sociology educational policy and inequality Flashcards
(42 cards)
what is an educational policy
plans and strategies for education introduced by the government
what was the 1944 tripartite system main aims
selective education-to provide different education to different types of students
grammar school-20% pupils who passed 11+
secondary modern-75%-80% pupils who failed 11+ (basic education)
technical college- vocational education for those with practical aptitude
equality of opportunity-ability not money to determine schooling- free for all and raised leaving age to 15
created a class divide
what were the evaluations to the 1944 tripartite system
11+ was culturally biased and favoured m/c
legitimised inequality by incorporating it into a system
all 3 schools were supposed to be considered equal but they werent
not all towns and cities had technical colleges and quality of teaching at secondary moderns was poor- in 1953/54 only 10% achieved 5 passes
what was the 1965 comprehensives introduced by labour government main aims
equality for opportunity-one type of school for all pupils
every pupil received the same educational opportunity
child centred approach which promotes respect for child learner as individual, prgressive educations core concepts are individuality freedom and growth, schools controlled by LEA (local education authority)
what are the criticisms for the 1965 comprehensives introduced by labour government
only one type of schools so no parental choice, failing schools in deprived areas, disadvantaged w/c through banding and streaming, m/c upper streams/sets and w/c and ethnic minorities lower sets/streams
what was the 1997-2010 new labour reduce inequality and increase diversity main aims
established learning society-learning more highly valued and created opportunities where adults are able to relearn new skills to adapt to everchanging economy
built on what the new right had done previously through raising standards
describe the 1997-2010 new labour reduce inequality and increase diveristy
extended school provision-nursery from 4 and 16-18 to pp in some form of EET (education employment training)
increased funding to education
reduced class size to 30, intro literacy and numeracy hr
EAZ- extra money for schools in deprived areas
academies-run outside lea, funded directly from gov, managed by private team of independent cosponsors
sure start (compensatory education) 12hrs per week free nursery provision for children 2-4
widening pp-expanded number of places available in unis
EMA-£30 per week to encourage students from low income households to stay on 16-18 education
£1000 tuition fees introduced for he
wider subject/exam choice-A level diploma GCSE eg polish
policies designed to increase diversity-specialist schools providing experitse in areas from sciences to performing arts, teachers expected to focus on each childs learning needs, special education needs provision, faith schools
what are the evaluation to 1997-2010 new labour reduce inequality and increase diversity
standards improved and greater choice and diversity-SATs and GCSEs scores improved under new labour, greater diversity of subjects and greater variety subjects one can study=more choice
not improved equality of educational opportunities
gap between m/c and w/c achievement grows because of selection by mortgage cream skimming etc
provate school system-those with money can get their kids into better education, city academies enable those with money to shape curriculum
what was the 2010 coalition government and conservative government main aims
same as new right, marketisation policies, more choice increased academisation and intro of fsm, reduce control by lea, cutting public spending money including education
describe 2010 coalition gov and conservative gov
replaced EMA with £180million bursary scheme, all unis to promote fair access to he and intro fees bursary scheme,
any school to convert to academy, schools received satisfactory or below grading forced to convert to academy even when majority parents didnt want school to convert, coalition oversaw growth of academy chains,
free schools (non profit making state funded school which is free to attend), not controlled by lea but governed by a non prpfit charitable trust, new school run by parents, not required to follow national curriculum, ont have to employ qualified teachers, 2010-2015 more than 400 approved for opening in england by coalition
patchwork of different schools in the move away from comprehensives
give schools extra funding based on number of FSM-£600 per fsm pupil, progress 8-all students scores count type of value added measurement based on GCSE performance in 8 subjects compared to prior attainment at ks2 SATs
grammar schools-campaign bring back grammar schools
covid digital deprivation-issued laptops to schools
post covid-national tutoring schemes catch up additional funds for schools to employ mentors
2022 exam series-advanced info to students
all schools to become academies postponed to 2030 instead of 2022
what is the evaluation to 2010 coalition gov and conservative gov
standards continued to increase, attainment gap between fsm and non fsm decreased, free schools reduce fundings for other lea schools, scrapping of EMA lowered stay on rate in further education, considerable regional inequalities remain
academisation and free schools both ideological-no evidence they improve standards more than lea schools, free schools advantage m/c parents withdraw studdents from other local schools-suffer reduced funding-duplication resources, benefit children from higher incomes but do nothing for children from low income households-increase social inequalities
over 90% schools focused on supporting disadvantaged kids before intro of pupil premium, over 80%reported that pupil premium wasnt enough to fund support they offered to disadvantaged students
covid impact disproportionately affected disadvantaged groups- no consistency in advanced info
what was the 1988 education act main aims
neoliberalism and the new right-believe that free market principles would drive up standards
schools need to compete in education marketplace to attract customers
