Educational Policy and Marketisation Flashcards
(41 cards)
1
Q
The Tripartite System - Aims and Policies
A
Years: 1944
Aim:
- The aim of the project was to award children based on their ability and to help break down some of the class barriers that existed in society, the students from working class backgrounds could win places at grammar schools.
- The 1944 education act was strongly influenced by social democratic principles, and it aimed to provide equality of opportunity for all young people.
- Each type of school was to have a parity of esteem - equal status - with similar funding, and building, equipment and staffing of similar quality. Students took an exam, the 11 plus, to discover which type of school they were best suited for.
Policies:
- The school leaving age was 15 and the tripartite system of education was introduced.
- This consisted of three types of children school; grammar schools; for academic students, secondary technical schools for those with an aptitude for technical schools such as engineering and secondary modern schools focusing on subjects such as woodwork, metalworks, cookery and needlework for students seen to be the best suited to practical tasks and manual jobs.
2
Q
The Tripartite System - Evaluation
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1, The grammar schools were attended by around 20 percent of young people and were seen as the most prestigious type of secondary school. Academic subjects were specialised in and this led to the high status, well paid jobs. Secondary modern schools were attended by most young people and were seen as low status institutions. Parity of esteem did not exist.
2, The system wasted talent. Many secondary modern schools were not allowed to take O level exams, which meant their education was finished at 15. They were denied the opportunity to progress further, this prevented them from releasing their full potential and from and from making a full contribution to the economy.
3, The social class divide remains wide considering the aim was to increase the opportunities of working class students. One third of middle class boys went to grammar schools compared to only a quarter of working class boys.
3
Q
The comprehensive system - Aims
A
Aims - By the 1960s, it was clear that the tripartite system was wasting talent, as the education and skills needed for economic growth were not being provided, or the equality of educational opportunity which the 1944 Act looked for
- The comprehensive system looked to offer a solution by providing a single form of state secondary education for all, with one type of school (comprehensive school) for students of all backgrounds and abilities
- This aimed to offer the same opportunities to obtain qualifications and training for all people, and supporters of this policy believed it would reduce social class differences in attainment
- It appeared that social class prevented equality of opportunity, with social democrats arguing that the only way to create educational equality in opportunity was to reduce social inequality a a whole, and one way to do this is to target resources at the most disadvantaged
4
Q
The comprehensive system - policies
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The Educational Priority Areas in the late 1960s - additional resources were provided for low-income areas in England in the hope of raising standards
- The emphasis was on pre-school and primary education; although it was difficult to evaluate results, the available evidence suggests that this policy produced little change
5
Q
The comprehensive system - evaluation
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- Despite improvement in the educational qualifications of school leavers, class differences in attainment remained largely unchanged
- The policies were largely ineffective at changing class differences in achievement and so it failed at its main aims of supporting an engagement in the equal opportunities despite creating them
- They have had an impact by providing an opportunity for all classes and abilities to interact and have access to the same quality of education in theory, even though this isn’t the case in practice
6
Q
The Education Reform Act (1988) - Aims
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1988
- Aim is to make schools more competitive (marketisation) and give parents choice (parentocracy)
7
Q
The ERA (1988) - Policies
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- League Tables
- The National Curriculum
- City Technology colleges
- Grant maintained schools
- Formula Funding
- Open Enrolment and selection
8
Q
The ERA (1988) - Evaluation
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- no government has changed it which suggests it’s working.
- The Middle Classes have more effective choice because of their higher incomes, social and cultural capitals
- Schools become more selective
- School becomes negative
- the best schools get better and the worst get worse
9
Q
Vocational Training and education - NVQ’s
A
- Introduced in the 1980s under the Conservatives (New Right)
- The former involved building a portfolio of evidence to prove you had the specific skills necessary for a job, and the later involved on the job training, in which trainees received a small wage, funded by the government.
- The expansion of Vocational Education in the 1980s seems to support the Functionalist view of education – as it seems be about getting people ready for work and performing the function of ‘role allocation’ more effectively.
- However, two criticisms of these policies were that NVQs were seen by many as an inferior qualification to the more academic ‘A’ level subjects, and much on the job training was of a low quality because it wasn’t very well regulated – some trainees were basically just glorified tea boys (according to research by Marxist sociologist Dan Finn in the 1980s.)
