Guest post by Sarah Minty, Research Fellow, Centre for Research in Education, Inclusion and Diversity (CREID), University of Edinburgh
One of the fundamental principles underpinning the Scottish education system is the meritocratic idea that, irrespective of social background, all children should have an equal opportunity to develop their academic potential. Scottish Ministers frequently espouse the view that ‘education in Scotland should be based on the ability to learn, not the ability to pay’. However, despite free undergraduate tuition, official statistics show that the majority of young people who go to university in Scotland, particularly those attending the most prestigious universities, continue to come from middle class backgrounds.
Widening participation and fair access to higher education (HE) was the theme of a recently held seminar exploring key differences between Scotland, England and the rest of Europe, as part of an ESRC Research Fellowship project at the University of Edinburgh. The project ‘Higher Education, the Devolution Settlement and the Referendum on Independence’ is intended to inform public debate on issues relating to the future of higher education including student funding and access to higher education.
The first part of the day concerned approaches to widening access in Scotland. Dr Cristina Iannelli began by exploring the role of HE in social mobility and emphasised the need for much wider social reforms in order to eradicate social inequalities. Next, Emeritus Professor Jim Gallacher discussed the differences between college structures and funding systems in Scotland and England, emphasising the increasing role of Scotland’s colleges in widening access and questioned the longer term impact of recent Scottish policies. Finally, Dr Laurence Lasselle gave us a fascinating insight into the work of admissions officers by discussing contextualised admissions practices at St Andrews University.
In the afternoon attention turned to England. Professor Carole Leathwood outlined factors in effective English widening participation initiatives while seeking to problematise some of the underpinning discourses of social mobility and meritocracy which can reinforce inequality. Dr Vikki Boliver’s research explored the links between school type and applications and admittance to Russell Group universities. A key theme throughout the day related to the availability of data. Of particular concern was the decision of UCAS to restrict the use of micro level data, without which Vikki’s research would not have been possible. Dr Gill Wyness discussed the role of fees, loans and grants in encouraging young people from disadvantaged backgrounds to go to university, and contrasted student support systems in England and Scotland. Finally, Dr Dominic Orr presented data from the Eurostudent project exploring what can be learnt from cross-country comparisons regarding widening access.
The importance of prior educational achievement as a driver of participation was an issue which was returned to throughout the day. The type of school attended and the subjects undertaken determine young people’s access to the most prestigious universities. However, Vikki Boliver reminded us of the possibility of discrimination against state school pupils in admission to Russell group universities –state school applicants with appropriate subjects and similar grades to their counterparts in the independent sector still seem to have a reduced chance of securing a place. There were calls for the Scottish education system to be considered in a more holistic way, and to recognise the contribution of all stages of education to widening access, from pre-school onwards, in order to ensure potential is realised and attainment is improved. Linked to this, there is the need for the higher education sector to more fully consider the implications of Curriculum for Excellence and the diversity of school practices in offering qualifications.
While the expansion of HE for those from more disadvantaged backgrounds continues to happen in colleges and post-92 institutions (for example, the newly announced articulation places as part of the Post-16 Act 2013 are all to be found in post-92 universities), older research-intensive universities remain the preserve of more advantaged students. Without more fundamental change, the education system will continue to reproduce wider social inequalities. The referendum provides an opportunity to engage in a public debate about the kind of educational system we want to see in Scotland (irrespective of whether Scotland remains part of the UK or becomes an independent country). We have an apportunity to think more broadly about the purposes of higher education and to consider what kind of society we are trying to achieve.
Presentation slides and event documents can be viewed on the project website.
For further information about our research and for details of the final Think Tank in the series (to be held on 29 January 2014) please see: http://bit.ly/1eo8Ttu or contact Sarah Minty, Centre for Research in Education, Inclusion and Diversity, University of Edinburgh: sarah.minty@ed.ac.uk
