educational reform/policy Flashcards
1870 Forster Act
tried to fill gaps in state run education to make sure children had access to education until age 10 (made compulsory in 1880)
Fisher Education Act 1918
made attendance compulsory until age 14
strengths of 1870-1918 acts
- improved equality
- mass literacy
weaknesses of 1870-1918 acts
- unequal as most working class children left with no qualifications
- no vocational relevance
Butler Education Act / Tripartite System 1944
children would take the 11+ exam and this would determine which type of secondary school they went to
selection by 11+
- grammar schools (20%, passed, mainly m/c)
- secondary modern schools (75%, didn’t pass, mainly w/c)
- technical schools (5%, borderline/voluntary exams, few existed)
strengths of Tripartite system
- equal opportunity
- meritocracy
- suits needs of learner
- encouraged social mobility
weaknesses of Tripartite system
- IQ testing lacks validity
- gender bias
- late developers
- still unequal (secondary modern schools viewed as second rate)
development of comprehensive 1965-1979
abolished the 11+ and all 3 types of school had to become comprehensives, with selection being based only on catchment area
strengths of comprehensive system
- more equality of opportunity
- more pupils with qualifications
- more social mixing and fewer social divisions
weaknesses of comprehensive system
- unequal as there are still private and grammar schools
- still socially divisive in setting
- catchment areas mean w/c end up in failing schools
Conservative Educational Policies 1979-1997
Margaret Thatcher’s approach became known as the “New Right” and wanted education to meet the needs of industry and raise standards without spending a lot of money
1. new vocationalism
2. marketisation/competition
New Vocationalism 1983-1986
response to a rise in youth unemployment during the 70s as they did not have the skills required to meet employer needs:
YTS (youth training scheme) - one year, work-based training scheme for school leavers in which they could take vocational qualifications
Vocational Qualifications - NVQ (national council for vocational qualifications) set up for a range of specific occupations, and GNVQs created for those who wanted to keep options open
strengths of new vocationalism
- gives people skills required for particular industries
weaknesses of new vocationalism
- does not reduce unemployment (lack of jobs rather than skills)
- low quality training
- inferior status of vocational qualifications
1988 Education Reform Act (marketisation/competition)
schools would be placed against each other to drive up standards through the following measures:
- formula funding
- parental choice
- league tables
- SATs
- national curriculum
- Ofsted
strengths of marketisation policies
- parentocracy
- competition improved standards
- schools now controlled own funding
- national curriculum improved equality
weaknesses of marketisation policies
- spiral of decline for unsuccessful schools
- illusion of parentocracy (Ball eat al - m/c parents could ensure their children went to successful schools)
- schools began to be selective (Bartlett - schools cream skim m/c children who do well and silt shift w/c or SEN children)
- league tables are not useful for comparing schools
New Labour’s Education Policy 1997-2010
key ideas were to increase equality and diversity, drive up standards and give parents more choice; some of the policies introduced were:
- faith schools
- sure start schemes
- educational action zones EAZs
- literacy and numeracy hours
- city academies
- specialist schools
- free nursery places
- educational maintenance award
- university fees
- leaving age raised to 18
- vocational education improvements
strengths of New Labour policies
- increased diversity and tackled inequality
- raised standards
weaknesses of New Labour policies
- only helped m/c (w/c in fear of debt with university fees)
- private schools still inaccessible to w/c
Conservative/Liberal Coalition Government 2010-present
- encouraged academies and free schools
- EMA scrapped
- increased university fees
- pupil premium
- free nursery places for deprived 2 year olds
- A level and GCSE reform
strengths of Conservative/Coalition policies
- increased equality (pupil premium, nursery places etc)
weaknesses of Conservative/Coalition policies
- many free schools have failed or provided substandard education
- inequality for w/c (increased university fees, scrapped EMA etc)
arguments for existence of fee paying schools
- higher funding means smaller class sizes so greater chance of academic success
- parents should have the right to give their children to education they feel they deserve
- can achieve higher standard as free from interference by outside agencies
arguments against the existence of fee paying schools
- most individuals cannot afford it so education will never be meritocratic
- receive same tax relief and charity status although they only benefit privileged
- tax payer ends up funding the training of teachers in these schools as most come through state funded schools and universities
privatisation and education
can take soft forms such as academies and free schools and harder forms such as businesses directly making profits from schools
Kelly - how globalisation has influenced educational policy
- government feels like they need to make sure that skills provided meet the needs of the global economy
- education systems become increasingly alike and international league tables are compared and international tests such as PISA as well as Ofsted inspections being exported to countries such as China
- schools need to market themselves globally to attract global customers (especially unis and private schools)
- multi-national companies pay an active role in generating profits (Edexcel is owned by US Pearson) and also Cola-isation of schools where companies sponsor schools
