Three Key Educational Issues in Britain Today - Essay Example

?Identify three key Educational issues in Britain today. What are the main causes of disagreement regarding these issues? Introduction One of the most important tools in preparing an individual to become an integral part of society and act as a social agent for change is for him to have quality education. Education is about cultivation of the mind, training of the memory, learning to discipline the thought process and showing the intellectual will to master something new (Barlett, 2003). It is also about the ability to express that which is learned in speech and language, in writing, in mathematics and technology (Moore, 2004). Additionally, it is about conscious formation of the discipline of the mind and thought processes. Education serves as one of the key elements needed to sustain and attain growth in a certain country. It is important for an individual, particularly adults, to have an education as it is the basic requirement for one to enter the labour market. Without education, an individual is likely to be inferior compared to those who have obtained a formal education (Moore, 2004). To some extent, educational systems of countries like the United Kingdom are considered complicated, taking into accounts its advantages and disadvantages. Education is a most basic yet important element of the society; thus countries are constantly implementing substantial changes in their educational systems to improve the quality of education to the utmost extent possible. Education in the United Kingdom According to Machin and Vignoles (2005), attempts have been made to change the educational system in the UK. Policy reforms are being pushed with the intention of making UK education more productive and market-oriented (Bartlett & Burton, 2007). Other reforms include parents being given more choice as to the school which they want their children to attend while compelling schools to be more accountable over learning and achievement student outcomes. Notable reforms are the inclusion of the national prescribed curriculum attempting to raise active involvement in post-compulsory schooling and the introduction of tuition fees for higher education (Ward, 2004). Ninety (90) percent of the student population in the United Kingdom are enrolled at the state schools. Accordingly, around 8.5 million children are attending one of the 30,000 available schools in the country. Around 830,000 children attend to the 5,000 schools offering pre-school and special educations schools. It is notable that primary schools are usually composed of male and female students, while secondary schools may be composed of either single sex or co-educational depending on the schools. As mandated by law, children between age five and 16 years must undergo a full-time education, except for Northern Ireland where children must begin at the age of four. Consequently, a child who is under the age of five must attend state schools offering nursery and pre-school education but on a limited hours while children who are above 16 years of age may attend the sixth form colleges and other educational institutions that provide general education courses in addition to more specific vocational or applied subjects (Referencing the Qualifications Frameworks of the United Kingdom to the European Qualifications Framework, 2009). In the joint report made by Scottish Credit and Qualifications Framework Partnership, Welsh Assembly Government, council for the curriculum examinations and assessment and Qualifications and Curriculum Authority (2009) the United Kingdom in 1992 introduced the National Curriculum requiring state schools to adhere to the policy until such time that students reach the age of 16. The Education and Skills Act of 2008 raised the minimum age requirement to 18, while coming 2013 it will be implemented for 17 years of age and in 2015 for 18 years old. Independent schools, those who are not government funded, are not required to comply and implement the National Curriculum. Issues in Educational System Apparently, amongst the various issues and concerns of which can be identified to be the key issues in the educational system of Britain, the following issues were the foci of discussion for this paper: Faith School in the country; racial discrimination within the levels of education; and appropriation for the special education needs and inclusion program. Faith School in the Country: Religious belief towards education According to the Church Yearbook (in Fact File UK: Part One: Population Religion, 2010), around 26 million are members of the Church of England. But no one knows how many members of each religion live in the United Kingdom. The closest figures that census has particularly in religion was in 2001 wherein numbers of Church of England and the Roman Catholic Church are surprisingly low (Fact File UK: Part One: Population Religion, 2010). Education is among the fundamentals of society today. Amongst many other things required of society, the schooling system attempts to produce a well-turned and intelligent individual capable of sustaining his life; being productive; and contributing to the growth of society. One way or the other, parents having the religious belief of Christianity cannot deprive their children of or deviate from teaching their children about their Christian beliefs. Faith school is one of the many learning institutions in Britain that segregates children according to race, ethnicity and religious beliefs. Accordingly, there are 7000 faith schools in 2001 all over England (The Economist, 2006). In Britain, faith groups are allowed to practice religion of which they are benefiting from the country’s advocacy on freedom to worship and are able to express individual religious beliefs in the context of education, work, and culture. The emergence of state-funded foundation schools to teach according to faith were permitted by the Blair governments and Gordon Brown. However, faith schools have been a perennial focus of contention. By having this, faith schools can now apply various teaching methods that are aligned with their beliefs, particularly on subject matters and social issues encompassing same sex marriage, sexuality, premarital sex, among others. The National Secular Society (2002) mentioned that publicly funded schools favouring one religion may cause serious debate and encourage burgeoning formation of religions in the country. This is since no one can resolutely decide as to which religion is acceptable or not. Accordingly, the focus of one school should be more geared towards providing quality programmes through the conversion of religious schools to non-denominational ones. It is noted that most of the schools have their own subcultures varying and depending on its peculiar character and the values that each one espouses. By suppressing such, freedom of expression, conflicts and misunderstandings are likely raised. This makes likely the collision of opposing ideas and mutual disrespect. Moreover, when different beliefs are segregated, the probable results are impersonalisation and conflict, even violence. Having a distinctive religious belief apparently affects certain social issues such as homosexuality. This is attested to by the prevalence of beating and bullying of homosexuals in faith school as reported by Stonewall (2009). Concluding the issue of Faith schools, the latter tends to divide rather than unite society. As an implication, students are subject to ostracism and segregation on the basis of religious beliefs. This promotes these same attitudes among the children which are subject to the educational institution’s mode of religious formation, perhaps subcionsciously. This reinforcement