Educational policies Flashcards
1
Q
Social Policy
A
The packages of plans and actions adopted by national and local governments or voluntary agencies to solve social problems or achieve goals in society
2
Q
Education policy
A
The plans and strategies for education introduced by governments which can be Acts of Parliament or recommendations and instructions to schools
3
Q
Tripartite system
A
An education system which created three types of state-funded secondary school. The results of the 11+ test would determine which school the pupil attended
4
Q
Grammar school
A
- Offered an academic curriculum and access to higher education
- Only available to those who passed the 11+ could attend
5
Q
Secondary modern schools
A
Offered a non-academic curriculum to students that failed the 11+
6
Q
Comprehensive school
A
Offered a broad curriculum to all students in the local area with no entrance requirements
7
Q
Selection policies
A
Policies which enables schools to select their students on the basis of academic ability, skills or religious faith.
8
Q
Marketisation
A
The process where by service that were previously controlled and run by the state become subject to the free market forces of supply demand based on competition and consumer choice.
9
Q
Parentocracy
A
Where a child’s education is dependent more upon the wealth and wishes of parents rather than the ability and efforts of pupils
10
Q
Open enrolment
A
When a parent can apply for a place for the child at any state funded school in the area
11
Q
The National curriculum
A
A set of subjects and standard used by state funded primary secondary school so children are the same things. It covers which subjects are taught and the standards children should reach in each subject.
12
Q
SATs
A
Standard Attainment Tests such as GCSE
13
Q
League tables
A
Tables used to compare the academic containment of students in schools
14
Q
Formula funding
A
School is given money according to how many pupils they admit
15
Q
EMA
A
education maintenance allowance this is payments for students from low income backgrounds in post 16 education.
16
Q
Compensatory education policies
A
Policies that intend to offset the effects of socio economic disadvantage which may restrict the educational opportunities of children from socially deprived backgrounds
17
Q
LEA
A
Local Education Authority
18
Q
Privatisation
A
Services that were once provided by the state are transferred to private companies who run them to make profit
19
Q
Exogenous privatisation
A
When private companies were outside of education take over parts of the education system to make a profit
20
Q
Endogenous prioritation
A
When school starts to operate more like businesses
21
Q
Globalisation
A
The idea that the world is becoming increasingly connected through global media or the Internet
22
Q
What are four areas of issues that educational policies are concerned with?
A
- Equal opportunities
- Selection and choice
- Control of education
- Marketisation privatisation
23
Q
What was education like before the industrial revolution?
A
- No state schools
- Education was available only to a minority of the population with feeding schools for the rich or for the poor through churches or charity
- Before 1833 the state spent no public money on education
24
Q
What increased the need for an educated workforce?
A
Industrialisation
25
When did the state make School compulsory?
In 1880 it was compulsory from the ages of 5 to 13
26
What did the type of education children receive depend on?
- Class and schooling did little to change peoples ascribed status
- Middle-class children were given an academic curriculum to prepare them for careers in professions or office work
- Working class children were given schooling to equip them with basic numeracy and literacy skills needed for routine factory work and still in them an obedient attitude to their superiors
27
1944 Education Act
- Free secondary education for all pupils for the first time
- Introduced the tripartite system where pupils had to sit in 11+ exam which determined if they’d go to a grammar school secondary modern school or technical school
28
What was the 1944 Education Act influenced by?
Meritocracy
29
Did the tripartite system reduce class inequality?
No, it reproduced class inequality by channelling the two social classes into different types of schools that offered an equal opportunity
30
Did the tripartite system reduce gender inequality?
Gender inequality was reproduced as girls had to gain higher marks than boys at the 11+ to obtain a grammar school place
31
How did the tripartite system justify inequality?
Through the ideology it was based on that ability is inborn or innate and that ability could be measured early on in life through the 11+
32
How was the 11+ an unfair and inaccurate exam?
- The middle-class children were prepared for the exam and therefore scored more highly
- Damage the self-esteem of working-class children and denied them educational opportunity
- It was only testing one very narrow form of intelligence
- Could not adequately test the abilities of students at such an early age in their development, especially those from more disadvantaged backgrounds
33
What was the aim of the comprehensive school system introduced from 1965?
- Provide a single form of state education for all
- Overcome the class divide of the tripartite system
- Make education more meritocratic
34
1965 Comprehensive School System
- Abolished the 11+
- Abolished grammar schools and secondary modern schools
- Replaced comprehensive schools for all pupils of all abilities within the local area
35
Why did the grammar and secondary modern divide still exist in some areas?