10
Q
Vocational Training and Education - The New Deal
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- Introduced in 1998 by New Labour
- Provided some kind of guaranteed training for any 18-24 year old who had been unemployed for more than 6 months. This initially costed £3.5 billion. - Employers were offered a government subsidy to take on people under 25 who had been unemployed for more than 6 months.
- The New Deal for young people by March 2003 almost 1 million people had started the New Deal, and 40% of them had moved on to full-time unsubsidised jobs.
11
Q
Vocational Training and Education - The Modern Apprenticeship Scheme
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- Introduced by new labour in 2002
- There are many different levels of Apprenticeships in a huge range of industries, and they typically involve on the job training in sectors ranging from tourism to engineering. Those undertaking them are paid a small wage, which varies with age, while undertaking training.
- Some of the early modern apprenticeships were criticised for being exploitative – some companies simply hired workers to a 6 week training course and then sacked them and rehired more trainees as a means of getting cheap labour.
12
Q
Vocational Education and Training - Vocational A-Levels
A
- Introduced by New Labour
- Today, the most commonly recognised type of Vocational A level is the BTEC – Which Edexcel defines as being ‘designed as specialist work-related qualifications and are available in a range of sectors like business, engineering and ICT.
- While the purpose of this was to try and eradicate the traditional vocational-academic divide it was mostly working class children went down the vocational route, while middle class children did A levels, which many middle class parents regard as the only ‘proper qualifications’, and from a broadly Marxist analysis Vocational Education simply reinforces the class divide
13
Q
New Labour Policies - Aims
A
1997 to 2010
- Came into power by Tony Blair, his main priority was ‘education, education, education’. Continued many of the conservatives’ marketisation policies, for example through developing a greater range of types of schools and encouraging schools to develop specialisms in particular areas of the curriculum.
- Create marketisation and reduce material inequality - neo-liberal and social democratic
14
Q
New Labour Policies
A
- Introduction of academies- new type of school particularly funded by local businesses to tackle underperforming schools.
- Free childcare for every preschool child - meaning women can return to work
- Sure Start- by which pre school children living in the most deprived areas could receive early intervention and support.
- Tuition fees for university- means-tested fee for university courses. University was only available for those who could afford it.
- Stricter Ofsted guidance on improving ‘failing schools’
15
Q
New Labour Policies - Evaluation
A
- Critics such as Whitty (2002) see a conflict between Labour Policies to tackle inequality and the development of marketisation. For example, while compensatory policies such as education maintenance allowance have encouraged working-class students to stay onto education till 18, tuition fees for higher education may deter them from going to university.
- Other critics point to the continued existence of both selective grammar schools and fee-paying private schools. Despite the Labour Party opposition to private schools, labour governments have not removed them.
- Difficult to measure the success of labour’s various compensatory policies in reducing inequalities in education. It is clear that while girls continued to achieve highly, many boys continued to underachuve during this period
16
Q
Coalition Policies (neo-liberal) - Aims
A
In May 2010, the conservative-liberal democrat government came to power.
- The conservative party was the dominant party in both numbers and views (as their views were more strongly represented through the coalition education policy).
- Their policies are based on these views about what makes an outstanding school:
1) Independence - freedom for headteachers and teaching styles
2) Accountability - for parents rather than schools
3) Competition - between schools increases standards
4) Diversity and Choice - range of different schools to think of, influenced by neo-liberal ideas.
17
Q
Coalition Policies - Academies
A
- All schools - whether they are average, outstanding, in high or low income areas, primary or secondary - could apply to convert to an academy.
- The then education secretary Michael Gove explained that they did this as at an academy the main focus was the children - therefore they would be able to raise achievement for all children including those in lower-income families.
- Two types of Academies:
1. Sponsored academies - instructed by the Department for Education to become academies because they were ‘failing’
2. Converter academies - chose to become academies - Under the coalition government the amount of academies drastically increased - the majority of these were converter academies.
- A survey completed by The School’s Network in 2012, found that 78% of schools claimed that they partly converted as they believed they would be better off financially, and 38% said that money was the main reason for converting.
