Content-type: text/html Downes.ca ~ Stephen's Web ~ Would restricting access to Russell Group universities and introducing an Oxbridge lottery crack open Britain’s elite?

Stephen Downes

Knowledge, Learning, Community

The book under review is behind a paywall, naturally, but this review is still an interesting read, not because of the solutions proposed in the book (which are narrow and shortsighted) but because of the discussion of the factors that perpetuate the ascension to rul of an elite. The most salient factor - and we've seen this mentioned before - is that "you're five times more likely to enter the elite if you come from a very rich family and attend Oxbridge than if you come from a more modest background and attend Oxbridge." Elite education is a necessary, but not sufficient, condition for passage into the elite. That's why merely addressing the education system will not redress social inequality. 

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Stephen Downes Stephen Downes, Casselman, Canada
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