Theories: Social Democratic Perspectives Flashcards
What is the social democratic perspective/argument on education?
- They argue that education does need to be changed to improve, but that this doesn’t require a revolutionary change in society.
- However, they disagree over the direction of change.
What are social democratic perspectives associated with?
Educationalists and politicians who would like to see greater equality resulting from the education system.
What is an example of this?
The British Labour governments of the 1960s and 1970s, who introduced and expanded comprehensive schools.
What do social democratic perspectives influence?
Educationalists, sociologists and politicians who stress that school must give extra help to those from disadvantaged backgrounds.
What do supporters of social democratic perspectives believe?
- In addition to promoting economic growth, education is essential to promoting equality of opportunity in a meritocracy.
- However, they believe that education is not automatically meritocratic and that governments need to intervene to ensure that people from all social classes have the same chance to fulfil their potential in the education system.
How can ways to help people from all social classes have the same chance to fulfil their potential in the education system be achieved?
To achieve this, the government may need to make some changes in society as well as in the education system.
What is the social democratic view about society?
A society that has too much inequality can never provide equal opportunities - the richest will always use their wealth to gain advantage (e.g. by buying private education).
How can this be contradicted?
By taxing the wealthy more and spending revenue on state education, it is possible to give those from w.c. backgrounds a good chance to succeed.
How do social democrats believe that those from the w.c. can be provided with a good chance to succeed?
- By expanding higher education to make more places available for w.c. pupils.
- By introducing comprehensive schools (so m.c. pupils can’t gain an advantage by going to selective state schools).
- By providing extra educational help for those from disadvantaged backgrounds.
When did Halsey and Floyd have influence and what on?
- Influential in the 1960s and 1970s when Labour governments followed some of these policies.
- They have continued to have some influence on Labour governments and the Coalition government since then.
What is an evaluation of the social democratic perspectives on education?
- Critics have argued that social democratic policies have not been particularly successful in helping the w.c. do better in education. Despite the introduction of many new policies to achieve this, the gap in attainment between classes remains large.
- The strongest critics of social democratic viewpoints have probably been neoliberals. According to many neoliberals, greater equality in education can lead to standards being undermined. Education becomes levelled down, and the most able students (e.g. in mixed-ability classes that progress at the pace of the slowest learners) aren’t given the chance to reach their full potential.
- Social democratic views are also criticised by some feminists, who believe they concentrate too much on class inequalities and not enough on gender inequalities.
As an evaluation of the social democratic perspectives on education, what does Wolf question?
- Wolf (2002) questions whether more and more government spending on education will automatically lead to economic growth. - E.g. Switzerland has relatively low education spending but high economic growth.