18
Q
Coalition Policies - Free Schools
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- Where academies were developed from the Labour government, Free Schools were an entirely new endeavour.
- Free schools are schools that do not have to follow the national curriculum as long as they teach the core subjects, and are set up to be what the community needs.
- They were set up in response to local people’s wants and needs.
- Free schools can be set up by a range of groups including, teachers, charities, academy sponsors, universities, independent schools, community and faith groups, parents and businesses.
- Teachers at Free Schools do not have to have teaching qualifications.
- They are non-profit and state funded
- They are completely separate from local authorities but are still subjected to Ofsted inspections.
- Between 2010-2015 over 400 Free Schools were set up
- The aim of Free Schools were to increase diversity and parental choice, henceforth increasing marketisation of schools and driving standards up.
- There is little evidence to show any benefit of Free Schools - in 2015 Ofsted claimed that Free Schools were performing the same as any other school.
- Some Free Schools are competing against good neighbouring schools that already have a surplus of spaces and are meeting the community’s needs. The National Audit Office claims that this can lead to a lack of funding for existing schools and have a negative effect on those pupils.
- Free schools receive much higher amounts of government funding.
- A study by the Institute for Education supported the government’s claim that Free Schools would start up in disadvantaged areas, however they also supported the criticism that - Free Schools may become socially selective and accepting those students more likely to succeed - in 2014, Free Schools had a lower amount of students on FSM than the average for the area.
- The first set of GCSE results from students who had been educated at Free Schools throughout their secondary school careers in 2016 were mixed - some were excellent, some were poor.
19
Q
Coalition Policies - Further and Higher Education
A
- The coalition government replaced EMAs with the 16-19 Bursary
- This decision saw the first fall in rates of students staying on for higher education since 2001 from 70.6% to 70.5% in 2011.
EMAs were worth £560 million a year, where the 16-19 Bursary was only worth £180 million. - The Department for Education claimed to be providing financial support to those “who need it most”.
- However critics argue that the reduction in allowance reduced the number of FE student numbers.
- The coalition governments advisor for social mobility and poverty, Alan Millburn, claimed that the abolishment of the EMAs was “a vey bad mistake” and that “EMAs had significantly impacted the staying on rates and attainment”.
- The coalition government also raised tuition fees in the 2012/13 year - universities could now charge up to £9000 a year (3 times the previous limit).
- The Independent Commission on Fees was set up in 2011 to measure the impact caused by the increase in fees.
- It found that there was a drop in applications in 2011 but in 2012 there were more applications than ever before and they continued to rise.
- Applications from students in low-income families grew but there was a decrease in the amount of part time or mature students (often from less well off families/areas) applying and The Commission stated that the increase in fees was a major factor.
- The final report from the Commission in 2015 stated that although there was no real impact on the amount of applicants as a result of the increase in fees, there was still a major issue with the gap between the recruitment of students from low-income families or more disadvantaged situations than those from advantaged backgrounds with universities preferring the latter.
20
Q
Coalition Policies - Pupil Premium and the Social Mobility Strategy
A
- The coalition government was influenced by social democratic concerns about equality of opportunity.
- This can be seen through their launch of Pupil Premium in 2011.
- Pupil Premium = additional payments to schools based on the number of students they have on FSM enrolled.
- The then Deputy Prime Minister, Nick Clegg, said that it was put in place to make a more socially mobile Britain. - Part of their Social Mobility Strategy launched in 2011.
- A survey conducted by the National Association of Headteachers found that:
- Over 30% of headteachers said that the funds merely made up for cuts elsewhere.
- Over 50% said it didn’t even do that
- 15% said they thought it would make a difference.