parents given right to choose school of their choice
agreement on what should be taught in schools-national curriculum
outsourcing of services in education-privatisation
drive up standards through choice and competition, intro of more vocational courses and work placements
describe the 1988 education act
marketisation and parentocracy-parents held power, parent choice, competition, selection criteria, business model
league tables-published GCSE results, measured A*-C
ofsted-judgement of effectiveness of schools, inspection findings published
national curriculum-all schools teach same subject content from the age of 7-16, core subjects maths english science at GCSE level, GCSEs and SATs intro, easier for parents to compare and choose between schools, every school assessed using same type of exam
formula funding-based on how many pupils enrolled in school, undersubscribed school would decrease in size and close while oversubscribed school could expand
new vocationalism-involves work based study in schools or colleges, practical skill courses learners acquire job specific knowledge, yts-youth training scheme aimed at unemployed, opt out-grant maintained schools opt out of lea control
what were the evaluation points to the 1988 education act
selection by mortgage-houses in catchment area of best schools more expensive those with money more likely to get into best schools
transport costs-m/c parents able to get their kids to wider range of schools more likely to own two cars
cream skimming/polarisation-best schools oversubscribed and can cream skim the best pupils=better results rise up in league tables, worst schools at the bottom just end up with pupils no one wants-sink schools
m/c more choice cultural capital skilled choosers-more advantaged
league tables-focus on exam results and league table causes stress, teach to the test i order to look good in league tables, schools more emphasis on core subjects than on creative subjects
national curriculum-ethnocentric eg history
which policies were marketisation
formula funding, league tables, ofsted, private schools. catchment area, academies, free schools, grammar schools, tripartite, tuition fees, progress 8, public schools
which policies were equality of opportunity
pupil premium, EMA, EAZ, GIST, compensatory education, comprehensive schools, sure start, state schools, vocational education, aim higher
which policies can be argued both equality of opportunity and marketisation
national curriculum, SATs, faith schools
what do functionalists say about comprehensives
promote social integration by bringing children of different social classes together
ford-found little social mixing between w/c and m/c pupils largely because of streaming
more meritocratic because gives pupils longer period in which to develop and show their abilities sought to select the most able pupils at the age of 11
what do marxists say about comprehensives
not meritocratic, reproduce class inequality from one generation to the next through continuation of the practice of streaming and labelling, continue to deny w/c equal opportunities, may appear to offer equal chances to all, myth of meritocracy legitimates class inequality by making unequal achievement seem fair and just because failure looks like it is the fault of the individual rather than the system
what is marketisation
process of introducing market forces of consumer choice and competition between suppliers into areas run by the state
marketisation created an education market by reducing direct state control over education and increasing both competition between schools and parental choice of school
what are the policies to promote marketisation
league tables, ofsted (rank each school according to exam performance and give parents info they need to choose right school-business sponsorship of schools), open enrolment (allowing successful schools to recruit more people), specialist schools (widen parental choice), formula funding, able to opt out of lea, schools having to compete to attract pupils, intro of tuition fees for higher education, allowing parents to set up free schools
what did ball and whitty say about marketisation
reproduce class inequaities by creating inequalities between schools
what did bartlett say about league tables and cream skimming
cream skimming-good schools can be more selective, choose own customers and recruit high achieving and these pupils gain an advantage
silt shifting-good schools can avoid taking less able pupils who are likely to get poor results and damage schools league table positions
what did gerwitz say about parental choice
study of 14 london secondary schools,, found that differences in parents economic and cultural capital lead to class differences in how far they exercise choice of secondary school,
privileged skilled choosers-professional m/c parents used economic and cultural capital to gain educational capital for kids, due to confident and well educated they were able to take full advantage of options open to them, possessed cultural capital, knew how school admissions systems work, time to visit schools and skills to research options available, economic capital afford to move their child around education system to get best deal
disconnected local choosers-w/c parents choices restricted by lack of economic ad cultural capital. difficult to understand school admissions procedures, less confident in their dealings with schools less aware of choices open to them and less able to manipulate the system to their advatnage, attached more importnace to safety and quality of school facilities than to league tables or long temr abitions, distance and cost of travel restricted, funds limited and a place the nearest school was often their only realistic option for their children
semi skilled choosers-w/c parents but ambitious for their children, lacked cultural capital and dound it difficult to make sense of the educaton market, rely on others opinions about schools frustrated at their ability to get their children into schools they wanted
m/c parents possess cultural and economic capital and have ore choice than w/c parents
