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Educational Policy Notes (Sociology A Level)
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This document includes notes on educational policies, marketization policies, and criticisms. This is perfect for A Level Sociology revision.
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EDUCATION POLICY (1945-2010)What have British governments done to adapt the British education system?
CONTEXT: Education was made compulsory for all young people up to the age off 13 in
1818. Why did the government suddenly start pouring their money into the education of
young people? This is due to essentiality of a high-tech, hardworking economy that needs
quick-thinking people to develop new finances, technologies, etc. to improve education, the
government did 3 things in particular:
The Butler Education Act: The Tripartite System
In order to adhere to different learning types/levels, this policy was introduced in order for
children to be sorted into 3 types of schools.
1. Grammar schools
2. Secondary modern schools
3. Technical schools
Children had to complete an IQ test called 11 plus, which , if you passed, would send you
into a grammar school. In a grammar school you were able to do GCO levels and then go on
to do A Levels. However, this condemned children to a working-class life because those in
poorer areas could not access the same learning materials or travel to grammar schools (in
richer areas), and so were restricted to secondary modern schools where they would face a
stigma affecting their self-worth, unlike middle class families that could prepare their
children for the 11 plus exam. This meant that they could not go to university and are stuck
with a small set of skills with no further room to develop. This policy is criticised because it
determines a child’s life at only 11 years old, as well as discouraging social mobility.
However, some could argue that you could be a working-class kid and pass the 11 plus exam,
a passport to social mobility meaning they could go to university paid on scholarship – the
first generation of working-class to do so (therefore, upward social mobility)
Labour Government 1965-1988: Comprehensivisation
All schools were made into comprehensive (meaning ‘all encompassing’) schools after the
‘elite’ grammar schools being criticised as it encouraged classism, and so they aims to phase
this out. They created a single, standard type of school that offered GCO levels to give an
equal chance to everybody. However, there were issues with this. Firstly, the governments
left it to LEAs (local education authorities) to phase out their grammar schools, however
those schools in middle class areas ‘dragged their feet’ and didn’t change their schools
because they liked their grammar schools, and this is why they still exist and so the policy
wasn’t fully achieved. Secondly, within schools, teachers found it difficult to get grips on
‘mixed ability teaching’, meaning there is no division in schools in terms range of abilities.
They said it was too hard to do this, so they created systems such as banding, streaming, and
setting which sorted kids by ability.
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