EDUCATION FOR THE GOOD SOCIETY - Support

2 Recognise that strong values groundedin reality are the drivers of changeValues become powerful drivers of change whenthey are connected to the realities everyone cansee. Our young people face an unprecedentedcrisis of opportunity with one million unemployedand the prospect of being part of a generationthat could be poorer than their parents. Herewe can lead with the values of fairness and intergenerationaljustice as a call to arms3 Look for the different ‘adhesives’ thatbind us togetherThe left is understandably concerned about institutionaldiversification and the lack of democraticaccountability that exacerbate social differencesin localities. In response, it has traditionallyprioritised one type of ‘glue’ – fair admissionspolicies and the ideal of the common school.While these are worth fighting for, we also needto look to different types of glue or ‘frameworks’that bind people together. These include a moreunified 14+ curriculum, more equitable fundingentitlements and institutional commitment toall students in an area. There are many differentdimensions of ‘comprehensiveness’ and we mustexplore the power of them all and particularlyhow they might work in combination.4 Realise that education can changesociety, but only under certain conditionsBasil Bernstein’s famously pessimistic statement‘education cannot compensate for society’ hasbeen countered by politicians who think it canachieve everything, hence Tony Blair’s ‘education,education, education’. Here we suggest, followingEwart Keep in this volume, that education can bea vital contributor to transformation so long as itis part of a wider political, social and economicstrategy. In this sense, education is at its mostpowerful when it is allied with other strandsof reform. Education for the Good Society,therefore, is an integral part of a wider societalvision of change.5 Understand what the central stateshould and should not doSome on the left are still obsessed with centralismand demonstrate weakness when it comes todemocratic intent. We should be reducing thepower of the state away from the centre so thatits role in guaranteeing fairness and standardsis balanced by greater powers exercised by awider range of social partners and in localities.This is what might be referred to as ‘democraticlocalism’. Social democratic and progressivepolitical parties should commit themselves togiving meaningful power to the local level wherethere are many local authorities, schools andcolleges, civil society organisations and parentstrying, often against the odds, to implement acomprehensive ideal.Towards an expansive and comprehensivevision – seven fundamental idealsThroughout the various chapters of this book, aset of comprehensive values for the modern agehas been proposed as part of the building of theGood Society. Some of these are not new, representingthings from the past we should cherish;some have flourished in recent years at the locallevel, but have not informed national policy; andsome are in their political infancy. Rearticulatingthemes from the first chapter, here are sevento start with: they span different phases andlocations of education and training and representvarious dimensions of what might be regarded asa truly ‘comprehensive’ system of education.1 The belief in educability and humanpotentialFundamental to any progressive and inclusivevision of education is the belief in ‘educability’;that everyone can benefit from education in allits forms; that everyone can think as well as do;and that education in this form can support individualwellbeing, reinvigorate communities andtransform society. Such a belief strengthens theresolve to extend education throughout the lifecourse,to link general and vocational educationand to have a deep commitment to those withspecial education needs.2 Educating for togethernessHow can we encourage togetherness in a worldof growing institutional diversity? The key maylie in the values of togetherness and fairness andactively promoting a wider sense of responsibilitythat institutions should cater for all types oflearners or, in the case of post-14 education andEducation for the good society | 59