21
Q
Conservative Policy 2015 - Aims
A
- To provide a meritocratic society (May) - she wished to give everyone a chance to succeed, in particular those lower in the class system, and envisioned a just and fair society where people achieve based on merit and therefore increase social mobility - the W/C can move upwards in the class system to a level that matches their talent, ability, motivation and hard work
- To make Britain the best place to study maths, science and engineering, measured by improved performance in the PISA league tables - the Conservative manifesto 2015
22
Q
Conservative policies 2015 - policies
A
- Academies - continued the coalition policy and introduced growth of academy chains that share policy and expertise, governed sometimes by multi-academy trusts
- At one point, it was made compulsory for all schools to become academies, but in the face of considerable opposition from schools and members of the party they dropped this demand
- They stated their ambitions were for all schools to become academies as it was believed the best way to bring about sustained improvement
- No direct policy to improve league table position, but radical reform and change in policy occurred in Scotland and Wales after their position lowered in the PISA results
- Progress 8 - a policy put in place that saw league position change based on points scored through each number grade provided to a student over the proportion of A*-C results at GCSE
- The English Baccalaureate - EBacc; introduced a core curriculum where it was recommended students take GCSEs in 5 subjects - maths, english, a science, history or geography and a modern language
- In 2015, this was made compulsory with those who start in 2015 taking the EBacc in 2020
- Saw it as providing a rigorous academic education and a broad and balanced curriculum that would equip all students for a progression to further study and work, and to combat a growing decline in the taking of science subjects, modern languages and history
- Became a new performance measure for schools; 39% of state school students were entered for the EBacc
- Selective schools - advocated the return of grammar schools as a way to create meritocracy and social mobility whereby grammar schools had to take in a fixed proportion of low-income pupils located in disadvantaged areas
- Intended to use tests that examine natural ability rather than tutor taught skills, with grammar entry being provided at ages 11, 14 and 16 to prevent pupils future’s being decided at 11 and avoid the impact of private tutors on those who obtained grammar school entrance
- All secondary schools would also be able to select pupils on the basis of their ability if the school wishes too and if there is demand in the area for this; those not attending grammar schools should be able to attend a range of different schools, increasing diversity and free choice to provide appropriate education to suit the abilities and skills of all children
23
Q
Conservative policy - Evaluation
A
- Academies - Hannay’s (2016) study evaluated converter schools and sponsored secondary academies based on GCSE results
- Found that for converter schools, not much difference occurred in attainment between the local authority schools and the academies, even though converter students had higher attainment before starting secondary school and were less likely to be on FSM
- Sponsored academies did almost as well as similar LA schools, but they had seen more improvement going from failing schools to good schools and boosting low attaining and disadvantaged students, and although this status has little impact on successful schools, it does have a big impact on failing schools
- Multi-academy trusts are also inconsistent in performance - if all schools were forced to become academies, many high quality LA schools may be given low-performing multi-academy trusts, and so it was concluded that academisation as a policy was not the best path, but instead a focus on getting all pupils into good schools was preferred
- Global education and league tables - William and Torrance (2006) stated that league tables were not a good measure of the success of educational policy due to the difference in testing and groupings worldwide that make comparisons of success difficult
24
Q
Conservative policy - Evaluation 2
A
- Progress 8 - positive; this saw a removal of educational triage as every student counted, and so those who were seen as having no potential and high achievers gained back opportunity, teacher attention and resources rather than a concentration of teaching resources onto those on the border of a C; it created an incentive for schools to offer a good curriculum and focus on all students
- Negative; does not take into account that some schools are located in disadvantaged areas and many students come from low-income families, and so the judgement is not equal as coming from a poor family doubled the chance of poor GCSE grades - they also tend to attend low-income schools and have FSM, something that is even more damaging to W/C achievement
- It was proposed instead that schools be judged against those similar to them, and predicted GCSE grades should come from those schools who had similar KS2 scores, not nationally and allowance should be made for the effects of poverty
- EBacc - not widespread enough, leaves less room for vocational subjects and creative subjects, but the entries for these subjects rose along with the EBacc subjects; students were found to benefit from these changes by Allen and Thompson (2016) with particular improvement in Maths and English, with those who gained the most being from W/C backgrounds
25
Conservative policy - Evaluation 3
