In Miseducation: Inequality, Education and the Working Classes, Diane Reay draws on interviews with over 500 children to explore the class inequalities that persist in UK education today from the transition to secondary school up to university. The book’s personalisation of everyday working-class experiences of education, combined with statistical evidence on continued inequality, makes this engaging and timely reading, finds Natasha Codiroli Mcmaster

Codiroli Mcmaster, Natasha

English

LSE Research Online

Book	Review	|	Miseducation:	Inequality,	Educationand	the	Working	Classes	by	Diane	ReayIn	Miseducation:	Inequality,	Education	and	the	Working	Classes,	Diane	Reay	draws	on	interviews	with	over500	children	to	explore	the	class	inequalities	that	persist	in	UK	education	today	from	the	transition	to	secondaryschool	up	to	university.	The	book’s	personalisation	of	everyday	working-class	experiences	of	education,	combinedwith	statistical	evidence	on	continued	inequality,	makes	this	engaging	and	timely	reading,	finds	Natasha	CodiroliMcmaster.Picture:	(Pixabay	CCO)Miseducation:	Inequality,	Education	and	the	Working	Classes.	Diane	Reay.	Policy	Press.	2018.Fees	for	state	secondary	education	were	abolished	in	1944,	over	70	yearsago;	however,	class	inequalities	in	UK	education	persist	to	this	day.In	Miseducation:	Inequality,	Education	and	the	Working	Classes,	Diane	Reaydraws	on	interviews	with	over	500	children,	as	well	as	her	own	experiencesgrowing	up	in	a	working-class	family,	to	show	that	children	are	educateddifferently	depending	on	their	social	position.	She	covers	vast	ground,following	students	through	the	transition	to	secondary	school,	where	working-class	students	are	more	likely	to	attend	schools	with	less	funding	andresources,	into	the	classroom,	in	which	ability	grouping	often	sees	working-class	pupils	further	segregated	into	lower	sets,	and	then	through	to	theuniversity	experiences	of	those	who	do	gain	access.We	are	living	in	a	political	context	in	which	a	man	who	recentlycontroversially	attained	(and	subsequently	stepped	down	from)	a	prestigiousposition	on	the	board	of	a	Universities	watchdog	once	described	working-class	students	attending	Oxford	University	as	‘stains’:Small,	vaguely	deformed	undergraduates	would	scuttle	across	thequad	as	if	carrying	mobile	homes	on	their	backs.	Replete	with	acne	andanoraks,	they	would	peer	up	through	thick	pebble-glasses,	pausingonly	to	blow	their	noses.	(The	Oxford	Myth,	1988)Democratic Audit: Book Review | Miseducation: Inequality, Education and the Working Classes by Diane Reay Page 1 of 3		Date originally posted: 2018-03-24Permalink: https://www.democraticaudit.com/2018/03/24/book-review-miseducation-inequality-education-and-the-working-classes-by-diane-reay/Blog homepage: https://www.democraticaudit.com/In	this	light,	this	book	could	not	be	a	more	timely	analysis	of	class	in	the	UK’s	education	system.	Whilst	TobyYoung’s	comments	may	seem	extreme	and	anomalous,	Reay’s	examination	of	accounts	of	working-class	studentswho	defied	expectations	to	enter	the	most	esteemed	universities	exposes	similar	attitudes	(although	not	usuallyexpressed	so	explicitly).	The	young	people	in	Reay’s	books	speak	of	isolation,	an	inability	to	‘fit	in’	and	a	feeling	ofbeing	patronised	or	looked	down	on	by	their	peers.	Children	not	only	need	to	convince	themselves	that	with	hardwork	and	persistence	they	can	attend	university,	but	have	to	do	this	despite	the	low	expectations	of	teachers	andwith	little	information	as	to	what	is	required.Working-class	university	students	also	face	additional	practical	barriers.	Despite	reassurances	that	university	debtis	not	‘real	debt’,	the	threat	of	owing	such	a	huge	amount	of	money	can	have	significant	psychological	impact	onyoung	people	who	are	unsure	if	they	will	ever	be	able	to	repay	their	loans.	Reay	interviews	students	working	longhours	alongside	their	degrees	just	to	get	by,	with	no	guarantee	that	this	‘gamble’	will	pay	off	in	the	future.	Working-class	students	take	on	more	debt	to	attend	university,	and	this	is	set	to	increase	following	the	abolition	of	incomecontingent	maintenance	grants.	At	the	same	time,	young	people	from	lower	income	households	are	more	likely	todrop	out	of	university,	and	on	average	earn	less	than	than	their	well-off	peers	who	studied	the	same	subjects	at	thesame	institution.Reay	therefore	argues	that	rather	than	congratulating	ourselves	on	the	success	of	widening	participation	initiatives,we	should	look	to	outcomes	beyond	university:	namely,	later	participation	in	the	labour	market.	If	working-classstudents	make	it	to	Higher	Education	but	remain	in	low-income,	precarious	employment,	can	they	really	be	thoughtof	as	social	mobile?It	is	not	only	at	university	that	social	disparities	cause	psychological	distress.	Parents	and	children	across	socialclasses	put	lots	of	thought	and	time	into	choosing	a	secondary	school,	and	they	are	profoundly	aware	both	ofschool	status	and	the	limitations	surrounding	their	decisions.	Once	in	secondary	school,	the	message	thatacademic	success	is	a	combination	of	hard	work	and	individual	aptitude	affects	children’s	self-esteem	as	thecontextual	barriers	they	face	are	not	taken	into	account.	