. The simple reason why the participants were ignorant, is because they come from families and a wider culture which does not value education and knowledge. Most children spend roughly 5 hours a day, 5 days a week in school. They spend far more of their time out of school, and even the best schooling in the world will be undone when those children leave the school gates. Contrast this with countries like South Korea where education is highly prized and as a result nearly 80% of school leavers go to University.

This is the primary reason why people are prepared to move house or fork out for private education for their children - parents who put a high value on learning are (rightly) fearful of the baleful influence of this anti-learning culture on their children, and seek to remove them to oases of education where their talents can blossom.

This is not to say that all ill-informed or poorly-educated people are racists - clearly they are not. Similarly the anti-intellectual culture is endemic in Britain and is just as much the preserve of the rich and powerful as it is of the poor.

But it remains the case that the best route to a tolerant liberal society is via education, knowledge and learning. And, given the culture we operate in, that is an uphill task.