Educational policy in Britain

Political approaches in education

social democrat view

• Left wing

• Reduce inequality

• Focus on under achieving groups

• Improve social mobility

• Widen participation

new right view

• Provide choice

• encourage different types of school

• Reduce state control

• Drive up standards

The Forster education act

• 1870

• Introduced free state school (5-12 primary education).

• To improve skills for industrial society.

Butler education act

• 1870

• Provided free secondary education for all pupils

• Students sat the 11 plus test to determine the school that the would go to

  • PASS - grammar school (academic curriculum, higher education)

  • FAIL - secondary modern school (practical curriculum, core subjects)

  • FAIL - technical school ( technical skills suited for a particular path eg mechanics)

  • These three schools were known as the tripartite system

• Aim was to ensure a meritocracy

  impacts

• Lead to social class inequality

• Middle class kids more likely to pass 11 plus due to connections and wealth

• Selection from schools - selected in ability (middle class kids were higher ability)

• 11 plus added immense amounts of pressure to children

expansion of comprehensives

• 1965

• Mixed ability schools made due to criticisms of tripartite system

• One school for all

• Aim was equality

  impacts

• Mixed ability didn’t stretch over achievers or support needs of under achievers

• No selection

• Large schools pupils feel ‘lost’

• Streaming labels inequality

  • became known as the tripartite system under one roof

• Children attended local schools so wealthy catchment areas performed better and poorer areas underperformed

Education reform act

• 1988

• Influenced by Chubb and moe

• Conservative government

• National curriculum (all pupils learnt the same subjects and content)

• SATs and GCSEs introduced

• More parental choice

• Funding per pupil

• Parents could access league tables + choose

• Aim to raise standards and high achievement for every pupil

  Impacts

• Positive

  • allowed choice

  • School standards improved

  • More accountable to parents

• Negative

  • increased inequality

  • Best schools oversubscribed leading to selectivity (picked children who were more academic - wealthy)

  • Cream skimming and silt shifting

  • The myth of parentocracy

Parentocracy

• Skilled choosers

  • professional middle class parents using their capital to take advantage if the choices open to them

• Semi skilled choosers

  • working class parents who are ambitious for their children but don’t have the capital

  • They find it difficult to make sense of the education system

  • Rely on others opinions

• Disconnected choosers

  • working class parents who lack capital and lack confidence in choice

  • Choose local schools pupils feel as it’s the only realistic option

Coalition government policies

• 2010-2015

• Conservative and Liberal Democrat joined

• Cut EMA and replaced it with bursary

• Tripled tuition fees to £9000

• Growth of academies

• Free school meals

• Free schools set up by parents and teachers

• More Linear A level system (A* grade added)

• Aim to focus on driving up standards

  impacts

• Some funding for disadvantaged schools

• Increased inequality as middle class benefitted from choice

• Cuts in funding disadvantaged poorer groups

Conservative

• 2015

• continued to marketise education

• Wanting an expansion of grammar schools (free but selective)

  impacts

• Still some economic support for disadvantaged groups

• Social inequality remains a problem

• Middle class still benefit from choice

Globalisation (definition and impacts on education)

Process of the world becoming more interconnected.

Impacts on education

• TNCs - Apple, Google, Microsoft - home learning support

• Response to global crisis such as pandemic, action plan is needed in schools

• Expanding national curriculum - social media and digital skills.

Vocational education

• Eductaion that prepares children for a skilled craft

• Introduced in the 1980s by conservative

  advantages

• Better fits the needs of industry workers

• Suits less academic children

• Provides more choice

  Criticisms

• Working class children more likely to opt out of these qualifications

• Seen as inferior to A-levels