Educational Policies Notes

Educational Policy

There are nine policies to explain achievement differences between classes. Create mind-maps/notes with subheadings and answer questions in full sentences.

Educational Policy Analysis

Choose a policy, identify its aim, what it did, and evaluate its strengths and weaknesses. Write down your analysis and provide feedback to the class.

Learning Objectives – Educational Policies

Know the main features of important educational policies, including the tripartite system, comprehensivisation, marketisation, privatisation, globalisation, and policies relating to gender and ethnicity. Be able to explain the aim, outline, and evaluation of:

  • The Butler Act (1944)

  • The Comprehensive System (1965)

  • Marketisation Policies (1988)

  • Coalition Government Policies (2010)

  • Privatisation Policies

Apply sociological perspectives (Functionalist, Marxist, Feminist, and New Right) to each educational policy from 1944 to the present day. The Butler Act (1944) and The Comprehensive System (1965) will be covered. Add to timeline of policies as we go along.

Social Policy Defined

Social policy: Actions, plans, and programs of government bodies and agencies that aim to deal with a problem or achieve a goal (e.g., raising educational attainment). Policies are often based on laws that provide the framework within which these agencies operate.

  1. What is a social policy?

  2. Examples of social policies learned about in education topics?

Issues in Educational Policy

Most educational policy addresses the following issues:

  1. Equal Opportunities: Do policies create equal opportunities for all pupils?

  2. Selection and choice: What school types should exist? Should schools select pupils? Should parents choose schools?

  3. Control of education: Who should control education and what is taught?

  4. Marketisation and Privatisation: Should the state run schools, or should there be an ‘education market’?

Policy Analysis Framework

For each policy, you need to know…

  • What was the aim of the policy?

  • What did the policy do?

  • How can we evaluate the policy?

History of Education in the UK

In the early 18th and 19th centuries, the state spent no public money on education. With industrialisation came the need for an educated workforce. The state made education compulsory from ages 5-13. The type of education received relied greatly on a pupils class background. Middle-class students would receive an academic education and could pay for private education.

The Butler Act (1944)

In 1944, education began to be influenced by meritocratic ideas. WWII was reaching an end. The Conservative government opened up secondary education to the masses. The 1944 Butler Act introduced the Tripartite System. The aim was to reduce social inequality and make secondary education available based on ability rather than class background.

The Tripartite System

Children were selected and allocated to one of three different types of schools:

  • All students attended primary school.

  • All students took a test at age 11.

  • Test performance determined school allocation.

    • Passed = Grammar school

    • Failed = Secondary modern

    • Technical schools existed in very few areas.

11+ Test Questions Examples

Example questions from a real 11+ test.

Why was the 11+ test unfair in testing ability and intelligence? Consider girls!

Why was the 11+ test a fair way of testing ability and intelligence? Use key terms in your booklet to create AO3 evaluation paragraphs for the Tripartite System.

Results

Pass mark for boys: 53%
Pass mark for girls: 80%

Timeline Completion

  • 1880: Government introduced compulsory education for 5-13 year olds.

  • 1944: Government passed The Butler Act which introduced the tripartite system.

Include aims, details of the policy, and evaluation points.

Butler Act: Aims, Actions, Evaluation

  • Aims: Reduce social inequality, make secondary education available based on ability rather than class background (meritocratic).

  • Actions: Introduced the Tripartite System. Students took the 11+ test. Those who passed went to Grammar school, those who failed went to Secondary Moderns. Technical Schools also existed although few students attended these.

  • Evaluation: The policy reinforced inequality by channeling middle-class students into the best schools and working-class students into the worst schools. The system also discriminated against girls.

Comprehensive System (1965)

In 1965, Labour introduced the comprehensive system to overcome the class divide created by the Tripartite System and make education more meritocratic.

Comprehensive System Details

  • The 11+ was abolished.

  • Instead of school selection based on academic ability, all students attended the school in their catchment area.

  • Students went to the school nearest to their house.

  • The three different school types were abolished, and all schools were the same under the control of the Local Education Authority.

Comprehensive System Analysis

  • Bus fare to a better school in another catchment area costs £3.

  • House in a better catchment area costs £6000.

Who benefits most from better schools, and why? Why is the Comprehensive system not meritocratic?

Evaluation of the Comprehensive System

Write an AO3 evaluation section on The Comprehensive System.
What was good about the comprehensive system? What was not so good? Remember the idea of meritocracy.

Setting and Streaming

Streams refer to class sets based upon ability for all subjects. Sets refer to when a student is placed into a different set for each subject. Most comprehensive schools stream their students.

