Tackling educational inequality - CentreForum

Tackling educational inequality
The Vocational Alternative
We should also be cautious about over promoting the ‘vocational
alternative’. Politicians have long talked of ’parity of esteem’ between
vocational and academic qualifications, but the labour market has never
granted that parity. The detailed reasons for this are beyond the scope
of this report; but one explanation, borne out by business and industry
surveys, is the widespread assumption among employers that pupils
who go down the GNVQ route cannot be relied upon to be literate and
numerate. In this respect, the government’s plans to retain an emphasis
on literacy and numeracy within the reformed GNVQ programmes should
be welcomed. Nonetheless, there is a long way to go before employers
will see vocational qualifications as a guarantee of basic levels of
literacy and numeracy.
Wider Costs to Society
Educational failure incurs significant social costs which extend well
beyond the workplace. KPMG has estimated that the total cost (in terms
of consequences for welfare, health and crime up to the age of 37) associated
with a single pupil failing to learn how to read in primary school
is between £45,000 and £53,000. 10 This provides a useful context in
which to consider the funding proposals in part 3.
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