Topic 1- Education

Question 1

Define marketisation

Answer 1

New Right (Americans Chubb and Moe)
The concept of giving parents a virtual ticket to have the choice over which school they want to send their child to. Schools would compete like businesses in a market and promote themselves in order to get more parents applying.

Question 2

Consequences of marketisation?

Answer 2

Because schools were competing, one way that parents would find out which schools were best was through league tables: schools were rated on a board according to exam results. As a result, the homes surrounding schools with the highest rankings were increased in price which would have made it more difficult for working class families to afford to live by them, making it more difficult to get in = selection by mortgage

Question 3

Identify/define 4 educational social policies

Answer 3

• Ofsted
• League Tables as a result of Marketisation
• Formula funding from government for schools

Question 4

Define setting/streaming

Answer 4

Setting: Classes divided based on personal academic achievement for a single subject

Streaming: Setting, but for all classes

Question 5

Define committed sociology

Answer 5

Belief that it isn’t possible or desirable to keep values out of research 
Myrdal (1969)- sociologists don’t need to spell out their values but should openly take sides by sharing interests of particular groups (working class boy)

Question 6

Define value free sociology

Answer 6

The opposite of committed- particularly Positivist aspect

Sociologists should keep their personal beliefs and values out of the research and remain objective, like in Science.