- Selective schools - strong criticism from Ofsted, saying that a return to grammar schools in ‘tosh’ and nonsense and that selective schools would simply mirror, maintain and widen social class inequalities and reduce mobility, with the middle class being able to use their money and know-how of the education system to keep children in grammar schools
- Tutor proof tests and the selection of a quota of W/C students was not introduced successfully, and critics warned that those who failed to get into grammar schools would be dumped into ‘sink’ schools, and students would grow to view themselves as failures, mirroring the tripartite system and so this policy risked creating an ‘us and them’ divide in the school system and reduce social mobility
- In the 2017 Conservative manifesto, there was no mention of continuing the pursuit of this policy - it had little success socially and educationally at meeting its aims
- However, the focus on education as a way to benefit society may no longer be the best way to address societal inequality, and that the golden age of social mobility occurred when there was simply more ‘room at the top’ (Goldthorpe) due to a rapid expansion of managerial and professional jobs and modern children face less mobility than any generation before them
- Education seems to have little effect on social mobility, with class differences in attainment remaining largely unchanged despite expansion of education
- Government policy should instead look to reduce inequality in society to then provide equal educational chance, not vice versa
- More jobs should be available at the top to increase social mobility, and so policy should aim to invest in research and development, creating a modern infrastructure and upgrading the quality of public and social services
26
Evaluation of educational policy - Ball (1979-1997)
- The publication of league tables meant that schools were increasingly seen to attract academically able students who would boost the school's table position and performance and improve their reputation
- Shift of emphasis from student needs to student performance from what schools do for students and vice versa
- This has encouraged some schools to direct more resources to children who were likely to be successful in examinations and tests
- Paid less attention to those with special needs
- Money is spent more on marketing activities - staff were expected to devote more time and energy to marketing activities such as open evenings
27
Evaluation of educational policy - Gewirtz et al (1979-1997)
- A move towards market values with 'commercial rather than educational principles' becoming increasingly dominant has caused schools to compete not co-operate, and concern with league tables has lead to classroom activity and allocation of resources to be influenced
- The amount of choice involved in selecting a school was limited by school availability and the ability of parents to judge and choose between them - parents are however not equal, and three broad groups were noted
1) Privileged / skilled choosers; strongly motivated, have the necessary skills, have the ability to understand the nature of different schools and evaluate claims made by schools - they devote time and energy to finding out about schools and have financial resources to assist children such as tutors or private education, and are typically M/C
2) Semi-skilled choosers; strong motivation, limited ability, concerned about good education but do not have the skills lacking experience and knowledge of the school system and limited social and cultural capital needed to choose effectively
3) Disconnected choosers; W/C, not inclined to be involved, concerned with their children's welfare and education but only consider a small amount of local options - believe schools have little difference between them and put more emphasis on the happiness of their child over academic reputation and so are more likely to send children to local schools with their friends rather than better schools further away
- More differences are caused as some groups benefit more from the educational market than others
- The higher a person's social class, the more likely they are to benefit from the best state schooling, which causes hierarchy even without selection by academic ability, leading to growing division between predominantly M/C and W/C students
28
Consequences of marketisation
Marketisation:
- Schools are organised like a business and introducing market principles such as competition and choice
- One consequence of marketisation is the reduction of resources in teaching and learning and a reallocation of teacher efforts onto marketing the school. This leads to a decrease in the quality of teaching and a renewed focus on the appearance of the school, therefore affecting student achievement.
- Another consequence of marketisation is the growth of parentocracy, which was identified by Gewirtz et al to create a hierarchy of parental ability to choose the best school for their child, and so marketisation has boosted inequality and created an inequality of opportunity by benefitting middle class choices and further isolating the educational opportunity of the W/C who are normally part of the disconnected parental group rather than the privileged choosers.
29
Consequences of Marketisation cont.
- A final consequence of marketisation is that some students are focused on more than others, emphasising a myth of meritocracy. Educational triage is caused which leads to higher ability students being prioritised at the expense of SEND and lower ability students, furthering class inequality in schools in terms of educational achievement, worsening the attainment crisis.
