Policies to Achieve Greater Equality of Opportunity - Comprehensive Education

Question 1

What is equality of opportunity?

Answer 1

The idea that every child regardless of their social class background gender or ethnicity should have an equal chance of doing well at school

Question 2

What do policies to achieve greater equality of opportunity aim to reduce?

Answer 2

Aim to reduce inequalities and break down barriers faced by children from disadvantaged backgrounds

Question 3

When was comprehensive education introduced?

Answer 3

Introduced in 1965

Question 4

What was the aim of comprehensive education?

Answer 4

To provide a school for all students no matter their background or ability

Aimed to improve social mobility enabling children from all backgrounds to improve their social standing in society

Question 5

What are the criticisms of comprehensive education?

Answer 5

Still a school divide as schools reflect the catchment area - schools in a middle class area are full of middle class students

Streaming and setting within comprehensive schools reproduce inequalities

Question 6

Why does setting and streaming reproduce social class inequalities?

Answer 6

Working class students don’t fit ‘the ideal pupil’ teachers assume they are less able and not committed placing them in bottom sets with the worst teachers and discipline issues

Question 7

What did the labour government do in 1965 in terms of education?

Answer 7

Abolished the tripartite system and created comprehensive education - some areas kept their grammar schools

Question 8

What is a comprehensive school?

Answer 8

One school for all pupils regardless of ability or social class with no entrance exam

Question 9

What was the aim of comprehensive education?

Answer 9

Aimed to create greater equality of opportunity for all

Question 10

What are streams?

Answer 10

Where pupils are put into one group based on their ability in all subjects

Question 11

What are sets?

Answer 11

Where pupils are put into groups based on ability in particular subjects

Question 12

Who did comprehensive schools tend to attract?

Answer 12

Tended to attract pupils from a local catchment area - if the school was in a working-class area it attracted working-class pupils

Question 13

Why might functionalists argue comprehensive education is more meritocratic than the tripartite system?

Answer 13

They think because the middle class and working class are in the same school and are separated they will have an equal chance of success

Question 14

Why might Marxists argue comprehensive education reproduces social class inequality?

Answer 14

Because although they are in the same school they are separated into sets so the middle class will still do better

Question 15

Why might Marxists argue comprehensive education legitimises social class inequality?

Answer 15

Because they have to do exams and get into their sets and the working class will blame themselves for their failure and not working hard enough which leads them not doing the high exams and getting lower qualifications keeping them in working class jobs

Question 16

What is EMA?

Answer 16

Education maintenance allowance

Question 17

Who and when was EMA introduced?

Answer 17

Introduced by the labour government in 1999

Question 18

What was the aim of EMA?

Answer 18

To encourage students from disadvantaged backgrounds to study post-16

Question 19

What we’re students from low income families given if they stayed in education post-16?

Answer 19

They were given money if they stayed in education post-16

Overcoming the barrier of material deprivation

Question 20

What did EMA help students cover the costs of?

Answer 20

Travel costs, dinner, stationery and books

Encouraging equality of opportunity

Question 21

What happened at the same time EMA was introduced?

Answer 21

The government increased university tuition fees

Question 22

Why were the working class economically excluded from attending university?

Answer 22

Due to material deprivation

Many working class students are debt averse and reluctant to apply over fears of growing debt

Question 23

Who were the compensatory education policies supported by?

Answer 23

Supported by the labour government in the 1990s

Question 24

What was the aim of the labour government supporting compensatory education?

Answer 24

Aim of helping all children to achieve no matter their background

Question 25

What does compensatory education refer to?

Answer 25

Refers to extra services and programs to helps children from disadvantaged backgrounds achieve in schools

Question 26

Give an example of an extra service

Answer 26

Free school meals ensure that children from disadvantaged backgrounds eat a nutritious school dinner helping them to concentrate in lessons

Question 27

How did compensatory education aim to deal with the problem of cultural deprivation?

Answer 27

By providing extra resources to schools and communities in deprived areas to compensate children for the deprivation they experience at home

Question 28

What resources did compensatory education provide to deal with the problem of cultural deprivation?

Answer 28

Sure start

Education action zones

Question 29

How might sure start help children from deprived households succeed in education?

Answer 29

The centre provide integrated education and it also works with parents to promote physical, intellectual and social development of babies and young children so that they can flourish when they go to school and at home thereby breaking the cycle of disadvantage

Question 30

Why is negative stereotyping an issue?

Answer 30

Some working class pupils do not take the free school meals due to stigma as they are worried they will be laughed at or bullied

Question 31

Why do free school meals have a limited impact?

Answer 31

They make sure children have a healthy, nutritious meal but only when they are at school and not during school holidays and the weekend

Question 32

When was excellence in cities launched and who by?

Answer 32

Launched in 1999 by the labour government

Question 33

What was the aim of excellence in the cities?

Answer 33

To raise the aspirations of working class students living in inner city areas

Question 34

What was excellence in the cities another form of?

Answer 34

Another from of compensatory education targeting deprived inner city areas

Question 35

Who did schools start to work closely with?

Answer 35

Started to work closely with local businesses and companies who would give talks, mentor students and run outreach programmes

Question 36

What was the ‘lawyers in schools’ programme?

Answer 36

Involves lawyers going into schools and running educational sessions to raise aspirations

Question 37

Who introduced academies?

Answer 37

First introduced by the labour government

Question 38

What was the aim of academies?

Answer 38

To tackle underperforming schools

Question 39

What was the first type of academy introduced by the labour government?

Answer 39

First kind introduced by the labour government was sponsored academies

Question 40

What are sponsored academies?

Answer 40

Failing schools are turned into academies to raise standards and improve achievement

Question 41

What is the aim of sponsored academies?

Answer 41

Aim to encourage greater equality of opportunity, improving the education of working class students many of whom were previously stuck in failing ‘sink’ schools

Question 42

Who introduced pupil premium?

Answer 42

Introduced by the coalition government

Question 43

What was the aim of pupil premium?

Answer 43

Aim of helping disadvantaged children in school

Aim was not only to over come material deprivation but also give working class children opportunities to develop cultural capital

Question 44

What is pupil premium?

Answer 44

Where schools receive extra money for students from low income backgrounds

Question 45

What are schools to use pupil premium for?

Answer 45

To fund trips and educational experiences which they otherwise would miss out on

Question 46

What is a criticism of pupil premium?

Answer 46

Schools often spend the money on other things like marketisation e.g prospectuses, open days etc