Working-class students are more likely to be placed into lower ability streams with more disruptive pupils, worse teachers, and foundation exam papers. Middle-class students are more likely to be placed into higher ability streams with more engaged pupils, the best teachers, and higher-level exams. Explain how ‘streaming’ creates the myth of meritocracy.

Timeline Completion Update

  • 1880: Government introduced compulsory education for 5-13 year olds.

  • 1944: Government passed The Butler Act which introduced the tripartite system.

  • 1965: The Comprehensive System was introduced.

Comprehensive System: Aims, Actions, Evaluation

  • Aims: Overcome the class divide created by the Tripartite System; make education more meritocratic.

  • Actions: Students went to the school closest to their house (catchment area). All schools were meant to be the same because they were all run by the local education authority.

  • Evaluation: Middle-class children had the economic capital to move to a better catchment area and were more likely to be placed in higher streams.

Cross-Topic Links – Role of Education

What would Functionalists and Marxists think of Comprehensive schools?

  • Functionalists argue that comprehensives promote social integration by bringing children of different social class backgrounds together. Also believe comprehensive schools are meritocratic because it gives students a longer time to demonstrate their ability, unlike The Butler Act which selects pupils at the age of 11.

  • Marxists argue comprehensive schools are not meritocratic because they reproduce class inequality through streaming and labeling. They continue to deny working-class students an equal opportunity at success.

Collaborative Exam Application

Analyze an educational policy up to and including 1965 that has aimed to reduce educational inequality.

  • Point: What is the policy?

  • Explain: What did the policy do to try and reduce inequality?

  • Example: An example of something the policy did to reduce inequality.

  • Link: How did this reduce educational inequality?

  • Evaluate: How did this policy reinforce educational inequality?

Timeline Review and Homework

  • Complete AO3 homework sheet for The Tripartite System and The Comprehensive System.

Topic 6: Educational Policy

Using Material from item A and your own knowledge, evaluate the claim that educational policies have increased educational equality. [30 marks]

Revisiting Learning Objectives

In last weeks lesson we learnt about The Butler Act (1944) and The Comprehensive System (1965). Learning Objective Learning Outcome Know the main features of important educational policies, including the tripartite system, comprehensivisation, marketisation, privatisation and globalisation, and policies relating to gender and ethnicity. To be able to explain the aim, outline and evaluation of; • The Butler Act (1944) • The Comprehensive System (1965) • Marketisation Policies (1988) • Coalition Government Policies (2010) • Privatisation Policies Be able to apply sociological perspectives to educational policies. To be able to apply Functionalist, Marxist, Feminist and New Right perspectives to each educational policy from 1944-present day.

Marketisation Policies (1988)

Marketisation refers to introducing market forces of consumer choice and competition between suppliers. It became a central theme of government in 1988, introduced by Margaret Thatcher's Conservative government. From 1997 the Labour government, and from 2010 the Coalition government continued to follow similar policies.

Marketisation Defined

Marketisation: Introducing market forces of consumer choice and competition between suppliers into areas run by the state, such as education. Marketisation has created an education market by:

  • Reducing direct state control over education

  • Increasing competition between schools

  • Increasing parental choice between schools

Thatcher's Conservative Government & Marketisation

What did Thatcher's Conservative Government do to create Marketisation?

  • Introduced the National Curriculum so that schools could be easily compared to one another.

  • The publication of League tables and Ofsted inspection reports so that parents can easily rank schools

  • Open enrolment, allowing successful schools to recruit more pupils

  • Formula Funding, where schools receive the same amount of money for each students.

Funding

Unit of funding

Actual Primary £3,777-£5,376
Actual Secondary £4,730-£6,895

Education Reform Act: Explain Section

Margaret Thatcher Marketisation Competition Formula Funding League Tables Choice Parentocracy C B A

School League Table Task

You have been given a league table of some schools. You must make an informed decision about where to send your child to school.

Did you find this task easy or difficult? Why? Do you think this helps to reduce educational inequality?

Parentocracy

Miriam David argues that Marketisation has created ‘Parentocracy’. Parentocracy means “rule by parents”. It refers to the fact that because of increased competition and choice, parents hold the power in the education system.

Gerwitz and Parental Choice Classes

From a study of 14 London Primary schools, Gerwitz found class differences in the way parents choose where to send their children to school.

  • Privileged Skilled Choosers: Middle-class parents who use their cultural capital to take advantage of the opportunities available to them through the school admissions system and their economic capital to afford travel costs and moving house to better catchment areas.

  • Disconnected Local Choosers: Working-class parents who lack economic and cultural capital. They find it difficult to understand the schools admissions procedure and therefore cannot manipulate it to their advantage. They also cannot afford travel or moving house.