Consequences -
- Marketisation policies of choice, league tables, open enrolment and formula funding make for less egalitarian schools - not open to all students, just those of a high ability
- Those already advantaged get more advantages
- There are winners and losers, just as there are in business
30
Evaluation of Labour policies - Tomlinson
Tomlinson -
- Believed that Labour narrowed education to an economic function, as they had become too preoccupied with raising standards in order for the UK to compete effectively in an increasingly global market
- Labour saw the application of market principles to schools as the main way to raise standards
- Competition and choice ould drive standards up in the educational market, but this compulsive preoccupation with standards had a down side, as it favoured the middle classes - the success of some schools in the educational market meant they were oversubscribed, and so they were able to select their customers
- The pressure to remain market leaders and maintain their position in the league table led them to select those they saw as most able, which was mainly middle class students
- In a market system, schools are also mainly judged on results - there is therefore considerable pressure on teachers to teach the tests, and so the priority has become exam technique and rote learning and in combination with the education being about jobs and competition may be a threat to the well-being of society
31
Evaluating Labour policy - Trowler
- Saw initiatives such as Excellence in Cities, directed ta low-income, inner-city areas as a positive move, but he warned about seeing these initiatives as the answer to significantly reducing inequality of educational opportunity
- Trowler argues that changes in the educational system cannot compensate for social inequality in the wider society, and as long as social inequality exists it will be reflected in educational attainment
- It follows that a significant reduction in inequality of educational opportunity requires significant reduction in social inequality in society as a whole
32
Evaluating coalition policy - Free Schools
- There is no evidence that free schools have improved standards - according to Ofsted in its 2015 report
- In some areas, free schools are competing against good neighbouring schools where there is already a surplus of school places or sufficient places to meet local needs - according to the National Audit Office this could lead to a drop in funding for existing schools and can have negative effect on pupils in these schools
- Free schools receive a much higher level of state funding per pupil, giving them an advantage
- A study by the Institute of Education supports the Coalition’s claim that the free schools would start up in disadvantaged areas as well as middle-class areas; however, it also supports concerns that schools might become socially selective, choosing pupils who are likely to succeed, with free schools in disadvantaged areas had a lower proportion of pupils with FSM than the average for the area
- The first set of GCSE results from free schools which had educated students throughout their secondary school careers were produced in 2016, and the results were mixed
33
Evaluating coalition policy - Academies and Pupil Premium
New Academies
- There is debate over their performance - the Department of Education claimed in 2012 that the improvement in GCSE results for academies was twice that of non-academies, but a comparison of academies and non-academies in disadvantaged areas showed no difference in their levels of improvement from 2010-2011
- However, it is also too early to judge the effectiveness of this programme
Pupil Premium
- 30% of head teachers had doubts about the effectiveness of the pupil premium, as it simply just made up for cuts elsewhere, but 15% said it would make a difference
- Has partially increased chances for upward social mobility
34
Evaluating coalition policy - Further and Higher education
- The proportion of adults in higher education has fallen for the first time it had fallen since 2001
- This decline coincided with the removal of the Education Maintenance Allowance which was designed to encourage students from low-income families to continue their education - EMA was worth £560 million a year, and the allowance that replaced it in England was a £180 million 16-19 Bursary Fund
- Financial support is targeted better at those who need it most, but Milburn (Coalition advisor for social mobility and poverty) still stated that the EMA made a very bad mistake and had reduced the amount of W/C people attending university
- Tuition fees - rise in applications for university, especially from W/C families, but there was a decline in part-time and mature students, and so new fees were a contributing factor to lower W/C attainment of degrees
- There is a recruitment gap between less advantaged students and middle class students
35
Academies
- What: Academies are run by academy trusts and don’t have to follow the national curriculum and tend to have greater freedom to set their own term times and admissions . Academies fall into two main categories:
1) Sponsored academies—these have sponsors such as businesses, universities, other schools, faith groups or voluntary groups, who have majority control of the academy trust. Most, but not all, sponsored academies were previously underperforming schools that became academies in order to improve their performance.
2) Converter academies—these don’t have sponsors, and are schools previously assessed as ‘performing well’ that have ‘converted’ to academy status.
- When: City Academies introduced in 2000, but widely expanded in the 2010 Academies Act.
- How: In terms of admissions, they also still have to follow the same rules as other state schools, but can set their own arrangements rather than these being determined by the local authority as is the case for many non-academies.
- Why: Originally to help improve standards in disadvantaged communities. The Coalition expanded the programme for all schools to convert if they were “good” or “outstanding” to give head teachers more control over their schools and its finances.
