educational policy Flashcards
tripartite system
- idea behind this is that children go to different secondary schools,each of which would provide a different curriculum depending on the abilities and skills of the children who attended
- at the end of primary school would sit an exam (11 plus exam)
- children who passed would be sent to a grammar school-offered an academic curriculum with a view that pupils would go to university and have professional careers
- children who failed would attend either a secondary modern school-which were more practical such as woodwork for boys and home economics for girls.
- or a technical school which would aim to train up kids to work in a specific trade eg mechanics
critics of marketisation:causes schools to be more selective in their recruitment
Ball:
-argues that due to league tables schools are under a lot of pressure to get good GCSEs so they have a high position on league tables->makes them selective in recruitment
Bartlett:
Cream Skinning: successful schools use recruitment strategies which enable them to offer places to pupils which are likely to do well in exams->helps the school maintain a high position on league tables
EXAMPLE: schools may visit primary schools in middle class areas to market themselves to parents and work out the most desirable pupils
Silt Shifting: strategies used to avoid recruiting those pupils who may perform poorly and lower schools league table position
EXAMPLE: schools won’t offer application forms in other languages or set their application systems online so they can only be accessed by middle class families
-Schools at the bottom of the league tables can’t afford to turn pupils away-> creates cycle of under performance
-Overall actively reproduces inequalities in achievement as pupils at selective schools are more likely to succeed
privatisation of education
-privatisation means that it is funded and regulated by an independent company rather than the government
ways in which privatisation can be seen:
1.state education acts as a base for private business opportunties-people who work in state education go on to pursue a career in the private sector later using skills and experiences picked up from the state sector.Former teachers might set up private businesses such as offer private tuition
2.schools have undergone a process of colaisation-colaisation is where schools show brand loyalty to certain companies,selling products on site to staff and pupils.Eg selling certain foods and drinks and stationary products.Idea is that schools and businesses both benefit,businesses gain profit from products being sold and schools gain being able to supply their staff and pupils with discounted goods
3.more opportunities for public-private partnerships (PPPs)
-schools and privates businesses work collaboratively together in long term contracts which are profitable as they receive a guaranteed income as well schools being able to improve their facilities.Creates a win-win situation:
1.company makes guaranteed profit as being financed by reliable source
2.school benefits as there facilities get improved makes it more desirable for parents to send there kids there-more pupils more money
Comprehensive system
-doesn’t recruit students based on ability
made a number of changes to structure of education:
-Removed requirement of primary school pupils of sitting 11+ exam
-introduced catchment system
-replaced selective schools with schools which teach pupils all the same curriculum
Supporters of comprehensive system
Functionalist sociologists:
- genuinely meritocratic system which offers all pupils the same opportunities
- Ford adds enables more social mixing of children across class and gender groups-benefits social integration
Critics of Comprehensive system
Marxists:
- does little to reduce class inequality.Pupils expected to attend schools in local area
- Labelling and streaming still occurs inside the comprehensive system
Education reform Act (1988)- Marketisation policies
- encourages marketisation of schools
- aimed to reduce state control over schools making schools more responsible for their actions
- encouraged schools to compete against each other,parents have more say on where they want to send there children
- Open enrolment:parents could send application forms on where to send there children
- national curriculum:all children are taught the same things at schools
- League tables: schools publishing GCSE results and ranked on ordered, compared to other schools
- Ofsted inspection body:someone randomly drops into the school to observe the quality of teaching and learning.Info available to parents
- formula funding:schools given a budget based on how many students they recruit
Marketisation under new labour (1997-2010]
Labour supported marketisation strategies but added more to raise aspirations of young people from a deprived background
- Education action zones:deprived schools+underperforming schools given additional funding to spend on resources to raise achievement
- Aime higher programme:set pupils up with work experience+extra curriculum activities to enhance their CV
- education maintenance allowance:payment set up (£30) a week given to pupils of they stayed in education up to 16 years old
- National literacy strategy: schools required to read with children for a period of time per week
- Curriculum 2000: rather then sitting exams at the end of 2 years they would sit module exams in all subjects,twice a year in year 12 (As qualifications).If completed further exams in year 13 converted into A levels
- Banning creation of new selective grammar schools
Critics of Labour government
- Points out policies were contradicted
- While introducing policies which were aimed to reduce inequality.They introduced tuition fees for university-led to ‘fear of debt’ emerging as a barrier to W/C achievement
- Puts of people going to university
- Even if they placed a ban of creation of new grammar schools they failed to challenge the existence of private education in Uk (7% of pupils attend paying schools)
Marketisation since 2010
Uk was under leadership of the Conservative party.David Cameron made it his mission to encourage ‘excellence, completion and innovation’ in education.Education reform act pushed through in 2011
- Introduction of academies and free schools.Academies are schools which were controlled by LEA but converted to be self controlled.Free schools were new schools which worked the same as academies.Both funded by the state but can be funded through other sources eg sponsorships
- Pupil premium:grant for schools if they recruit disadvantaged pupils they are funded more money so pupils have free school meals who on a register
- Overhaul to make GCSE+Alevel more academic.Went back to old A level system so students sit all exams at the end of year 13, reduced amount of coursework in subjects and changed grading system to 1-9 for GCSEs
- scrapped education maintenance allowance:no longer required as leaving age for education was 18.
- raising of tuition fees:from £3,000 to £9,000 per year, with a view that uni was funded mostly by students rather than the state.Help raise standards by applying more of a marketised system within higher education
supporters of marketisation 2010
- help restore higher standards of education.Labour lowered them making education too ‘easy’
- reduces educational inequality by ensuring schools are appropriately funded for children who need it most eg pupil premium free school meals
Critics of marketisation 2010
- worsened achievement gap between deprived and wealthy pupils.E.g free schools take on fewer disadvantaged pupils+ have power to be selective about their intake-causes cream skimming and silk sifting
- Academies and free schools have broken down education: what is nationally being provided is highly varied.Schools are in the hand of individuals (who may have a business background)instead of LEAs it is a lottery in terms of resources that are provided
- Due to the recent outbreak of coronavirus and school closures.Some schools being well equipped to provide online learning and some not this inevitably will lead to a growth in equality in achievement in pupils who attended well resourced schools and those that didn’t
Evaluation of privatised education
evaluation:
- enables the government to reduce the amount of responsibility they have for education
- schools are now preoccupied with managing finances-don’t focus on pupils
Supporters of tripartite system
supporters:
say it helps to sift and sort pupils according to skill and ability which enables them to pursue secondary school which better suited there needs
-also was an compulsory education policy providing free education to all young people irrespective of background
Critics of Tripartite system
critics: -reproduced and maintained gender inequality-girls had a higher pass mark than boys to get into grammar school.So it was rare for females to access the path for them to get into university.At the time females were expected to be housewives so were more likely to be pushed to go to secondary modern schools -contributes to maintaining class inequality-majority of pupils at grammar school were middle class pupils.This is because middle class families can afford to pay for tutours for their children for the 11 plus exam making it more likely they would pass Also pupils who weren’t from a middle class background who achieved a place were made to feel that they didn’t fit in with the middle class habitus of the school resulting in many pupils withdrawing from the grammar school.Led to universities being populated by wealthy families and professional roles in society
