LONDON -- British and Japanese governments face major challenges in funding and organizing education, which is key to a nation's cultural and economic well-being.

At the next British election (expected in early May), the government will claim considerable improvements as a result of significant increases in the education budget and structural reforms. The opposition parties will dispute these claims, arguing that much of the increased funding has been misspent and that the emphasis placed on what is "politically correct" has been misguided and feeds the prejudices of egalitarian ideologues in the Labour Party and among teachers.

Labour Party ideologues, according to the Conservative opposition, believe that all children should be treated equally and that no child, however able, should be specially favored. For some, this implies that there should be prizes for all and that grading systems should be designed to encourage every pupil to believe that he can reach the top, irrespective of his innate abilities (or lack of them) and the personal effort made. Children with special needs, which is the politically correct euphemism for backward children or children suffering from behavioral problems, should be taught in the same classes as other normal pupils to ensure that they don't suffer discrimination.