It was left in the local educational authority to decide whether to change over the comprehensive system and not all did so.
36
Has the comprehensive system been long-lasting?
The principal has been long-lasting and it’s still the norm in most educational authorities in the UK
37
Did the comprehensive system overcome the class divide?
- No, it’s simply moved selection into one school
- Most schools use some system of setting streaming which maintains class divisions
- Evidence shows that class differences in educational achievement have remained
38
Instead of social divisions being based on school selections, what are they now about as a result of the comprehensive system?
- Location
- Comprehensive schools in middle-class areas with affluent pupils tend to have better academic results than comprehensives in deprived areas
39
What do critics of the comprehensive system argue about the one size fit all approach?
- Ignores the fact that children are different with different abilities and talents
- Alistair Campbell called it the bog standard comprehensive
40
What do the New Right argue that comprehensive schools prevent meritocracy?
- Andrew Neil argued that under the tripartite system people from lower-middle-class could reach the very top of society by attending grammar schools
- Argues that today only those attend to private schools (which are the rich) can reach the top of society
- So the comprehensive system does not provide the meritocratic path of that grammar school did
41
What do functionalists argue about comprehensive schools?
- Comprehensive schools promote social integration
42
What did Ford find in 1969 about the comprehensive school?
- Little social mixing between working class and middle-class peoples occurred because of streaming
- It is more meritocratic because it gives pupils a long appeared in which to develop and show their abilities
43
When was the push for vocational education?
1976 as labour Prime Minister Callaghan said that British education and industry was in decline because schools didn’t teach people the skills they needed in work
44
Name three vocational reforms
- 1983: Youth training schemes which were job training schemes for school levers age 16-17
- NVQs (1986) and GNVQs (1992) were introduced which were practical qualifications
- The new deal introduced in 1998 people on benefits had to attend courses if they didn’t accept work
45
What is the problem with vocational education aim according to some sociologist?
Vacation education aims to teach good work discipline but not skills
46
Why do Marxists criticise the push for vocational education?
- Provides cheap labour
- Governments encourage people into training schemes to lower unemployment statistics
47
What do feminist say about the push for vocational education?
Vocational qualifications force girls in traditional female jobs such as a beautician or a child minder
48
What is a criticism about the push vocational education qualifications?
Vocational qualifications aren’t regarded as highly as academic qualifications by universities are employers
49
What were the three key aims of the 1988 Education Reform Act?
- To raise standards in education by increasing competition between schools
- To respond more to the needs and wishes of local consumers and the global economy
- To be more efficient in spending
50
Name the five policies from the 1988 Education Reform Act?
- Open enrolment
- National curriculum
- League tables
- OFSTED
- Formula funding
51
What does Ball and Whitty argue about marketisation policies?
They reproduce class inequality by creating inequalities between schools
52
The reproduction of inequality: league tables & cream skimming
- Bartlett argues that league tables produces an unequal school system which reproduce social class inequality through selective application processes
- High achieving schools will do cream skimming and silt shifting through what Tough & Brooks argue as covert selection policies where they discourage parents from low socio-economic backgrounds through lengthy application forms
53
What is cream skimming?
- Successful schools are oversubscribed which enable them to be more selective.
- They offer places to pupils who are likely to achieve good exam results ( white or middle class pupils) thus helping to maintain the schools high position in the league tables.
54
What is silt shifting?
Good schools that are oversubscribed can avoid taking less able pupils who are likely to get poor results and damage the schools league table position
55
Give 3 examples of covert selection policies discourage lower social economic background applicants.
- Lengthy application forms
- Requiring expensive uniforms
- Not publicising in poor neighbourhoods
56
How does formula funding create inequality between schools?
- Popular schools will get more funding and therefore get better qualify teachers and facilities which attracts more pupils
- Unpopular schools lose income and find it difficult to match the teachers skills and facilities of more successful schools
57
What did the study of international patterns of educational quality by the Institute for public policy research find? (2012)
Found a competition oriented education system such as Britain’s produce more segregation between children of different social backgrounds
58
Miriam David’s Parentocracy & middle class parents
Middle-class parents have greater economic and cultural capital and are in a better position to good schools for their children compared to working class parents
59
Who did Gerwitz study on reproduction of inequalities through Parentocracy?
Studied 14 London secondary schools
60
What did Gerwitz study on parent and reproduction of inequality find?
