Key Questions

The key questions presented here were used to direct the focus of the research, and provide useful markers as to the direction the research was taking.

1.What are the aims of education?

This question follows directly from the main research question. In order to understand the policies of New Labour and the aims encapsulated in them, it is necessary to have an understanding of possible aims of education with which to contrast those polices. Therefore, within this study, the aims of education are discussed both from a

philosophical perspective and from a utilitarian point of view.

2. What have been the main reforms for the 14-19 phase since 1997?

Since New Labour came into power in 1997 until the publication of the 2005 White Paper 14-19 Education and Skills (DfES, 2005) there have been in excess of 60

significant policies relating to 14-19 Education in England (Wright and Oancea, 2005). Given the volume of policies and policy documents produced by New Labour, it was necessary to limit the number of documents for analysis, and at the same time it was essential that important policy texts were not omitted. Therefore, the main reforms within this time period needed to be identified in order to ensure that the research findings are valid, and can be said to accurately represent the Labour government’s reform agenda.

To determine which documents to use, the qualitative non-probability method of purposive sampling was employed, and a deliberate choice was made to include some documents and exclude others. This sampling was based on a consideration of the literature surrounding Labour’s policies, and an examination of many of the documents themselves. As a result, those policies which dealt directly with the 14-19 education offer and which could be considered significant policy developments were studied. This method led to the choice of four White Papers and one Green Paper to be examined (see appendix 4).

3. What is the historical context for these reforms?

By placing New Labour’s 14-19 education policy within an historical context, it is possible to identify recurrent themes as well as changes in policy direction. This is important to this study, because the processes of government policy making are subject to pressure and influences from many sources. These sources can often be identified by looking at past policies, political climate and world events which may have influenced the policy making process and therefore the policy, and so allow for an identification of the drivers behind this policy. This key question was explored in the literature review. Works explored included those concerned with the process of policy formation, such as Educational Policy Making by Kogan (1975) and Dale’s The State and Education Policy (1989), as well as studies of the education system such as Dearing and Beyond edited

4. What are the specific drivers behind these reforms?

Using a Grounded Theory approach (Glaser and Strauss,1967) four categories were arrived at through which the policy documents could be analysed and the aims behind the initiatives which they contained investigated.

Applying these categories within the framework of document analysis, the documents were analysed through a combination of content and critical analysis in order to

capture the purpose and intentions of the author (in this case the Labour Government).

The justification for the combination of these two strands of document analysis is derived from the complementary benefits each methodology provides to the researcher, and the acknowledgement that by just choosing one method, important data may be overlooked. While content analysis allows trends to be identified within a document, critical analysis focuses on questioning among other things the document’s purpose, the intentions of the author, the type of document it is and what has been left out of the document. When carrying out this type of review the documents are not taken at face value and if bias is encountered it is used to understand more fully the context of the document rather than meaning the document should be deemed unreliable. By using content as well as critical analysis it is possible to counteract some of the disadvantages that exist when using content analysis alone. In particular, the context of the document can be examined.

This is particularly relevant in the case of this study due to the fact that the documents being analysed are political ones, and therefore may be said to be subject to issues regarding public opinion and political intentions.

5. What are these drivers based on? Is there an overriding ideology upon which

New Labour based its educational reforms?

Having completed the document analysis, any emergent trends between the documents which relate to the aims behind reform of the 14-19 offer were identified and any key drivers which were evident were discussed.

If, as stated earlier, the drivers can be seen as the motivations for policy change and reform which lie behind expressed policy aims, then the issues which these reforms are attempting to remedy can be understood through this close investigation of the

solutions, namely policy documents. Here then it becomes possible to link the aims, motivations and drivers of 14-19 education reform with the issues facing the phase, as expressed by the Labour Government in policy documents.

This is useful, as it allows for an exploration of policy, and how pressure within the political process and events within the country and globally can affect the reform

Having discussed the basis for this study through a statement of the research questions and key questions which have guided the research, the next chapter will explore the literature around the topic being investigated, and consider the nature of policy, 14-19 education and New Labour, among other topics, in order to inform this study.