There are two fundamental divisions within the British education system: the first between public and the state schools, and the second between state schools in middle class areas and those in working class areas. These divisions ensure that only the middle class has access to anything like a reasonable education. For the working class, state education under capitalism serves to provide only the most basic training on the one hand, whilst enforcing social discipline and control on the other. Under the Tories, the price of middle class education has been paid by deteriorating standards for the mass of the working class. The National Curriculum serves to maintain control of teachers whilst national tests are used to strengthen the hierarchy between schools.
However, Tory policies have proved a failure. National educational targets for the year 2000 are not going to be met. Only 54 per cent of 19 year olds have five ‘good’ GCSEs compared to the target of 85 per cent, whilst 45 per cent of 21 year olds have NVQ level 3, Advanced GNVQ or two ‘A’ Levels, well short of the target of 70 per cent.
What New Labour will do
New Labour intends to re-inforce the role of education in maintaining social control. There will be schemes to improve pupil discipline and conformity to the system, including lessons on citizenship and special courses for disaffected students. Home-school contracts will cover parental responsibility including homework, attendance at parents’ evenings, punctuality, school uniforms, young peoples’ curfews. Labour is primarily concerned with the need to discipline the estimated 250,000 youngsters aged between 16 and 19 who are neither in work nor education. The hated Chris Woodhead will be kept on as head of the schools inspectorate Ofsted; he has been advising Tony Blair on Labour’s education policy.
Favours will continue to shower on the middle class. Labour will retain all existing independent and grammar schools, the better to educate little Blairs and Harmans. Study time will be increased and setting, selection and streaming will be introduced from an early age and replace ‘mixed ability’ teaching. Shadow Chancellor Gordon Brown says there will be no extra money for education, which means that essential educational material will only be available to those who can afford it. The proposed abolition of post-16 Child Benefit will serve to exclude working class children from higher education.
New Labour will not change the school experience for the poorest. The proportion of students living in deprived areas who leave school with no exam results is 50 per cent higher than the national average. And whilst social class is the single biggest influence on educational achievement, it is compounded by racism. Black students are twice as likely to leave school for unemployment as white students. Afro-Caribbean boys are six times as likely to be excluded as whites.
The old split between vocational and academic qualifications will remain. There will be no change in the corridors of power in Britain. A ruling class of a few thousand will continue to hold the top posts in the Civil Service, the Armed Services, the courts, the media, the board-rooms of big business. Sixty per cent of parliamentarians went to a handful of public schools. New labour – old ruling class.
FIGHT RACISM! FIGHT IMPERIALISM! 136 ELECTION SPECIAL APRIL/MAY 1997