- The differences in parents economic cultural capital led to class differences and how far they can exercise choice of secondary school
- Gerwitz identifies three main types of parents whom she calls privileged field chooses disconnected local choosers and semi skill choosers
61
Privileged skilled choosers
- Middle-class parents who use their economic and cultural capital to gain educational capital for children
- Middle-class parents are more likely to shop around to find the best schools, use league tables and know how to assess OFSTED reports
- They are more likely to afford to move into catchment areas (selection by mortgage) or higher transport costs
62
Disconnected local choosers
- Working class parents whose choices were restricted by lack of economic and cultural capital
- Working class parents more likely to live outside of catchment areas for the most popular and high attaining schools or unable to afford high transport costs
- They find it difficult to get time off to look around schools, are less confident in communicating with schools and are more concerned with safety and facilities than assessing OFSTED report
63
Semi-skilled choosers
- Working class parents that were more ambitious for their children than disconnected local choosers but were frustrated at their inability to get children into the best school
- They found hard to understand the education market and relied on peoples opinions
64
What does ball argue about marketisation and parentocracy?
- Parentocracy is a myth and disguises the fact they’re not all parents have the same freedom to exercise this choice
65
League tables and educational triage
The importance of league tables means teachers try to ensure their school survival within their education marketplace through education triage
66
Gilbourn & Youdell found schools educational triaged students into what three groups?
- Students who would likely get 5 GCSE A*-C grades with little additional help
- Students who are on the C/D borderline who with some extra help may achieve a C grade (teachers priority)
- Hopeless cases who were unable to achieve a C grade
67
What widens as a result of educational triage?
Class divisions widen
68
Criticism of the national curriculum
It does not give teachers enough opportunity to respond to the needs of the pupils
69
Criticism of SATs
- It’s too much pressure on young children
- Possibility of giving children a sense of failure early in their schooling
70
Explain the criticism of the educational reform act on the lack of control and oversight
- Before monetisation education system was largely planned and regulated by local authorities
- There is now a lack of local website over what schools do and how they spend taxpayers money
- Local councils have lost control over the planning and supplies school places meaning a shortage of places in some areas and too many schools and others
71
When the labour part came into power and 9097 what did they continue with and introduce in terms of types of policy?
- Continued with many marketisation policies
- Continue to increase school diversity and parental choice
- New emphasis on supporting children in the most disadvantage areas through several compensatory educational policies
72
Name four of the New Labour compensatory policies
- Education action zones
- Excellence in cities
- Education maintenance allowance for 16+
- Short start children centres
73
Education Action Zones: Aim. How? Success?
- Aim: Raise the attainment levels of underachieving students in deprived low income inner city areas
- How: additional funding from government for teachers and resources. Initiatives like breakfast clubs and homework clubs.
- Success: OFSTED found a few improvements to results in KS3 or GCSEs
74
Excellence in Cities: Aim. How? Success?
- Replaced Education Action Zones in 2001
- Aim: To raise attainment levels of under achieving students in deprived low income in a city areas
- How: Special programs for gifted students e.g learning mentors and leasing of home computers
- Success: Report indicated limited success and ended in 2006
75
Education Maintenance Allowance for 16+: Aim. How? Success?
- Aim: To reduce the social class gap in further education as more middle-class went onto further education because working class parents may struggle to support children in education beyond 16
- How: A weekly cash payment given to 16 to 19-year-olds from low income families that remain in education
- Success: Staying on rates amongst working class children increased by 6%
76
Sure Start Children’s Centres: Aim. How? Success?
Aim: To improve the health and education of under 5s and their carers in deprived areas
How: Free children centre activities run by professionals in the community. Free courses for parents, home visits providing advice and support.
Success: Children centres were popular with parents and achieved high uptake of services. There was widespread public concern about the closure of children centres by the incoming conservative government after 2010.
77
Name the three New Labour marketisation policies
- Specialist schools
- Academies
- University tuition fees
78
Specialist Schools: Aim. How? Success?
Aim: Provide diversity and choice for parents and pupils, increase competition and raise standards
How: Extra funding was given to schools that fulfilled the specialist school criteria
Success: Specialist schools often achieved better results in all subjects perhaps due to the additional funding or a more middle-class intake
79
Academies : Aim. How? Success?
Aim: To raise educational standards in low income inner city areas
How: Academics replaced failing schools. Academies were sponsored by individuals businesses, religious groups, charities and city educational authorities. Sponsors contributed £2 million and the government contributed £25 million.
