1988 Education Reform Act (Conservative)

• Introduced: 

  • National curriculum
  • League tables
  • Ofsted
  • ‘Opt out’ of LEA (local education authority) control
  • No longer send children to local school
  • Formula funding
  • Vocational education
• • National curriculum - a standard curriculum that every state school had to follow, this made it compulsory for both boys and girls to take English, maths and science until they were 16. 
• • League tables - this encouraged schools to compete for the best results which was to increase the standards of schools. This is to rank schools in a local area based on their academic performance. 
• • Ofsted - a government funded system that measures the success of schools. Inspecting schools.
• • ‘Opt out’ of LEA (local education authority) control - this allowed schools to manage their own finances instead of it going through the LEA and spend that money on resources they thought were necessary for students. This gave the schools more control/choice over what they spend and where they spend it. Grant maintained schools. 
• • No longer send children to local school - parents could choose a school that was more suitable for their child instead of just sending them to the most local school. Don’t have to stay in the catchment area. 
• • Formula funding - each student is worth a certain amount of money, schools want to increase the amount of students to increase the amount of money. 
• • Vocational education - Vocational - an education designed to provide the skills necessary for work. This was for students who were less academic, so that they could leave the education system earlier but have the skills that were required by employers for employees.
• MARKETISATION 

  THIS IS NOT A POLICY. The changes in the late 1980s which made education more of a business, as it was based on competition and parentocracy. 
• PARENTOCRACY 

  THIS IS NOT A POLICY 

  The parents get a choice as to where their children go to school, this can be based on league tables and ofsted reports.
• Positives of the policies:

  • National curriculum - everyone has an equal chance of education and what it offers. Equality of achievement. 
  • League tables - this introduced competitiveness. This then increases standards which will then increase the performance because the standards have increased. 
  • Ofsted - this makes sure that schools are safe and good. This can also determine whether the parents want their children to go to that school, especially the middle class.
  • Ofsted improves the standards of schools. 
• Negatives of the policies:

  • If a school gets a special measures report from Ofsted it is likely that the Middle class students would leave and there would be more working class students. 
  • Middle classes tend to have a choice as to where their children go to school with an informed decision but working classes can’t do that or would struggle to do that.
• Negatives of the policies:

  • Schools want to have freedom and choice for what they want to teach but the National curriculum stops them from being able to have that freedom. 
  • League tables - schools shouldn’t be in competition to get higher performance rates as this can affect the students. 
  • Parents don’t always know what is best and what school is best for their children.