Should Private Schools be abolished?

NO- private schools should not be abolished (Emily)

First, I just don’t think abolishing ‘elite institutions’ as a whole is a consistent or useful principle. If all
‘elitist institutions’ were abolished, I doubt we would have most of the media or even parliament. One
could argue education is a sacrosanct institution, and ought to be treated as holy. Yet in the UK, we
might describe healthcare as another sacrosanct institution, although we don’t object to people using
private healthcare. Obviously, it is better quality, and it is something richer people can benefit from.

I suppose one must consider the ‘inherent classism’ of the UK private school system. After all, is in not
the case that private school kids are overrepresented in the highest government positions and highest
paying jobs in the UK? Yet such abolition can only be symbolic.

Incorporating these 675,000 students into the state school system would come at the price of £7.5
Billion, rather than working towards improving an already overcrowded state school system. Labour in
particular claims that this would be fixed by expropriating the assets of private schools, though it has
provided little information in support of this. Instead, in terms of legality this would counteract the 1998
Human Rights Act, which includes a provision guaranteeing the right for parents to educate their
children in accordance with their religious and political beliefs.

But not all laws are just. Why shouldn't parents maintain the right to choose to send their children to
private schools? I honestly cannot blame parents for wanting to send their children to private schools
given the massive gap in quality between state and private schools. But why should this overrule the
need for equality?

After all, the Uk does have some of the highest rates of income inequality compared to other wealthy
countries. Social mobility is so poor that it would take five generations of progress for a child for a UK
family compared to only two generations in Scandinavian countries to reach the national average wage.
But how do private schools contribute to this?

Perhaps the massive divide between private schools and state schools is only a symptom of the
inequality in Britain today. Whilst private schools should have the moral motivation to tackle inequality,
abolishing private schools will only get rid of the option chosen by parents unhappy with the UK state
model rather than actually raise standards.

Private schools are centers of excellence, where it can be possible to study subjects such as classics and
languages which are being studied less and less at state schools. 60% of students at state schools study
no foreign languages compared to only 16% in private schools. Students there can choose from a wider
range of subjects- but what is obviously missing is the majority of state school pupils in mediocre state
schools without the opportunity for a better education. The real failure is to create a high-quality state
school system.

In comparison, Switzerland manages to operate a dual system without disadvantaging those who go to
state schools. Therefore, abolishing private schools would in reality contribute to a culture which in my
opinion does not value quality education highly.
YES: they should be abolished. (Emma)

The statistics and facts

As shown in a study by UCL, private schools are better at preparing students to secure a place at a top
university with those attending private schools taking more useful A-levels that are valued by Russell
groups and achieving higher A-level grades in these subjects (Jake Anders et al., 2019). Factors
contributing to private school students having a higher chance at getting into university also include
higher academic standards, more resources, sporting and extracurricular opportunities and small class
sizes allowing teachers to adapt their teaching style to individual students and give students one-to-one
attention. This is inequality in education.

As a result, there is over-representation of privately educated people in top universities such as

Oxbridge as well as in professions such as politics and media. For example, Sutton Trust found that
independent school students applying to higher education in England are x7 more likely to gain a place
at Oxbridge compared to those from non-selective state schools (The Sutton Trust, Social Mobility
Commission , 2019) with 32% of students admitted to Oxford in 2021 coming from private schools
(Oxford University). Graduates who are Oxbridge educated further have a higher chance at entering a
respected profession with high pay such as politics. For example, on average, 31% of politicians attended
Oxbridge and 44% attended independent schools. This is in comparison to the general population where
7% have attended independent schools and less than 1% have attended Oxbridge (The Sutton Trust,
Social Mobility Commission, 2019).

Why this over-representation of privately educated students in top universities and certain
professions is bad

The background of politicians and therefore their experiences which they only share with 7% of the UK’s
population are very different to the people they seek to represent. This means that the concerns and
priorities of society are not adequately reflected in parliament. For example, it is important for those
responsible for the state school system to have experience in it. In the media, on average 40% attended
independent schools and 39% attended Oxbridge. This means that the media may cover issues out of
proportion to their importance to society overall for example the misrepresentation of the Grenfell
Tower and the extensive coverage of Oxbridge despite less than 1% of the population having attended it
(The Sutton Trust, Social Mobility Commission, 2019).

Why shouldn’t parents maintain the right to choose to send their kids to private schools?

1. Pressure on non-academic children -> mental health -> do not fit in

One study by the University of York found that private education was often associated with worse
individual level outcomes such as higher peer victimization, more likely to take risks, and earlier alcohol
consumption (Sophie von Stumm, 2020).

2. Private schools reproduce class inequality -> maintains poverty as those students who could do well
at university and top professions lose the opportunity to do so due to lack of resources. Money spent
on providing resources and opportunities in private schools could be spent on providing more resources
and opportunities in state schools and allow equal opportunity.
4. Less diversity in government and top professions -> less understanding of concerns of general
population.

Why is equality important?

- It is a human right

- Less suffering

- Reduces poverty

- Reduces violence

- Benefits the economy-> different perspectives, experiences, ideas and skills. Increases productivity as
each individual feels valued.