Educational Policies And Social Class Inequality Flashcards
What is educational policy
A term given to a government initiative or social policy that has the direct purpose of changing education
For example - education reform act
What is a social policy
Indirect social policies that impact on education are those that do not have a direct aim to change education for example
- equal pay act
- sex discrimination act
- divorce reform act
What is the tripartite system
- students sit 11+
- student pass they go to grammar schools (academic) or technical school (technical skills)
- students fail they go to secondary modern (vocational based)
What did the comprehensive education do
- banned selection by ability
- students educated on ‘one side fits all’ basis
- internal selection through setting,streaming and banding
What did the conservative government do
Introduced marketisation
- creation of new universities to improve equality of access
- education reform act led to increasing standards in schools- more working-class students going into higher education
What did the new labour government do
creation of sure start
-tackling the gaps in development for pupils in areas of deprivation
Education maintenance allowance
-£30 a week given to students of low-income households to continue in education post- 16
What else did the new labour government introduce
City academies -independent publicly funded schools in inner-city areas -formed from failing schools Reduced class sizes -less than 30 per primary class School building programme Raising school-leaving age to 18
What did the coalition government do
Introduced pupil premium
-additional funding given to schools with students from homes in areas of deprivation
Universal free school meals
-up to age 7 in all schools
How effective were these policies (tripartite, comprehensive, new labour, EMA)
Tripartite system- grammar schools dominated by middle class
Comprehensive- setting and streaming led to inequality between low and high sets
New labour- sure start used by more affluent parents and cuts to services from 2010 mean only in most deprived areas
EMA- removed by coalition in 2010 when school leaving age increased
How effective were these policies (city academies, expansion of universities, fsm,)
City academies- accusations of covert selection and off-rolling of problem students
Expansion of universities- academic inflation and large student debts
Austerity policies lowered income threshold for free school meals beyond age 7
Cuts to education spending have led to parents, teachers and associations finding additional sources of revenue
