1997 new labour policies Flashcards
what year
1997 to 2010
who’s government
New Labour was Tony Blair’s government in which he aimed to appeal to a wider range of voters than the labour party historically did
what did they want to do
continue the new right’s political framework on educational policies, especially the concepts of marketisation and parentocracy but build on it with more focus on equal opportunity
what were the three main policies
raising standards - building on what the new right had done previously
improving equality of opportunity
increasing diversity and choice within education
improve standards
class sizes reduced to 30
literacy and numeracy hour - one hour per day of reading and maths in primary schools
extension of school career and the school day - children now start at 4, even younger in sure start nurseries and leaving age raised to 18
tougher line on inspections - OFSTED
academies
higher education - expanded the number of places available in universities and introduced the concept of student loans to make it more accessible for the working class
what are academies
10% funded by the private or voluntary sector - extra money should help improve standards - only ‘failing’ schools become academies
the extra money and freedom from local authorities meant that schools could implement any school policy they wanted
the idea behind the additional freedom is that schools can tailor policies to what they think will be most efficient for their school
example of an academy
Mossbourne Academy - one of the highest achieving schools in the country, having been one of the worst when it was a comprehensive school
reduce inequality of opportunity
education action zones - extra money for schools in deprived areas
sure start centres
education maintenance allowance
what are sure start centres
12 hours a week free nursery provision for children aged 2-4 - these centres allowed parents to receive parenting classes and were designed to be cultural and social hubs for working class parents in poor areas - the purpose was to improve school readiness
what is education maintenance allowance
£30 per week to encourage students from low-income households to stay on in 16-18 education
this money went directly to students so they could spend the money on what they wanted, but it was hoped they would spend it on travel to and from education
increase diversity
specialist schools
child centred learning - teachers are expected to focus more on each child’s individual learning needs and OFSTED focus on this more
special education needs provision - there has been a massive expansion of study and support under New Labour to support those with special needs
Faith schools - expanded under new labour
what are specialist schools
specialise in various subjects, providing expertise in areas from areas from sciences to the performing arts - many recent academies are also specialist schools
strengths
standards have improved and there is greater choice and diversity - exam results continued to improve under new labour
greater diversity of schools and a greater variety of subjects one can study meaning there is more choice for parents and pupils
new labour have established a learning society in which learning is more highly valued and created opportunity in which adults are able to relearn new skills
limitations
gap between middle classes and working classes achievement continues to grow because of selection of mortgage, creaming skimming
introduction of tuition fees in higher education puts many working class children off going to university - this is known as the new labour paradox - they appeared committed to reducing inequality but introduced tuition fees
the private school system still means that those with money can get their children a better education
