Critically examine the view that recent educational reforms have changed the patterns of underachievement in the formal education systems of England and Wales

The first 200 words of this essay...

Critically examine the view that recent educational reforms have changed the patterns of underachievement in the formal education systems of England and Wales

Clare Oates Jan 02

In this report after reviewing the question an attempt has been made to break down, discuss and analyse the view that the 1988 Education Reform Act has altered the patterns of underachievement in the educational system in England and Wales. My intention is to show that the educational system has changed and I will attempt to state how and why.

After looking at research (The Assessment and Testing Programme - The National Curriculum) that related to factors leading to underachievement I learnt that before the 1988 Education Reform Act underachievement was put down to three things in particular.

The first being researched was an indication that a child's performances relating to the time of the year of which they were born. Some studies showed that winter-born children fared better at both 7+ and 11+ than those born in the summer. Although it was quite a naïve view to think that the weather can make such an altering effect on a child's education a more obvious view which relates