AO3 Evaluation – Myth of Parentocracy

Why are some parents at an advantage when choosing their child's school? Write about Economic Capital and Parental Attitudes.

League Tables Explained

Publishing exam results and ranking schools is useful because it emphasises student outcomes and keeps schools on their toes. However, it does have its problems. The process of recruiting the ‘best’ students (middle class students) is called “Cream Skimming”.

Spiral of Decline in League Tables

Starting from the top of the list and working down, can you fill in the process to explain why schools at the bottom of the league tables result in working class students get worse education? Hint: the process is opposite to this.

Cross Topic Links – Role of Education

What would the different theories think of Marketisation Policies?

  • Functionalism

  • Marxism

  • New Right

Timeline Completion

  • 1880: Government introduced compulsory education for 5-13 year olds.

  • 1944: Government passed The Butler Act which introduced the tripartite system.

  • 1965: The Comprehensive System was introduced.

  • 1988: The Education Reform Act

30 Mark Essay Prep

Using Material from item A and your own knowledge, evaluate the claim that educational policies have increased educational equality. [30 marks]

New Labour Policies (1997-2010)

The New Labour Governments between 1997-2010 also introduced a number of policies aimed at reducing inequality. The main aim of New Labour was to focus on disadvantaged students.

New Labour Educational Policies

  • Education Action Zones: underperforming areas in education were provided with additional resources and funding (ICT and better teachers).

  • The Aim Higher Programme: To raise the aspirations of groups under-represented in higher education e.g. working classes and ethnic minorities. Tried to stop them leaving and becoming stuck in dead-end jobs.

  • Educational Maintenance Allowances (EMAs): EMAs were payments for pupils from low-income families to encourage them to stay in post-16 education.

How could each of these work against New Labour policies? W/C parental Attitudes, Fatalism, Immediate Gratification

Labour Policies Continued

  • Literacy & Numeracy Hours

  • Reducing Class Sizes

How and why would these policies have an effect on students?

Move Beyond Comprehensive System

In 2002, Blair said that education needs to move into a post- comprehensive era, and that a ‘one size fits all’ education system does not work. To promote diversity, Labour encouraged schools to apply for specialist status in particular areas of the curriculum. This enabled schools to build their strengths and create an ‘identity’. Do you think education has moved into a post- comprehensive era successfully?

PEELE Paragraph Creation - New Labour Policies

  • 1997-2010

  • New Labour – Tony Blair

  • Aim Higher Programme

  • Education Action Zones

  • Education Maintenance Allowance

  • Literacy and Numeracy Hours

  • Class sizes

  • Specialist status

Create the ‘EXPLAIN’ section of a PEELE paragraph on New Labour educational policies.

Evaluating New Labour Policies

Strengths

  • Education Maintenance Allowance encouraged working class students to stay in education for longer and achieve more qualifications.

  • Did increase the number of working class students attending university at that time.

  • Did increase the performance of underperforming schools.

Weaknesses

  • Geoff Whitty criticizes many of New Labours policies stating that they were merely cosmetic because New Labour continued to emphasize privatisation.

  • Despite introducing EMAs and Aim higher to encourage disadvantaged students to stay in education for longer, New Labour increased tuition fees. This deters working class students from attending university (Connor et al).

  • New Labour did not abolish fee paying private schools.

Pick 2 strengths and 2 weaknesses for your notes.

Timeline Completion

  • 1880: Government introduced compulsory education for 5-13 year olds.

  • 1944: Government passed The Butler Act which introduced the tripartite system.

  • 1965: The Comprehensive System was introduced.

  • 1988: The Education Reform Act

  • 1997-2010 New Labour

Essay Prep - Continuing the work

Using Material from item A and your own knowledge, evaluate the claim that educational policies have increased educational equality. [30 marks]

Review Learning Objectives and Complete Booklet

Complete your learning objective booklet. Learning Objective Learning Outcome Know the main features of important educational policies, including the tripartite system, comprehensivisation, marketisation, privatisation and globalisation, and policies relating to gender and ethnicity. To be able to explain the aim, outline and evaluation of; • The Butler Act (1944) • The Comprehensive System (1965) • Marketisation Policies (1988) • Coalition Government Policies (2010) • Privatisation Policies Be able to apply sociological perspectives to educational policies. To be able to apply Functionalist, Marxist, Feminist and New Right perspectives to each educational policy from 1944-present day.

Integrating Sociological Theory in paragraphs

For each paragraph you have written on your 30 mark essay plan, can you add links to sociological theory.

