the role of education in society - neoliberalism and the new right Flashcards
neoliberalism
based on an economic principle - free market economy, limited regulation (if any) by the state.
encourage privatisation and competition-drive up standards.
state should not provide services ‘roll back the state’.
state should not control individuals.
education should enable a country to compete globally
schools are businesses, caregivers/parents and pupils are consumers.
the new right
a conservative political view.
incorporates neoliberal ideas
some people are naturally more talented than others.
agree with functionalists that education should be run on meritocratic principles of open competition
they believe that education should socialise pupils into shared values & provide a sense of national identity.
effects of state control
state control has resulted in inefficiency, national economic decline and a lack of personal initiative.
one size fits all - the state cannot meet people’s needs. education inevitably ends up as one size fits all that does not meet individual needs or the needs of employers for skilled & motivated workers.
schools that get poor results do not change because they are not accountable to their consumers - the pupils, caregivers/parents and employers. the result is lower standards and a less qualified workforce.
chubb and moe - consumer choice
compared the achievements of 60,000 pupils from low-income families in 1,015 state & private schools in usa
data shows that pupils from low-income families do about 5% better in private schools.
suggests that state education is not meritocratic.
state education has failed to create equal opportunity because it does not have to respond to pupils’ needs.
parents/caregivers & communities cannot do anything about failing schools while the schools are controlled by the state.
private schools deliver higher quality education because they are answerable to paying consumers - the parents
two roles for the state
the state imposes a framework on schools for which they have to compete - publishing ofsted inspection reports and league tables of schools’ exam results, the state gives parents information with which to make a more informed choice between schools
ensures that schools transmit a shared culture by imposing a single national curriculum. it seeks to guarantee that schools socialise pupils into a single cultural heritage
evaluation of the new right
gewirtz and ball - argue that competition between schools benefits the middle class, who can use their cultural and economic capital to gain access to more desirable schools.
critics argue that the real cause of low educational standards is not state control but social inequality and inadequate funding of state schools.
there is a contradiction between the new right’s support for parental choice on the one hand and the state imposing a compulsory national curriculum on all its schools on the other
marxists argue that education does not impose a shared national culture, as the new right claim, but imposes the culture of a dominant minority ruling class and devalues the culture of the working class and minority ethnic groups