Success: studies show that academies have mixed results the conservative government expanded the academy model so most secondary schools are now academies
80
University tuition fees: Aim. How? Success?
Aim: To cover the cost of the increase in students going to universities, improve facilities and raise standards
How: Students were required to pay £1000 a year. Tuition was still free for students from low income families.
Success: Tuition fees and student loans reduce participation by students from low income backgrounds
81
Name 3 New Labour policies to improve standards
- Maximum class size of 30
- Literacy and numeracy focus
- 15 hours of free nursery education
82
Maximum class sizes of 30: Aim. How? Success?
Aim: To improve standards in education
How: Teachers were able to give more attention to students in smaller classes
Success: This policy remains largely in place today
83
Literacy and numeracy focus: Aim. How? Success?
Aim: To raise attainment levels of under achieving students
How: Introduction of literacy and numeracy hours in primary school
Success: Focus on literacy and numeracy continues today
84
15 hours free nursery education: Aim. How? Success?
Aim: To provide high-quality education to under 5s
How: All parents were given 15 three hours of nursery education a week
Success: This policy remains in place today and is seen by both Labour and Conservative governments as important part of young children’s education
85
Why did Whitty argue New Labours policies were a contradiction?
- Labour policies aim to tackle in a quality on one hand but committed market citation policies which often reinforce inequality
- The EMA encouraged working class children to stay on in further education but the introduction of tuition fees deterred many from continuing to university
86
Evidence how New Labour successfully raised standards in education
The number of students passing five good GCSEs and progression to further or higher education increased steadily
87
Who benefited the most from marketisation policies introduced by New Labour according to Ball?
The middle-class as they were able to change the best schools for their children
88
What does Curtis argue about New Labour not removing what types of schools despite long-standing opposition?
- Grammar schools and private schools were not abolished by New Labour
- The government did not remove private schools charitable status that reduces the amount of tax they have to pay which Curtis argues is worth £100 million per year
89
What expectation did Trowler argue New Labour were unrealistic in achieving?
New Labour were unrealistic in the expectation that education alone cannot tackle deep seated inequality
90
What did New Labours policies fail to tackle and what happened as a result?
- Failed to tackle social class inequality
- Many of their policies were abandoned
91
What was the coalition government education policy aims?
Encourage excellence, competition and innovation by freeing schools from the state
92
From 2010, what were all schools encouraged to do?
To leave local authority control and become academies
93
Name the two types of academies under the Coalition.
- Sponsored academies
- Convertor academies (majority of academies)
94
What are sponsored academies?
Academies that are instructed to become academies by the Department for Education because they were failing
95
What are convertor academies?
Schools that choose to become academies they receive funding directly from central governments and were given control over their curriculum.
96
How many academies were there in May 2010 compared to April 2012?
May 2010: 203 Academies
April 2012: 1,176 Academies
97
What does research show the main reason for schools converting to academies is?
They believe they would be financially better off
98
What did the conservative government of 2015 continue with?
- A rapid growth of academies
- A rapid growth in Academy chains which is a number of academies which join together and a governed by multi academy trust
99
Do academies raise standards in academic achievement?
- The Department of Education in 2012 claim that the improvements of GCSE results for academies was twice that of non-academies
- A comparison of academies and non-academies in disadvantage areas so no difference in levels of improvement
100
What did Hannay find when they compared converter academies with similar schools controlled by Local Authorities?
Conversion academies made little difference to academic performance of schools
101
What did Hannay find when they compared the results of sponsored academies and similar local authority schools?
Sponsor academies do almost as well judging by their GCSE results but they made more improvements than local authority schools arguably because they were failing previously
102
What did a joint study by Channel 4 and the Observer raise concerns about & give 2 examples.
- The way some leaders of multi-academy trusts rewarded themselves
- The chief executives of over half of the largest 50 Academy chains pay themselves more than the prime minister e.g over £143,000
- around half of the hundred trust surveyed gave contracts worth over £9 million to the trust directors or their relatives
103
What does Ball argue that the promotion of academies and free schools has led to?
- Increased fragmentation and centralisation of control over schools in England
- There is a lack of oversight and checks over what academy do and how they spend taxpayers money
- Parents are often unclear about who is in charge. Is it the headteacher the local authority or the Academy chain executive?
104
What are free schools?
They are funded directly by the state but are set up and run by parents teachers faith, organisations or businesses rather than the local authority
105
What do supporters of free schools claim about how they improve educational standards?