Revisiting Education Policy Topics

We have learnt about The Butler Act (1944), The Comprehensive System (1965), The Education Reform Act (1988) and New Labour Policies (1997-2010). Reviewing learning Objectives Learning Outcome Know the main features of important educational policies, including the tripartite system, comprehensivisation, marketisation, privatisation and globalisation, and policies relating to gender and ethnicity. To be able to explain the aim, outline and evaluation of; • The Butler Act (1944) • The Comprehensive System (1965) • Marketisation Policies (1988) • Coalition Government Policies (2010) • Privatisation Policies Be able to apply sociological perspectives to educational policies. To be able to apply Functionalist, Marxist, Feminist and New Right perspectives to each educational policy from 1944-present day. In today’s lesson we will learn about Coalition Government Policies (2010- present day).

Coalition Government Policies (2010-Present)

  • Promoted the move to academies

  • Academies are independent, state-funded schools that receive funding directly from government.

  • Coalition invited all primary and secondary schools to convert to academies.

  • By the end of 2012 50% of schools had converted to academies.

The Coalition argued that academies drive up standards by putting control in the hands of the head teacher rather than the LEAs.

Coalition Government Policies: Academies and Free Schools

Academies

  • Originally brought in to support struggling schools, from 2010 onwards all schools were encouraged to become academies.

  • Funding was taken from local authorities and given to academies chains directly through government. By 2012 over half of all secondary schools had converted to academies.

  • This was supposed to increase educational equality by putting the power into the hands of the headteacher and allowing them to decide how money would be spent.

Free schools

  • Free schools are set up and run by parents, teachers, faith organizations or businesses rather than the local authorities.

  • Free schools are meant to increase equality by giving parents the power to control education.

Coalition Government Policies Overview

  • Promoted the Move to Academies

  • Introduced Free Schools

  • Abolished EMA

  • Raised the school leaving age to 18

  • Scrapped January exams and Coursework

  • Reintroduced Linear A levels.

More Equity Policies

Policies said to reduce inequality:

  • Raised the school leaving age to 18

  • Introduced Free school meals

  • Pupil premium – Money that schools receive for each pupil from disadvantaged backgrounds.

Evaluation of More Recent Policies

Policies said to reduce inequality:

  • Raised the school leaving age to 18 – Reduced the number of vocational training courses and delayed working class students from starting work

  • Introduced Free school meals – Took funding away from other areas.

  • Pupil premium – Money that schools receive for each pupil from disadvantaged back grounds – Doesn’t necessarily get spent on disadvantaged students.

Evaluating Coalition Programmes

Strengths

  • Standards have continued to increase

  • The attainment gap between Free school Meals and non-Free School Meals students has decreased.

Limitations

  • There is little evidence to suggest that academies today do better than LEA schools when you compare like with like.

  • Free schools take a lower proportion of students eligible for free school meals.

  • Raised tuition fees to £9000 a year – deterring working class students and creating a ‘fear of debt’.
    All this by spending less

  • The scrapping of EMA lowered the stay on rate in further education

Timeline Completion Continued

  • 1944: Government passed The Butler Act which introduced the tripartite system.

  • 1965: The Comprehensive System was introduced.

  • 1988: The Education Reform Act

  • 1997-2010 New Labour

  • 2010-2015 Coalition Government

Essay Preparation - Final steps

Using Material from item A and your own knowledge, evaluate the claim that educational policies have increased educational equality. [30 marks]

Privatisation of Education

Privatisation

  • DIRECT IMPACTS

  • INDIRECT IMPACTS

Detailing Privatisation

Privatisation is where services which were once owned and provided by the state are transferred to private companies. Privatisation within education refers to the introduction of free- market principles into the day to day running of schools. This is basically Marketisation. Ball argues that education becomes a source of profit for Capitalists. Private companies are increasingly involved directly with schools, though:

  • Building schools.

  • Providing supply teachers.

  • Work based learning.

  • Careers advice.

  • Ofsted inspection services.

The Cola-isation of Education

Tesco criticized as students and parents would have to spend £110,000 in stores in exchange for one school computer.

Cadburys criticised as students would have to eat 5,440 chocolate bars to qualify for one set of volleyball posts. Vending machines banned for encouraging obesity.

Evaluation AO3:

In the Marxist view, they claim that privatization and competition to drive up Is a myth used to legitimate the turning of education into a source of __ .

Timeline - the big picture

  • 1944: Government passed The Butler Act which introduced the tripartite system.

  • 1965: The Comprehensive System was introduced.

  • 1988: The Education Reform Act

  • 1997-2010 New Labour

  • 2010-2015 Coalition Government

  • Present day

Final Essay Preparation

Using Material from item A and your own knowledge, evaluate the claim that educational policies have increased educational equality. [30 marks]