may be carried out through later life and even transmitted to later generations. This clearly results in its perpetuation. Racial Discrimination within the Levels of Education Countries such as Britain began to develop policies of cultural pluralism and multiculturalism in response to the growing social unrest beginning in the 1980s. However, anti-racist legislation was clearly not adequate on its own. Racial equality pertains to the equitable treatment of individuals as equals regardless of ethnic or race. This is notwithstanding intelligence, virtue, or beauty. In some countries, like in the United States, racial equality is associated with equal treatment under the circumstances of the law, as well as opportunity given to individuals to ensure education, employment and political participation. Ideal racial equality has always been defined but has not been practiced nor has been fully achieved nor implemented since it has a strong historical background of which rooted beliefs lead to racial inequality. The repercussions of such inequality are evident in past political, legal and social practices (Gould, 1996). According to Gould (1996), it is not that intelligence is innately connected to race but that the quality of and funding for public education are strongly correlated with these results. This attests to the idea that heredity and biology are not solely and intrinsically related to intellect but also to the influences of the social and educational environments. Racial inequality accords certain sectors access to quality educational opportunities and deprives them of some others (Neito, 2004). Thus, it is not suprising to see significant differences in academic scores. If racial inequality is influenced by inequitable access to social opportunities, this environmental approach suggests that improving these shall also likely promote racial equality (Wright, 2000). Based on the Scarman Report (1981), the Brixton riots were rooted on the social problems in the area, including high levels of unemployment, poverty, crime, poor housing and racism. It vividly describes one such failure that resulted in a conflict between police and young people living in the Brixton district of south London. Consequently, the 1970s and 1980s witnessed the emergence of a model of proactive policing or community policing that involved a higher level of police acceptance of the local community values and a willingness towards community influence (Gould, 1996). The Swann Report (1972) highlighted a number of issues related to the underachievement of some ethnic groups noticeably implying the existence of racism in schools. Various researches were conducted proving dissatisfaction towards the classroom performance of foreign students in schools. As such, outcomes of the study according to Townsend and Brittan's survey (1972) reported that most of the secondary heads commented favourably on Indian and Pakistani pupils. Brittan's study (1976) indicated that pupils of West Indian origin received unfavourable opinions. Stewart's study (1978) indicated that the teacher respondents from an interview provided favourable stereotypes of Asian students, expressing that they do not have the same behavioural difficulties manifested by their West Indian counterparts. In the Tomlinson's study (1979), the respondent teachers expressed strong opinions suggesting that the learning process for West Indian pupils was slower. In 1989, the National Curriculum has been criticised as it seemed narrow and lacked clear recognition of Britain’s multicultural population. Moreover, an emphasis on national identity based on traditional British values was likewise recommended. The Macpherson Report (1999) is a detailed and comprehensive report containing around 70 key recommendations for society, particularly on showing non-tolerance for racism. This includes measurements aiming to improve the accountability of the police agency and other public entities, including the judicial system, civil services, and academic institutions on this advocacy. In conclusion, in accordance with the recommendations made in the Macpherson Report (1999), there is a need to amend the National Curriculum, allowing it to value cultural diversity and ethnicity and eliminating racism. Education authorities should implement strategies advocating and addressing issues on racism and protecting those students who are victims of this form of oppression. Appropriation for the Special Education Needs and Inclusion Programmes According to Borrow and Woods (2006), knowledge systems and other educational paradigms must follow the methodology of contemplation or trying to think things through, particularly the semantics used to express thought. Phillips and Schweisfurth (2008, in Sharp et al, 2009) mentioned that “comparative studies have a range of purpose whose consequences tend towards copying or borrowing successful practice”. As such, implementation of special education programmes still has room for improvement, since they are still in the experimental phase. It is just recently that parents of special children are been more participative in having their children exposed in society, compared to parents in the past who deliberately “shield” their children from society rather than exposing them to its intricacies. Paulo Freire (1970, p. 8) mentioned in his Pedagogy of Hope: "I cannot understand human existence, and the struggle needed to improve it, apart from hope and dream". Teachers should identify this struggle as formators of society. It should be the role of the teachers to enact improvements in the quality of human life inside the classroom, easing the lives of students through the work done in the classroom. Teachers cannot envision engaging and surviving this struggle without strong hope, dreaming, and the resolute belief in possibility. In conclusion, Freire’s (1992) pedagogical framework and thinking suggests that there is a need to address the special education needs of students in Britain, whereas its implementation should be geared towards inclusion and not depriving them of this basic need. Evidently, disability in any form is the neglected dimension for equal opportunities. Once a student is found to have special educational needs, such as difficulty in learning, this should be responded to accordingly. Moreover, if a child has a disability, access to the different educational facilities should be provided for these children. Children who need special education provisions are not only those with obvious learning difficulties, such as those who are physically disabled, deaf or blind. They also include those with learning difficulties that are less apparent, such as slow learners and emotionally vulnerable children. Sharp, Ward and Hankin (2009) mentioned that education is thus perennially looking backwards, always evaluating inherited systems of learning, in order to formulate the most suitable ground formation towards implementing quality education for those with special needs around in the societies. References Alexander, R (ed) 2009, Children, their world, their education: final report and recommendations of the cambridge primary review, Routledge, London. Barrow, R and Woods, R 2006, An introduction to philosophy of education (4th edn), Routledge, Abingdon. Bartlett, S 2003, Education studies: Essential issues, Paul Chapman, London. Bartlett, S and Burton, D 2007, An introduction to education studies, Paul Chapman, London. Freire, P 1987, Literacy: Reading the word and the world, Bergin & Garvey, Westport, CT. Freire, P 1992, Pedagogy of hope: Reliving pedagogy of the oppressed, Continuum, New York Gould, S J 1996, The mismeasure of man, W.W. Norton, New York. 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