By taking control away from the state and giving power to parents free schools give parents and teachers that opportunity to create a new school if they are unhappy with the state school in their local area.
106
What two things to free schools not have to do?
- Teach the national curriculum as long as they teach English, Maths and Science
- Teachers do not need teaching qualifications
107
Between 2010 and 2015 how many free schools were approved by the coalition government?
Over 400
108
Evaluation: What does Allen argue about Free Schools and what research does she use?
- They only benefit children from highly educated families
- She used research from Sweden were 20% of schools of free schools
109
Give two examples from other countries which show how free schools socially divisive and lower standards according to critics
- Sweden international education ranking has fallen since the introduction free schools
- US Charter schools (similar to free schools) has been criticised by only raising standards through strict people selection and exclusion policies
110
Give evidence in England about free schools taking few disadvantage pupils?
In 2011 only 6.4% of pupils at Bristol Free School were eligible for free school meals compared to 22.5% of pupils across the city as a whole
111
What did OFSTED in 2015 claim there was little evidence for in terms of Free Schools
Little evidence that free schools have improved standards
112
Using evidence from 2013-2014, show how free schools receive a much higher level of state funding.
- Free Schools = £7,761 per pupil
- Local Authority Schools = £4,767
113
Name the 2 policies by the Coalition government that expanded marketisation
1. Academies
2. Free Schools
114
Name the 2 Coalition Government policies that aimed to reduce inequality
1. Free School Meals for all children in reception, year 1 and year 2
2. Pupil Premium - money that schools receive for each pupil from a disadvantaged background
115
What did OFSTED find in 2012 about Pupil Premium?
- Not spent on those it is supposed to help
- 1 in 10 headteachers said that it had significantly changed how they supported pupils from disadvantaged backgrounds
116
What happened as a result of the Conservative government’s austerity program?
- Spending on school buildings was cut by 60%
- Closed Sure Start centres
- Abolished the Education Maintenance Allowance
- University tuition fees tripled to £9000 a year
117
What do critics argue that the Conservative Governments austerity program has reduced?
- Opportunities for working class pupils
- Increase in university fees discourage them from entering higher education
118
What form of privatisation has occurred more recently since the 2000s?
Exogenous privatisation
119
Ball argues education becomes a source of profit for capitalists in what he calls…
The Education Service Industry (ESI)
120
Private companies in the Education Service Industry are involved in an ever increasing range of what five activities in education?
- Privatisation of school services
- The management of schools
- Growth of private exam boards
- Building schools
- The cola-isation of schools
121
What is the privatisation of school services?
Services that were once provided by local councils for schools are now increasingly carried out by private companies
122
Give seven examples of the services that are becoming privatised in schools
- Building maintenance
- School transport
- IT systems
- School catering
- Cleaning
- Staff training
- Librarians
123
Explain how the management of schools has become privatised.
- There are now a range of multi Academy trusts owned by private companies e.g Co-op
- In 2018, there was 738 multi Academy trusts. The running of a multi academy trust is similar to being a CEO of a large company.
124
Exam Boards and privatisation
- The U.K.’s largest examination awarding body is Pearson excel which is run by TNC private profit making company Pearson PLC
- Pearson is one of the worlds largest education and book publishing companies
- Pearson supplies over 70 countries with educational materials and assessments such as BTECs and GCSEs
125
Explain how building schools has become privatised
- Large scale school buildings projects often involve private companies. This is called Private Finance Initiative.
- Private companies provide the money design and build the school and own the building for up to 30 years during this time the local council pays a monthly fee to that company after 30 years the private company has recovered its cost and made a significant profit
126
What did Ball find about the privatisation of building schools?
- Private companies involved in building school make up to 10x as much profits as they would do from other contracts
- Local authorities are often obliged to enter these contracts as the only way of building new schools because of the lack of government funding
127
Cola-isation of schools
The private sector is also penetrating education indirectly such as through vending machines on school premises and the development of brand loyalty
128
What does Molher believe about why there is a cola-isation of schools?
Schools are targeted by private companies because schools give legitimacy to anything associated with them.
129
Name 2 sociologists which expose how cola-isation of schools don’t actually benefit schools or pupils.
