In a powerful critique of current educational priorities, academic Mary Evans has questioned the relentless focus on social mobility within England's secondary education system.
The Problem with Social Mobility Obsession
Evans, writing from Patrixbourne in Kent, argues that while nobody would deny children opportunities, the constant emphasis on social mobility as the primary goal of education reform needs serious examination. She suggests that successive governments have used this aspiration to obscure a more radical and equitable aim: making all occupations viable, properly rewarded and respected.
Diminishing Occupational Value
The academic makes a compelling case against creating an education system that implicitly teaches students to escape from certain jobs rather than valuing all forms of work. 'There is already sufficient cut-throat competition within the English class system without enshrining ideas which focus on diminishing the value of jobs and occupations to be escaped from,' she writes.
Evans highlights how this approach particularly impacts children who don't conform to the narrow worldview promoted by current politics and politicians. The result, she argues, is the creation of feelings of failure and exclusion among those who choose different paths.
Broader Implications for Society
The consequences of this single-minded focus extend beyond individual students to affect wider society. Evans warns that refusing to consider alternative values leads to reduced social equality and diminished mutual respect across different occupations and social groups.
Her intervention comes amid ongoing discussions about changes to both the curriculum and examination formats in English secondary education, where increasing social mobility remains a frequently cited objective.
