Social Policy and Education

Social Policy and Education.

1944 Butler act - Tripartite System.

This act introduced the 11 plus exam. This included three types of schools: Grammar, Secondary Modern, and technical schools. Grammar schools would be attended with a pass, and the others with a fail.

It wanted to achieve equality of opportunity for all to have access to a good education, with the most able having an acedemic grammar school education.

Technical school allowed pupils to learn a trade, and secondary modern gave students a general education.

Was it successful?

Critics argue that it is a waste of talent - those who failed may just be slow developers. The 11 plus was seen as an unfair exam which favoured the middle class, and was a poor predictor of later ability.

Grammar schools were regarded as the better school and had more middle class students. Class inequality was reproduced.

Girls were discriminated against, as they needed more marks to pass the exam.

Introduction of comprehensive schools 1960s.

This Labour policy abolished the 11 plus exam and all schools were changed to comprehensives, an acedemic education would then be available for all.

It aimed to end social divisions, but in reality it reproduced inequality even more through streaming and labelling. Mixed ability teaching was seen as the ideal, but streaming still happened.

It also aimed to end the waste of talent the 11 plus produced, and to allow children of…