- Ball: Cadbury sport equipment promotion was scrapped after it was revealed that pupils would have to eat 5,440 chocolate bars just to qualify for a set of volleyball posts
- Beder: UK families spent £110,000 in Tesco supermarket in return for a single computer for schools
130
Give 2 arguments for the privatisation of schools
- Private companies with a proven record of improving schools and investing in them are more likely to race standards at a lesser cost than local educational authorities with limited resources
- The motivation to make a profit means that schools must be full and run efficiently therefore the private companies have the motivation to improve schools in areas where there is poor quality education
131
What do markets sociologist such as Holl argue about privatisation and competition?
They do not raise standards and it is a myth used to justify tiny education into a source of private profit that benefits the ruling class
132
Give an example for the argument against the privatisation of education “private companies do not always have the experience necessary to carry out educational services”.
Tribal inspectors was hired by OFSTED to carry out inspections but in 2014 OFSTED announced it would stop using private companies following concern over selection, training and quality of inspectors employed
133
Privatisation means that *what* may override the needs of children?
- Making money may override the needs of children as schools were by profit making companies make covertly exclude the hardest to teach pupils
- Those with low academic ability, SEND or present challenging behaviour may be discouraged from applying to a school which increases inequalities in educational achievement
134
Why may money be drained from the education system because of privatisation?
Money may be drained from the education system if private investors do not reinvest their profits and education taking public money out of schools in colleges and into the pockets of the investors
135
Give two more arguments against privatisation of education
- What happens if a private company goes out of business, would this impact negatively the academies?
- Profit making companies may select only the best or better schools to run as it was secure them the most money but what happens to the famous schools that receive no private investment
136
What are the five features of globalisation which impact education?
- Technological development
- Economic changes
- Political changes
- Cultural changes
- Migration
137
Technological Development: Description & Impact of Education
- Description: New technologies have made it easier to connect people over long distances
- Impact: Global ICT companies influence curriculum create exam details and educational software etc.
138
Economic Changes: Description & Impact of Education
- Description: Economic activity takes place on a global scale in a 24 hour electronic economy system and transnational companies have expanded
- Impact: Children need to be taught the skills to compete in the global economy
139
Political Changes: Description & Impact of Education
- Description: Globalisation has reduced the power of the nation state, in some cases TNCs have more power than government
- Impact: The role of local councils and government in managing schools has weakened as global companies become more powerful
140
Cultural Changes: Description & Impact of Education
- Description: we now live in a clover culture created by mass media and the Internet. This has led to the westernisation of the world.
- Impact: Is the U.K.’s national curriculum relevant or do we need a global curriculum that reflects our global culture?
141
Migration: Description & Impact of Education
- Description: People are moving more freely within and between countries
- Impact: Migration leads to pupils from different cultures in the UK classrooms and has led to increase in faith schools
142
Give two important ways in which globalisation has impacted upon UK education and what has this led to?
- Increase privatisation and marketisation in education
- International comparisons between educational achievement across countries globally
- This has led to the introduction of policies to improve achievement which have been borrowed from more successful countries
143
What has globalisation opened up opportunities for?
- Global private education businesses to make profits from schools in the UK and around the world
- Education it’s a multi billion pound market with companies making huge profits by offering education services, software, training and resources
144
Example of globalisation, privatisation and marketisation
- Pearson
- Pearson is a multinational company operating in 200 countries across the world
- It is one of the worlds largest education book publishing companies and provides academic and vocational qualifications in the over seven countries like Edexcel
145
Give an example of international student achievement surveys and explain what they do
- Thet compare the education performance of a range of countries by student sitting test in maths reading and science whether data is ranked in a league table which in turn influence education policy
- PISA (Programme for International Student Assessment) is used by OECD (Organisation for Economic Cooperation & Development)
146
Why did Michael Gove slim down the National curriculum in English, Maths and Science?
- 2012: Out of 65 countries, the UK came 26thin maths 23rd in reading and 20th in science
- Gove wanted to slim down the national curriculum to contain the core knowledge which other nations pass onto their pupils
147
As a result of PISA what policy we adopt?
- Finland which scores highly on the PISA league tables has high entry requirements for its teacher training courses
- Adopted by the UK
148
3 Strengths of international comparisons
- Useful to see whether spending on education is having results as some countries spend less but do better
- Useful compass standards and see what children can do at different ages
- Provide good evidence for effectiveness of policy
149
3 weaknesses of international comparisons
- Other important areas of education are not tested e.g well-being, social personal development or artistic abilities etc.
- Concerns over validity and reliability as cultures of different countries may be so different they can’t be compared
- Reduces consistency in education is policies are constantly changed in response to the tests
