Martin Allen and Patrick Ainley Warwick University Feb 8th 2011 http://www2.warwick.ac.uk/fac/soc/sociology/pg/current/phdstudents/current/syrgan/publications/podcasts/?podcastItem=lost_generation.mp3 Patrick Ainley 'Lost Generation? New strategies for youth and education' in Educationalfutures, Journal of the British Educational Studies Association, Vol. 3 http://www.educationstudies.org.uk/materials/patrick_final4.pdf http://www.amazon.co.uk/Lost-Generation-Strategies-Youth-Education/dp/1441134700/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1296763103&sr=1-1
Author: Martin Allen
‘Posh and posher’?
Patrick Ainley With tv programmes like Andrew Neil's 'posh and posher' (BBC2 26/1), the public is being fed the myth that a return to grammar schools will restart upward social mobility and is therefore progressive. However, the official introduction of comprehensive schools from 1965 was coincident with but not a cause of ending the limited … Continue reading ‘Posh and posher’?
(More than) 1 in 5 young people unemployed
With the monthly figures from the Office for National Statistics (ONS) showing that unemployment for the three month period August to November had reached 2.5 million, it has been the increase in youth unemployment – a total of 951.000 (20.5% of 16-24 year olds) are now out of work –that has received particular attention. Youth unemployment … Continue reading (More than) 1 in 5 young people unemployed
Taking back the bac
Martin Allen It is not surprising that the knee jerk decision by Michael Gove to introduce league tables based on retrospective performance in his five ‘English Bac’ subjects has been met with angry responses from headteachers. The Heads are not just annoyed about the way that Gove has sprung this decision on them; many of … Continue reading Taking back the bac
Of our elaborate plans, the end
Patrick Ainley and Martin Allen Society for Research into Higher Education (News) http://sociologicalimagination.org The Coalition’s reaction to the Browne Review of student fees complements their slashing of 40% of higher education funding. Their new hard cap of £9,000 a year on fees leaves unfunded arts and humanities to be paid for only by those who … Continue reading Of our elaborate plans, the end
‘Tuition fees and the need for a proper debate’
Times letter 02/12/10 The issues at stake for the future of higher education are not only to do with the proposed increase in student tuition fees. We believe that the public university is essential both for cultivating democratic public life and creating the means for individuals to find fulfilment in creative and intellectual pursuits. However, … Continue reading ‘Tuition fees and the need for a proper debate’
Michael Gove’s White Paper
Understandably, much of the attention given to Michael Gove’s White Paper The Importance of Teaching has centred on plans for expanding Academies and Free Schools. One of Michael Gove’s longer term objectives however, is to make radical changes to the relationship between young people and qualifications. The White Paper reaffirms Coalition plans for a return … Continue reading Michael Gove’s White Paper
The class of 2010
Martin Allen Education for Liberation No2 November 2010 Last summer, thousands of well qualified school leavers failed to get into university and thousands more leaving university failed to get ‘graduate’ jobs. The unemployment rate for 18-24 year olds has continued to remain at 17%, well over twice that for the population as a whole and … Continue reading The class of 2010
Stuck generation
Barely making national newspaper columns, the most recent labour market statistics from the ONS continue to provide a grim scenario for anyone seeking reliable employment in the early years of the 21st century. The slight fall in both Labour Force Survey and Claimant Count figures for unemployment merely masks the continued decline of those in … Continue reading Stuck generation
Social Immobility
Patrick Ainley and Martin Allen The chatter about social mobility from a Coalition kicking away welfare services that have kept millions from poverty disguises the fact that there has been no real upward social mobility in Britain for the past 30 years and that nowadays the only social mobility is down. Grand announcements – like … Continue reading Social Immobility
