Structure of education in Britain

You need to describe and explain changes to the structure of the education system. This includes;         

• The replacement of secondary modern schools with comprehensive schools during the 1960s and 70s
• A gradual decline in the number of grammar schools
• The increasing popularity of independent schools
• The growing trend towards being taught at home, etc.

You also need to understand some of the reasons behind such changes. For example comprehensive schools were introduced in order to create equality of opportunity. It was also argued that the 11 plus examination was set too early in a child’s life, and labelled the majority of children as failures.

There are many different types of educational establishments within British society, such as;

• Single-faith schools
• Grant maintained schools
• Specialist schools
• Grammar schools

You will need to explain the impact and significance of these various types of schools. For example, grammar schools have been criticised as socially divisive because the majority of children who attend such schools are from middle-class backgrounds.

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