Education Policies

Question 1

Selection Policies

1. Selection by Ability

Answer 1

• Schools select students according to their ability.
• e.g. tripartite system.
• Selection by ability is now banned in all state-funded schools.
• Most private schools have selection by ability e.g. sit an entrance exam.

Question 2

Selection Policies

2. Selection by Aptitude

Answer 2

• Students are selected based on potential to be good in certain subjects.
• Specialists schools can select up to 10% of students based on their aptitude in specialist subjects.

Question 3

Selection Policies

3. Selection by Faith

Answer 3

• Fail schools may select a proportion of their students on the basis of the religious beliefs and commitment of their parents.

Question 4

1988 Education Reform Act

1. Parental Choice

Answer 4

• Parents shop around for the best state school.
• This has led to an increase in parentocracy.
• The conservative government believed that competition between schools for new parents would raise standards by forcing schools to improve or face closure.

Question 5

1988 Education Reform Act

2. League Table

Answer 5

• Encourages parentocracy.
• Helps parents to make an informed choice by comparing the success rates of different schools.
• Encourages competition.
• League tables make it easier to see the best schools.

Question 6

1988 Education Reform Act

3. Formula Funding

Answer 6

• The money schools receive for each student.
• Way of rewarding popular schools that attract lots of pupils.
• The money helps improve the school to get even more pupils.
• Schools that don’t get many pupils risk being closed.
• Good schools get praise, poor schools get an incentive to improve.

Question 7

Free Schools

Answer 7

• A new type of state school that is free from local control.
• Free schools improve educational standards by taking control away from the state and giving it to the parents.
• Set up in response to the demands and wishes of parents and local people who are not happy with the schools.
• Market forces of supply and demand underpin free schools; parents want schools, so they’re met.

Question 8

Academies

Answer 8

• More freedom and control over the running of the school.
• No longer have to do what the local authority tells them to.
• Receive funding directly from the government and are largely left to run and manage their own school.
• Corresponds with marketisation.

Question 9

Privatisation in Education

Answer 9

Operate more like businesses.

EXAMPLES:

• Local management of schools.
• Performance-related pay for teachers.
• Parental choice of school.
• School performance tables.
• Increase in schools hiring unqualified teachers to work as ‘cover supervisors’ all year round in the school.

Question 10

Privatisation of Education

Answer 10

Private businesses making profit from state-funded education.

EXAMPLE:

• Exams
• School services
• Branding of schools
• The cola-isation of schools.