36
Free Schools
- What: Free schools are set up by groups of parents, teachers, charities, businesses, universities, trusts, religious or voluntary groups, but funded directly by central government.
- When: Free schools were given approval in the Academies Act 2010
- How: They are often run by an "education provider" - an organisation or company brought in by the group setting up the school - but these firms are not allowed to make a profit. Free schools are expected to abide by the Admissions Code, which applies to all state schools in England, with the exception that the government has said the children of free school founders should be able to get a place at the school automatically.
- Why: They give parents more choice and allow for students to go to local schools. Enable better schools for disadvantaged children. Improve standards of education.
- Evaluation: They drive up standards, according to supporters. However, they increase inequality according to critics as most pupils come from middle class backgrounds. Teachers do not have to be qualified to teach. May increase religious segregation There is no evidence yet that these schools perform better.
37
How have schools become privatised?
- What: There has been both internal (endogenous) and external (exogenous) forms of privatisation in education .
1) Endogenous - Privatisation in Education. This means changing the internal processes of a school to be more like a business, for example treating parents and students as consumers, target setting, performance related pay and league tables.
2) Exogenous - Privatisation of Education. This means opening up aspects of education to private businesses such as staff training, school finances, school management (academy chains) and exams.
- When: Elements of endogenous privatisation began from 1979. Exogenous privatization began with the creation of the Academies Bill in 2010
- Why: To ensure that schools run more like a business - create competition, save money and yet raise standards
- Evaluation: More efficient, more choice for parents BUT money doesn’t always go to students’ education; can go out of business; not educational opportunities for all
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Key terms - education policy
Cola-isation -
- private companies using their brands in schools. This makes schools seem the same eg: Google schools
Public-private partnerships (PPP) -
- private sector companies provide money to build schools/services and local councils pay fees in rent over the period of the contract
Fragmentation -
- the breaking up of state run services as these are sold off to private companies for them to make a profit
Centralisation of control -
- Despite the private running of schools, government continues to have control as they provide funding. This means school can still be controlled centrally by government
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Consequences of marketisation - a summary
- Creates competition
- Creates winners and losers in education, with those who can understand the market having more benefit from it than those who do not
- Increased privatisation means that curriculum’s become focused on business skills rather than holistic education
- Inequality in choice = inequality of opportunity - if parents cannot ‘pay, play or pray’ they haven’t got choice in the same way other parents can
- Reduced funding for schools in areas surrounded by free schools
- Increases standards
- Increases choice and diversity
- More funding for schools
- Creation of ‘sink’ schools
- Inequality of income for head teachers of academy chains and normal schools (2010 Academies and Free Schools)
- Some free schools have failed (2010 Academies and Free Schools)
- Parentocracy (ERA, 2010 Academies and Free Schools)
- A-C economy / educational triage (ERA)
- Control of funding for academies
40
Globalisation of education - direct policy
- Globalisation - increased interconnectedness of different areas of the world
- International comparison between education systems in other countries, through league tables such as PISA, and governments look to other education systems to improve their own education system - the UK can use other education systems to improve their rankings and shape educational policy
- Examples of globalised policy - variety of schools in free schools and academies, developing skills for the global marketplace through national literacy and numeracy strategy, gaining additional funding under May for improving PISA rankings and raising teaching standards
- Criticisms - limited range of subjects monitored, cultural differences between nations mean education is not transferable, validity and reliability of testing may not suit all nations, and policies are often expensive and short lived
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Globalisation of policy - indirect policy
- Indirect effects of globalisation on education - British values have grown as has Western culture and neo-liberal economics, terrorism and anti-globalisation movements have been created however, so the introduction of British values has been viewed as a way to combat this
- Globalisation has created privatisation and marketisation of education, with many UK universities establishing overseas campuses in developing countries due to market principles and neo-liberal competition, and also has lead to increased travel but this has also increased tuition fees
- Increased migration has also increased funding for EAL and ESOL programmes to allow assimilation of cultures
- There have also been changes to teaching and learning strategies, which have been influenced by research in other countries, and changes to the curriculum to create more multiculturalism by introducing a higher range of language studies, but critics argue that a decolonisation of education is still needed
