2. Education
Topic 6 – Educational policy and inequality
Educational policy and inequality
Educational policy Refers to the plans and strategies for education introduced
by government
Eg. Academies Act (2010)
Academies Act (2010) This educational policy made it possible for all state schools
to become academies
Responses Most educational policies come about as a response to
these issues:
- Equal opportunities
- Selection and choice
- Control of education
- Marketisation and privatisation
Educational policy in Britain before
1988
Pre-industrial revolution There were no state schools – education was only available
for the privileged minority, or by the churches/charities for
the poor
Industrialisation Increased the need for a skilled workforce, causing the state
to become more involved in education
Reflecting this growing importance, the state made
schooling compulsory for children aged 5-13 in 1880
The type of education children received was based on their
class background so did little to change their ascribed status
Middle-classes were given an academic curriculum which
equipped them for professional careers whereas working-
classes were prepared with basic skills and instilled with an
obedient attitude to superiors
Selection: the tripartite system
1944 Education began to be influenced by the idea of meritocracy
Introduced the tripartite system, whereby children could be
Education (Butler) Act (1944) sorted into different types of schools based on their
aptitudes and abilities – these were identified using an 11+
exam
The 3 types of school were:
- Grammar schools
- Secondary modern schools
- Technical schools
The 3rd type was much more uncommon, so it was more of a
bipartite system than a tripartite system
, Rather than promoting meritocracy, the tripartite system,
Reproducing class inequality and by extension the 11+, actually reproduced class
inequality by channelling the 2 social classes into 2 different
types of school that offered unequal opportunities
The system also reproduced gender inequality by requiring
Reproducing gender inequality girls to obtain a higher mark than boys to obtain a place at a
grammar school
The tripartite system also legitimating inequality through
Legitimating inequality the ideology that ability is inborn
Thus, it was argued that ability could be measured earlier on
in life, through the 11+
In reality, children’s environments greatly affect their
chances at school
The comprehensive school system
1965 The comprehensive school system was introduced
The comprehensive school system It aimed to overcome the class divide of the tripartite
system and make education more meritocratic
The 11+ was to be abolished and the tripartite system was
to be replaced widescale with comprehensive schools
However, it was left to local authorities to decide whether
these school wanted to become comprehensive – and not
all did so
As a result, the grammar-secondary modern divide still
exists
Two theories of the role of
comprehensives
Functionalists Argue that comprehensives promote social integration by
bringing children of different social classes together in one
school environment
Also see the comprehensive system as more meritocratic
because it gives pupils a longer period to develop and show
their abilities, unlike the tripartite system which sought to
filter out ability at an earlier stage
Fond (1969) Found little social mixing between working-class and
middle-class pupils, largely because of streaming
Marxists Argue that comprehensives are not meritocratic
Rather, they reproduce class inequality generationally
through their practices of streaming and labelling which
deny working-class children equal opportunity
Marketisation
Topic 6 – Educational policy and inequality
Educational policy and inequality
Educational policy Refers to the plans and strategies for education introduced
by government
Eg. Academies Act (2010)
Academies Act (2010) This educational policy made it possible for all state schools
to become academies
Responses Most educational policies come about as a response to
these issues:
- Equal opportunities
- Selection and choice
- Control of education
- Marketisation and privatisation
Educational policy in Britain before
1988
Pre-industrial revolution There were no state schools – education was only available
for the privileged minority, or by the churches/charities for
the poor
Industrialisation Increased the need for a skilled workforce, causing the state
to become more involved in education
Reflecting this growing importance, the state made
schooling compulsory for children aged 5-13 in 1880
The type of education children received was based on their
class background so did little to change their ascribed status
Middle-classes were given an academic curriculum which
equipped them for professional careers whereas working-
classes were prepared with basic skills and instilled with an
obedient attitude to superiors
Selection: the tripartite system
1944 Education began to be influenced by the idea of meritocracy
Introduced the tripartite system, whereby children could be
Education (Butler) Act (1944) sorted into different types of schools based on their
aptitudes and abilities – these were identified using an 11+
exam
The 3 types of school were:
- Grammar schools
- Secondary modern schools
- Technical schools
The 3rd type was much more uncommon, so it was more of a
bipartite system than a tripartite system
, Rather than promoting meritocracy, the tripartite system,
Reproducing class inequality and by extension the 11+, actually reproduced class
inequality by channelling the 2 social classes into 2 different
types of school that offered unequal opportunities
The system also reproduced gender inequality by requiring
Reproducing gender inequality girls to obtain a higher mark than boys to obtain a place at a
grammar school
The tripartite system also legitimating inequality through
Legitimating inequality the ideology that ability is inborn
Thus, it was argued that ability could be measured earlier on
in life, through the 11+
In reality, children’s environments greatly affect their
chances at school
The comprehensive school system
1965 The comprehensive school system was introduced
The comprehensive school system It aimed to overcome the class divide of the tripartite
system and make education more meritocratic
The 11+ was to be abolished and the tripartite system was
to be replaced widescale with comprehensive schools
However, it was left to local authorities to decide whether
these school wanted to become comprehensive – and not
all did so
As a result, the grammar-secondary modern divide still
exists
Two theories of the role of
comprehensives
Functionalists Argue that comprehensives promote social integration by
bringing children of different social classes together in one
school environment
Also see the comprehensive system as more meritocratic
because it gives pupils a longer period to develop and show
their abilities, unlike the tripartite system which sought to
filter out ability at an earlier stage
Fond (1969) Found little social mixing between working-class and
middle-class pupils, largely because of streaming
Marxists Argue that comprehensives are not meritocratic
Rather, they reproduce class inequality generationally
through their practices of streaming and labelling which
deny working-class children equal opportunity
Marketisation
