Is Education the Answer to Social Mobility?

The RSA and Teach First present a series of Education Matters Debates. In the second of three debates, Stephen Twigg MP, Jo Shuter and Professor Anna Vignoles discuss how we can ensure equality of opportunity for children from low socio-economic backgrounds.

Listen to the podcast of the full event including audience Q&A: http://www.thersa.org/events/audio-an...

Find out more about:

Teach First: http://www.teachfirst.org.uk/
Quintin Kynaston School: http://www.qkschool.org.uk/
Stephen Twigg MP: http://stephentwiggmp.co.uk/home/
Institute of Education: http://www.ioe.ac.uk/
RSA Project work in Education: http://www.thersa.org/projects/education

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• Category

  Education

[Metactyl]

how about educating people in an objective way instead of filling them with wrong ideas and propaganda?

[xjustamem0ryx]

social mobility is an artifact of socio-economic stratification. rat race run off mini-game.

though education won't answer much if it continues passing failures for federal funds either.

[UniversalPotentate]

Hear hear!

[t3mpl3guardian]

I agree. A good education will not guarantee a job that doesn't exist. A world view based on Atlas Shrugged is one that creates an environment where people simply hoard money instead of investing it into future generations.

What good is money if it's all just sitting in a building? What good is food if it's just sitting in a building. What we view as security is just a fancy way to describe stagnation.

[t3mpl3guardian]

Maybe we should ask the question "What is it about society that creates the atmosphere where the kids who refrain from eating the marshmallow become successful people?"

We have this social schizophrenia where we use impulsiveness to drive our overall economic success, but that same impulsiveness prevents people from from contributing directly to that economic success.

Our system is a tree chopping at its own roots.

[Lyuben Kuzmanov]

great teachers who care make all the difference? you don't say. now, describe how you're going to pull that talent from the market into the school system and I'll be truly amazed.

[Tressco]

I wish they'd stop pushing this stupid complementary ideology of "education will grant you a (good) job SOMEWHERE IN THE FUTURE!"

For thirty years they've betrayed the youth with this delaying tactics!

[DiaryOfAWolf]

Objectivity is not a myth. How can you even suggest such a thing?

Objectivity may be missing from our society; but that is only because hardly any human achieves their potential. Achieve your potential and you cannot help but be objective.

How do I know?

Because I am completely objective. It's what comes from achieving potential of moral reasoning - universal ethics.

[DiaryOfAWolf]

This discussion misses an incredible opportunity:

Our knowledge of the human mind and human development has made great strides. Curiously, we have not applied our knowledge to education. Education can and should be pursued as a science, related to psychology but very specific.

Immaturity of any aspect of human potential is a disease. It is therefore only natural that psychologists be tasked with education, as unfufilled potential is disease and only psychology can effectively cure society.

[Rex1987]

thats very true. there a very big focus on upward social mobility. and very litte on downward social mobility.

[giac01]

Somebody watched the Ken Robinson lecture?

[adam sandler]

that cunt that goes on at like 14:00 is so fucking creepy lol look at his eyes wen his talking