Education

• Types of schools


  • State schools
  • Private schools
  • Alternative provision
• Community/Maintained schools


  Funded by the local authority, not influenced by business or religious groups, follow the national curriculum
• Private/Independent schools


  Fee paying schools, independent of regulations and conditions that apply to state funded schools, may choose to follow some regulations
• Pupil Referral Units (PRUs)

  Schools that cater for children who can't attend a mainstream school, often due to behaviour, emotional/behavioural difficulties, severe bullying, pregnancy/young mothers
• Foundation and voluntary schools

  Funded by the local authority but have more freedom to change the way they do things, sometimes supported by religious groups
• City Technology Colleges (CTCs)

  All-ability secondary schools based in urban centres, geared towards science, maths, technology and preparing students for the world of work
• Grammar schools


  State secondary schools that select pupils by means of an examination taken at age 11 (11-plus)
• Special Education Schools


  Schools catering for students with special educational needs due to learning difficulties, physical disabilities or behavioural problems
• Public schools


  Long established, fee paying schools that also require an entrance exam to attend (e.g. Eton, Cheltenham Ladies College)
• Academy schools


  State-funded schools directly funded by the Department for Education, independent of local authority control, do not have to follow the National Curriculum but must ensure a broad and balanced curriculum
• Free schools


  Funded by the government but not run by the local authority, have more control over how they operate, 'all-ability' schools that cannot use academic selection
• International schools


  Schools catering to the international community, following international curricula such as the International Baccalaureate, International Primary Curriculum and iGCSEs
• Home schooling


  Learning outside of the public or private school environment, often involving learning from community resources and interactions with other homeschooling families
• Faith schools


  Have to follow the national curriculum but can choose what they teach in religious studies, may have different admissions and staffing policies
• Single sex schools


  Schools that select based on gender, 100% male or female student body, often become co-ed at 6th form level
• State boarding schools


  Schools where you pay for boarding but the education is free, funded by the government
• Stages of education


  • Early Years and Foundation Stage
  • Primary School
  • Secondary School
  • Further Education
  • Higher Education
• Human capital


  The stock of knowledge, skills, values, habits and creativity that makes someone an economic asset to society
• Hidden curriculum


  The informal learning processes that happen in school, teaching students the norms and values of society
• Particularistic values


  Values and rules which only apply to a particular person in a given situation (e.g. at home)
• Universalistic values


  Values and rules which apply to all members of society equally
• Functionalist view of education

  • Socialisation and social solidarity

  2. Bridge between family and society

  3. Developing human capital

  4. Role allocation
• New Right view of education

  Believes the state takes too much of a role, free market policies (marketisation) would raise standards, schools should compete and parents/pupils should be consumers
• Ideological State Apparatus


  A social institution whose main role is to pass on the dominant ideology of the ruling class
• Repressive State Apparatus


  A social institution whose role is to enforce the dominant ideology by force or threat of force (e.g. police)
• Correspondence principle


  The ways in which the education system mirrors the world of work (e.g. hierarchy, punctuality, hidden curriculum)
• Marxist view of education


  • Reproduction of social inequality

  2. Legitimisation of social inequality
• The main role of education according to Marxists is to maintain capitalism and reproduce social inequality
• Aspects of educational equality identified by Gillborn and Youdell


  • Equality of access

  Equality of circumstance

  Equality of participation

  Equality of outcome
• Aims of education policy in the UK

  • Economic efficiency

  Raising educational standards

  Creating equality of educational opportunity
• Types of selection in education

  • Selection by ability (entrance tests)

  Selection by aptitude (talents)

  Selection by faith
• Arguments in favour of selection include allowing 'high-flyers' to benefit and enabling specialised and focused teaching, while arguments against include late developers missing out and reduced social cohesion
• Open enrolment policies mean parents can apply to any state school, but over-subscribed schools fill up quickly so many don't get their first choice
• Oversubscription policies often prioritise children in care, pupil premium, siblings, catchment area, and faith
• Covert selection involves schools discouraging applications from poorer students through methods like high uniform prices and hard to understand literature
• Selection


  • Allows 'high-flyers' to benefit
  • Specialised and focused teaching can take place
• Arguments against selection


  • Late developers don't benefit
  • Mixed ability fosters social cohesion
  • Reduced risk of labelling and therefore self-fulfilling prophecy
  • High achievers can act as an inspiration to other students
• Open Enrolment Policies (OEP)


  • Parents can apply to any state school, in any area and if the school is under subscribed they must take the child
  • Over-subscribed schools fill up quickly so many parents don't get their 1st choice
• Over Subscription Policies - Priority to

  • Children in care
  • Pupil premium
  • Siblings (at discretion of LA)
  • Catchment area – closest first
  • Faith
• Covert Selection


  • Backdoor social selection to cherry pick students
  • Discouraging parents of poorer students from applying in the first place through high uniform prices, making literature hard to understand, not advertising in poorer areas
  • Faith schools require a letter from spiritual leader to gain insight to the potential students family and commitment to both the faith and the school ethos