7. Educational Policies 1944-1987 Flashcards
What are the 3 aims of educational policy?
- Economic efficiency (for future workforce)
- Raising educational standards
- Equality of educational opportunity
1.Economic efficiency: Where does Britain currently rank in wold economies?
Britain ranks 7 in world economies
1.Economic efficiency: What needs to happen in order to maintain position in world economies?
A skilled labour force
1.Economic efficiency: What requires high levels in order for a skilled labour force?
High levels of literacy and numeracy
- Raising educational standards: what does Britain need?
Britain needs well educated but also creative, innovative, entrepreneurial individuals. setting high standards in school meets this need.
- Equality of educational opportunity: What is key to a meritocratic society?
Having equal opportunity to develop your talents and skills
- Equality of educational opportunity: What does a meritocratic system allow for?
Every child to have an equal chance of developing their talents and abilities
- Equality of educational opportunity: What did Gillborn and Youdell identify as 4 essential factors to a meritocratic system?
- Equality of access
- Equality of circumstances
- Equality of participation
- Equality of outcome
- Equality of educational opportunity: What did Gillborn and Youdell say about a successive government ?
“Successive governments claim to have improved equality of access but rarely look at the other three”
Equality of access: What was the Forster Act 1870?
The first educational policy which created state funded schools for children ages 5-10 known as elementary schools
Equality of access: what was the aim of The Butler Act 1944?
To provide free secondary education for all to remove inequalities in access between the poor and rich
Equality of access: what was the Triparte system?
Where 3 types of secondary schools were established:
1. Grammar Schools (pass 11+ exam)
2. Secondary modern schools (fail 11+ exam)
3. Technological colleges (training for manual labour)
Ideological aim of the Tripartite System:
-Selective and suitable education
-Equality oof oppotunity
-Meritocratic (using the same IQ test for all)
Reality of the Triparte System:
-Future outcomes determined by a test taken at age 10
-Grammar schools pupils were more likely to come from middle class families.
-Those who failed 11+ more likely working class
-Secondary modern viewed as inferior
-Those who fail 11+ suffer low self esteem
Conclusions of the Tripartite System:
-10 is to young to determine futures
-Tripartite system helped reproduce class inequalities
-Potential of many children wasted as being labelled as less intelligent ‘failures’
Key aims of Comprehensive schools:
To overcome the social class inequalities sustained by the Tripartite system add provide the same educational opportunities for all children
Key actions of comprehensive Schools
The Tripartite system was abolished and children not selected by examination
Advantages of the Comprehensive system
-Opportunities for all
-Fewer leave education without qualifications + more obtain higher standards
-Reduced risk of labelling students as ‘failures’
-Avoids tendency for w/c pupils to be assigned to lower status
Disadvantages of the Comprehensive System
-Gramma schools ‘cream skim’
-Comprehensives operate a streaming system
-Class differences in achievement remain largely unchanged
What are the five different ways or organising school admissions
- Ability
- Aptitude
- Faith
- Over-subscription criteria
- Covert selection
Which schools can select students by ability?
Only grammar schools and private schools can now select by academic ability
Define Aptitude
Potential in certain subjects such as PE, Science, maths Specialist schools are allowed to select up to 10% of their pupils on this basis
Define Faith
Religious schools may select a proportion of their pupils based on the religious beliefs and commitment of their parents
Define Over-subscription criteria
Priority is given to: those in care, ave siblings at the school, those living in catchment area, those eligible for pupil premium
Define Covert selection
some schools are accused of ‘cherry picking’ bright and wealthy pupils. They might do this by putting off less able parents by lengthy and complicated admissions forms and procedures
