Socio-economic - Background

 

‘I was also motivated - there was a lot of impoverished families in Small Heath, and homeless people. I thought to myself - I don’t want to end up living like that.’
Suad Mohammed,16, in 'Staying On' report
 

The June 2009 report by the Equality and Human Rights Commission (EHRC) 'Staying On: Making the extra years in education count for all young people' highlights the power of social class in affecting individuals' life chances, the opening statement summarises:

"Realising a child's potential is determined to a much greater extent by their social class than by ability and effort. Race, gender and disability also contribute significant hurdles to securing good jobs and fulfilling lives."

The EHRC research focused on improving engagement for all young people, with particular attention on those who are Not in Education, Employment or Training (NEET) and tend to suffer the greatest inequality in learning. Those facing the greatest inequality are more likely to be young people who are disabled, from lower socio-economic backgrounds, refugees, ethnic minorities, asylum seekers, Gypsies and Travellers, lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender, and young mothers.

The 'Unleashing Aspirations: Final Report of the Panel on Fair Access to the Professions' report, published in July 2009 by the Cabinet Office and now hosted by AGCAS, gives examples of how social mobility might be achieved more effectively across a range of subjects and careers. In his introduction, Alan Milburn highlights the fact that it is possible to create opportunities for people from different backgrounds:

"The huge growth in professional employment that took place after the Second World War was the engine that made Britain such a mobile society. By opening their doors to people from a rich variety of backgrounds, the professions created unheard of opportunities for millions of men and women. In the decades since then, of course, social mobility has slowed down in our country. Birth, not worth, has become more and more a determinant of people's life chances."
 

 The Sutton Trust report (September 2009) considered The Educational Backgrounds of Leading Scientists and Scholars - Sutton Trust; key findings included:

  • Four in ten (42%) of the UK's most prestigious scientists and scholars were educated at independent schools
  • Over half (56%) of the Fellows of the Royal Society and British Academy studied at Oxford or Cambridge.

The Royal Society's report  'Exploring the relationship between socio-economic status (SES) and participation and attainment in science education' in 2008 concluded:

  • At GCSE, physics and chemistry as separate subjects are more likely to be taken by academically able students, especially middle SES males from independent schools. Combined, dual and general science, on the other hand, are studied more by lower-attaining students, girls and those from lower SES backgrounds.
  • Those from low SES backgrounds are less likely to continue into science and, or mathematics at A-level than others.
  • The majority of parents from areas of deprivation felt that young people who reside in more affluent areas were far more likely to go into a scientific career than those from areas of deprivation.
  • Parents from areas of deprivation perceived school science as a subject that only the most able achieved in. Many female parents had themselves either been discouraged from choosing the science subject they wanted to study at 16 or had formed an opinion that physics and chemistry were subjects for boys.
  • Parents' attitudes to science qualifications and careers are understandably shaped by their own educational experiences and occupations, as well as the world around them and their children.
     

Quotes

 ‘I can only do hands-on things really. If they had more courses at school like mechanics and painting and decorating I can guarantee people wouldn’t get into trouble.’
Male, 18, NEET, offended in past, left school at 14 - in 'Staying On' Report

'We went back to Magna (Science Adventure Centre) last week 'cause I enjoyed it when we did Build It. I think my Mum enjoyed it as well 'cause we don't normally do stuff like that'
Doncaster pupil on the RA3 Project in South Yorkshire