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Educational Policy in Britain - Coggle Diagram
Educational Policy in Britain
Comprehensive System 1965
Positives
breaks down class divisions, pupils of all classes mix in one school
economic advantage as one large school is cheaper and better facilities can be provided
more meritocratic as it gives pupils longer time to develop their abilities, not selected at age 11
meritocratic as everyone within a catchment area has opportunity to attend
Tripartite system and 11+ "abolished", but LEAs left to decide if a school was to "go comprehensive." Not all did= divide still existed
Problems
limited parental choice
academically able students are held back whilst struggling students are left behind
catchment areas are based on local neighbourhoods, which are divided by class
in-class streaming still separates students by class= myth of meritocracy
legitimises class inequality- makes unequal achievement seem fair by not selecting pupils at 11
New Vocationalism:
Labour PM Callaghan argued education system was not producing pupils with skills needed for the modern economy. Comprehensivisation= all pupils did academic qualifications, but many jobs required practical/ technical skills= gov pushed for new vocational qualifications e.g. GNVQs and BTECs introduced in the 1980s
Introduced by
Labour gov 1965
, reorganised secondary education so that all students regardless of academic ability attended same type of school (more meritocratic)
Education in 19th century
Education Act 1880:
made education compulsory for children aged 5-10. However, schooling was based on class: m/c pupils given academic curriculum, w/c pupils given basics needed for routine factory work and obedience.
Prior to industrial revolution in early 19th century, there were no state schools, only fee-paying schools for the rich.
Tripartite System 1944
1944 Butler Act:
aimed to create a better educated workforce, so Britain's economy can be more competitive. Aimed to give all student an equal chance to develop their abilities in free state-run education- ideas of meritocracy
Tripartite System:
children take 11+ exam and are sorted into grammar, secondary modern and technical schools based on their performance.
Secondary modern
: non-academic, "practical" curriculum, access to manual work- for pupils who failed the 11+ exam (75% of pupils)
Grammar schools
: offered academic curriculum, access to higher education and non-manual jobs- for pupils with academic ability who passed 11+ (20% of pupils)
Technical schools
: specialised in 'technical' subjects e.g. mechanics, engineering, prepared students to work in related trades (very few existed, 5% of pupils)
Issues
11+ test was unreliable, legitimated idea that ability is inborn
caused low self-esteem- seen as a pass/fail exam
children were divided by social class= reproduced class inequality
not meritocratic- unequal opportunities, girls required a higher mark in 11+ than boys to get into grammar schools
secondary moderns had a bad reputation
Conservative Policies
(Coalition Government 2010-2015)
Academies
Forced academisation: From 2010, all schools encouraged to leave local authority control and become academies. Funding now given directly to academies rather than LEAs= now have control over their curriculum.
2017
: over 68% of all secondaries had converted to academies, with some run by private educational businesses and funded directly by the state.
Labour's original city academies targeted disadvantaged schools/areas, Coalition gov removed focus on reducing equality by allowing any school to become an academy.
Free Schools
Set up and run by parents/ teachers/ faith organisations rather than LEAs, funded directly by the state.
Claim to improve educational standards by taking control away from the state and giving parents more power and choice. They have the opportunity to create a new school if they are unhappy with the state schools in their local area.
Allen (2010):
research from Sweden where 20% of schools are free schools shows they only benefit children from highly educated families. They also lower standards e.g. Sweden's international educational ranking has fallen since their introduction.
In England free schools take fewer disadvantaged pupils than nearby schools. 2011: 6.4% of pupils at Bristol Free School eligible for FSM, compared to 22.5% across all of Bristol.
David Cameron: aim of Coalition's education policy is to encourage excellence, competition and innovation by freeing schools from the "dead hand" of the state
Fragmented Socialisation
Ball (2011):
promoting academies and free schools had led to
both
increased fragmentation and increased centralisation of control.
Fragmentation
: the comprehensive system is being replaced by a patchwork of diverse provision, much of it involving private providers, leading to greater inequality in opportunities.
Centralisation of control:
central gov alone has the power to allow/ require schools to become academies or allow free schools to be set up, and directly funds them. This has greatly reduced role of elected LEAs.
Policies to Reduce Inequality?
Ofsted
: in many cases PP is not is not spent on those it's supposed to help. Only 1/10 headteachers said it significantly changed how they supported disadvantaged pupils.
Free school meals
for all children in reception, year 1, year 2
Pupil Premium-
money schools receive for each pupil from a disadvantaged background.
Austerity= many areas of education have been cut:
spending on school buildings cut 60%
many Sure Start centres closed
EMA was scrapped
university tuition fees tripled to £9000 a year
Conservative Policies (1979-1997)
Thatcher
: aimed to develop an educational system which meets the needs of industry and raise standards of Britain's schools. Introduced market forces of consumer choice and competition into education.
1988 Education Reform Act
Established a
National Curriculum
for all state schools. Pupils must study 3 core subjects (maths, English, science) and 7 foundation subjects.
Introduced a national system of standardised testing-
GCSEs
, as well as
SATS
in primary schools.
Introduction of
league tables
= school exam results of schools are published, allowing parents to judge performance of schools.
Marked beginning of the marketisation of education:
OFTSED established 1992 under John Major
New Labour Policies (1997-2010)
Education Action Zones
: identified deprived areas and provided them with extra resources
Aim Higher programme:
aimed to raise aspirations of groups under-represented in higher education
Aimed to reduce inequalities created by marketisation, increased funding for state education and introduced:
EMAs
: weekly payments to students from low-income backgrounds to encourage them to stay in education after 16 to get better qualifications
National Literacy Strategy
, literacy and numeracy hours to tackle illiteracy, smaller class sizes- greater benefit to disadvantaged pupils, tackling inequality
City Academies
created to give fresh start to struggling inner-city schools with mainy w/c pupils
Benn (2012): New Labour Paradox:
there is a contradiction between Labour's policies to tackle inequality and its commitment to marketisation e.g. introduced EMAs to help w/c to stay in education but also tuition fees for higher education