Tensions in the pursuit of equal opportunities: A case study of an innovative secondary school

IF 3 3区 教育学 Q1 EDUCATION & EDUCATIONAL RESEARCH British Educational Research Journal Pub Date : 2024-05-18 DOI:10.1002/berj.4019
Pomme van de Weerd
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Abstract

Equal opportunities in the context of education can be interpreted as ensuring equitable access to certain kinds of education (e.g. an academic track) or as equal opportunities to lead a fulfilling life regardless of the educational route followed (e.g. vocational or academic). These interpretations are in tension: the former implies a hierarchy where some forms of education are considered better than others, whereas the latter requires that they are all considered valuable. This paper presents a case study of a secondary school in the Netherlands that pursued both interpretations of equal opportunities and made systemic reforms to achieve this. Building on interviews, focus groups and participant observation with students, staff and management, the paper analyses the tension these actors experienced between the two interpretations of equal opportunities. It is argued that this stems from a societal context that endorses the first interpretation of equal opportunities but aligns less with the second interpretation. The analysis shows that individual institutions like schools have limited power to shift narratives surrounding educational tracks, especially when these do not align with prevailing trends in society. Additionally, the paper underlines the value of applying analysis of different interpretations of equal opportunities, which is usually undertaken by theoretical work, to empirical data.

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追求平等机会过程中的紧张关系:一所创新型中学的案例研究
教育方面的机会均等可以被解释为确保公平地接受某些类型的教育(如学术教育),也可以被解释为无论采用何种教育途径(如职业教育或学术教育),都有平等的机会过上充实的生活。这两种解释是相互矛盾的:前者意味着一种等级制度,认为某些教育形式优于其他教育形式,而后者则要求所有教育形式都被认为是有价值的。本文介绍了荷兰一所中学的案例研究,这所中学同时追求对平等机会的两种解释,并为此进行了系统改革。在对学生、教职员工和管理层进行访谈、焦点小组讨论和参与观察的基础上,本文分析了这些参与者在两种平等机会解释之间所经历的紧张关系。本文认为,这源于社会环境对机会均等的第一种解释的认可,而对第二种解释的认同度较低。分析表明,像学校这样的单个机构在改变有关教育轨道的叙述方面力量有限,特别是当这些叙述与社会的主流趋势不一致时。此外,本文还强调了将对平等机会不同解释的分析应用于经验数据的价值,这种分析通常是通过理论研究进行的。
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来源期刊
British Educational Research Journal
British Educational Research Journal EDUCATION & EDUCATIONAL RESEARCH-
CiteScore
4.70
自引率
8.70%
发文量
71
期刊介绍: The British Educational Research Journal is an international peer reviewed medium for the publication of articles of interest to researchers in education and has rapidly become a major focal point for the publication of educational research from throughout the world. For further information on the association please visit the British Educational Research Association web site. The journal is interdisciplinary in approach, and includes reports of case studies, experiments and surveys, discussions of conceptual and methodological issues and of underlying assumptions in educational research, accounts of research in progress, and book reviews.
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