Educational Policy Flashcards
Timeline of political governments in the UK
- Labour 1964-70
- Conservative 1970-74
- Labour 1974-79
- Conservative/New Right 1979-97
- New Labour 1997-2010
- Coalition (Conservative/Liberal Democrats) 2010-2015
- Conservative 2015-present
Left wing views on Education
- Labour Party
- Focus on equality of opportunity and the raising of achievement for disadvantaged groups
- Take a Social Democratic approach
- Change the system
- Taxation to redistribute opportunity and wealth
Right Wing views on Education
- Conservative Party
- Value tradition and believe shouldn’t be too much state intervention - individuals should look after themselves
- Raising standards and the marketisation of Education to encourage schools to compete
- Takes a New Right approach
- Shouldn’t have to pay for someone else’s education
What are Youth training schemes?
YTS
•Conservative/New Right
Brought in because of the large numbers of young people with no qualifications. Training was offered to NEETS (young people out of education who aren’t working or being trained.)
If they refused to accept them benefits were taken off them
What are GNVQs?
•Conservative/New Right
Training in key sectors like Health, Social care, leisure and tourism. Enabled students to develop skills for the workplace before leaving school
What are NVQs?
•Conservative/New Right
Part of programme for new vocationalism. They are often on the job training.
What is The ‘New Deal’?
Aimed at unemployment of NEETS who were offered voluntary work for 6 months with training or full time education. Refusal to take part leads to removal of benefits, introduced by the New Labour scheme
What was the Butler Act?
- Introduced in 1944 by Conservative R.A Butler
- The Tripartite System split children into 3 schools: Grammar, technical and secondary modern
- Had to take an 11 plus exam
What did De Waal say about New Vocational qualifications?
Marxist
Argued they don’t teach vocational skills of any use, instead they are about occupying time. They often have little value in the outside world. They recreate the divisions that was found in the tripartite system
What did Evans argue about vocational qualifications?
Marxist
•Argued the quality of training offered in vocational education was poor
What was New Vocationalism Act?
- Introduced In 1979
- Meet needs of the economy and increase skills of the youth
- Tackle youth unemployment
- Criticised for manipulating unemployment stats
- Schools were producing students who lacked skills for the industry
What was the Education Reform Act Of 1988?
- Introduced the National Curriculum and League tables so know parents could choose suitable schools
- Raise educational standards increasing choice and competition
- Standardise Education so all schools can be compared
- Marketise the system creating ‘customers’ to raise standards
What does Althusser say about the relationship between the education and the economy?
- UK must be able to complete globally
* Having an Education with a market led approach will help raise standards and increase competition
What did Bowles and Gintis say about the relationship between the education and the economy?
Specialised skills are needed to prepare people for the economy, sufficient funding should be available to prepare all students for workplace
What did Willis say about the relationship between education and the economy?
Education provides a bridge for students between home and work, teaching universalistic skills to relate for society and the world of work
What did Rikowski say about the relationship between education and the economy?
(Marxist)
Argues that education is increasingly organised along business lines. It has become part of the capitalist economy
What did Durkheim say about the relationship between education and the economy?
Diversity is needed within the curriculum in order to meet the needs of a fast changing society in which work is fragmented and technology driven
What did Parsons say about the relationship between education and the economy?
Specialised division of labour in modern industrial society requires a specialised workforce which education should produce
What did Davis and Moore say about the relationship between education and the economy?
Schooling is Patriarchal and channels girls into gendered roles. Vocational education is gendered
What do the New Right think about the relationship between education and the economy?
School corresponds to the workplace and teaches students to be docile, conformist and obedient workers
What is the social democratic view of the relationship between education and the economy?
School prepares students for the workplace, working class boys for working class jobs.
What is the Feminist view of the relationship between education and the economy?
Education’s key function is role allocation, sorting pupils by their ability to the most important roles in a patriarchal society
What is the postmodernist view of the relationship between education and the economy?
Education is part of the ideological state apparatus which teaches pupils norms and values required for a capitalist society through the hidden curriculum
What Conservative/New Right policies from 1979-1997 helped meet the needs of the economy in education?
•1979 - New Vocationalism:
- YTS, NVQs/GNVQs
•1988 - National curriculum, City Technology Colleges (offered technical skills to prepare students for work)
What New Labour polices from 1997-2010 helped meet the needs of the economy in education?
- 14-19 Diploma
- New Deal
- Raising Literacy and numeracy standards
- Raising school leaving age to 16 years to ensure a better skilled workforce
- Curriculum 2000
What’s the 14-19 Diploma?
- Introduced by New Labour
- ’Lines Of learning’ a Range Of qualifications in different vocations
- Eg: Media, Travel, Engineering etc
What was the New Deal?
- Introduced by New Labour
- Large piece of legislations with great investment that aimed to get unemployed NEETS back into work
- Here they gained skills and if they refused the opportunity their benefits were removed
What was Curriculum 2000?
- Introduced by New Labour
- Split linear qualification into AS and A2
- All AS and A2 students had to complete Key Skills in IT
- This helped make a better technologically proficient workforce
What Coalition (Lib Dems & Conservative) policies from 2010-2015 helped meet the needs of the economy in education?
- More apprenticeships - ‘earn while you learn’ trained in ‘skills employers want’
- Changes to A-level and GCSE’s to make it ‘harder’ to create a better skilled workforce
- Raised school leaving age to 18 - had to be in education or training for a better qualified workforce