The	interviews	make	for	harrowing	reading,	with	childrenput	into	lower	sets	recounting	feelings	of	humiliation,	a	lack	of	motivation	and	a	sense	of	helplessness.	Thepressure	to	do	well	in	individual	tests	is	compounded	by	the	fact	that	scoring	badly	on	one	test	makes	achieving	inthe	next	even	harder,	as	children	are	put	into	lower	sets	with	lower	quality	teaching,	or	are	simply	not	entered	for‘higher	tier’	exams.	One	student,	Hannah,	explains	that	if	you	do	not	do	well	in	exams	you	become	a	‘nothing’,	asopposed	to	the	level	4s	and	5s.	It	comes	as	no	surprise,	then,	that	in	the	face	of	constant	negative	feedback,	manychildren	lose	any	interest	in	learning.Reay	eloquently	discusses	the	difficulties	inherent	in	classifying	people	as	‘advantaged’	or	‘disadvantaged’,	or	asworking	or	middle	class.	As	she	notes,	many	more	people	feel	that	they	are	working	class	than	one	would	expect	ifwe	look	at	the	proportions	of	people	in	professional	jobs.	A	number	want	to	identify	with	the	narrative	of	‘workingclass	done	good’,	whilst	nonetheless	benefiting	from	all	the	middle-class	privileges	Reay	elucidates.	However,	whilethe	changing	structure	of	employment	in	the	UK	over	the	past	century	has	superficially	pushed	many	in	subsequentgenerations	into	the	middle	classes,	Reay	points	out	that	the	differences	in	incomes	are	larger	than	ever.Despite	this,	Reay	signals	the	backgrounds	of	the	children	and	parents	interviewed	in	very	polar	terms,	i.e.	as	beingeither	working	or	middle	class,	often	without	further	exploration	of	how	certain	their	position	is.	This	may	benecessary	for	simplicity,	but	the	exceptions	to	this	offer	a	unique	and	more	rounded	insight	into	the	nature	ofchildren’s	experiences	of	class.	An	example	is	the	story	of	Max,	whose	parents	have	middle-class	jobs	but	whosegrandparents	were	working	class.	Max	attended	a	school	with	predominately	working-class	peers,	and	struggledwith	balancing	the	expectation	from	his	peers	to	not	act	like	a	‘nerd’	and	those	of	his	parents	and	teachers	to	excelacademically.	Many	of	the	‘middle-class’	families	interviewed	also	seemed	to	occupy	the	‘upper	middle	class’,	and	itwould	interesting	to	hear	more	stories	from	children	who	sit	on	the	edges	of	these	class	categories.Miseducation	does	not	offer	any	quick	fix	policy	solutions	to	the	problems	exposed,	but	this	would	ultimately	beinappropriate	given	the	complexity	of	the	issues.	In	terms	of	current	initiatives,	evidence	suggests	that	socialmobility	in	the	UK	is	declining,	and	Reay	discusses	how	recent	policies	may	only	exacerbate	this.	In	2017	TheresaMay	re-opened	the	grammar	schools	debate,	which	Reay	points	out	will	likely	only	further	hinder	efforts	to	increasesocial	mobility.	Students	from	poor	backgrounds	are	the	least	likely	to	get	a	place	at	a	grammar	school	or	to	receivehelp	from	parents	(both	directly	and	through	tuition)	to	pass	entrance	exams.	There	has	also	been	a	drive	toincrease	the	number	of	free	schools	and	academies	(schools	that	are	independent	and	not	run	by	local	authorities),but	these	tend	to	take	in	fewer	children	claiming	free	school	meals	and	receive	more	funding	per	pupil.Democratic Audit: Book Review | Miseducation: Inequality, Education and the Working Classes by Diane Reay Page 2 of 3		Date originally posted: 2018-03-24Permalink: https://www.democraticaudit.com/2018/03/24/book-review-miseducation-inequality-education-and-the-working-classes-by-diane-reay/Blog homepage: https://www.democraticaudit.com/The	drive	to	increase	social	mobility	rather	than	overall	equality	is	also	challenged	by	Reay.	Social	mobility	bydefinition	pushes	some	people	above	others,	and	whilst	the	‘brightest’	working	class	children	may	benefit,	themajority	would	not.	Parents	will	(understandably)	always	be	motivated	to	exploit	any	hierarchy	in	education	and	usetheir	resources	to	give	their	children	the	best	future	possible,	further	disadvantaging	less	well-off	families.	Eventhose	working-class	children	who	do	gain	entry	to	the	middle	classes	do	not	necessarily	benefit,	as	they	often	facea	disconnect	between	their	upbringing	and	current	position.	More	equitable	policy	directions	couldinclude	increasing	the	social	mix	within	schools,	or	moving	away	from	ability	streaming	in	schools	altogether.Miseducation	would	benefit	anyone	interested	in	social	mobility	and	education	in	the	UK,	particularly	given	thestagnation	(or	even	increase)	of	inequality	in	this	realm,	and	the	book	has	the	potential	to	help	inform	innovativepolicy	directions.	Reay’s	contribution	to	debates	on	education	and	social	background	is	to	personalise	everydayworking-class	experiences	of	school	and	university,	something	usually	absent	from	current	discourse.	This,combined	with	statistical	evidence	of	the	extent	of	inequalities,	makes	for	particularly	engaging	reading.This	review	gives	the	views	of	the	author,	and	not	that	of	Democratic	Audit.	It	was	originally	published	on	the	LSEReview	of	Books	blog.This	review	is	published	as	part	of	a	March	2018	endeavour,	‘A	Month	of	Our	Own:	Amplifying	Women’s	Voices	onLSE	Review	of	Books’.	If	you	would	like	to	contribute	to	the	project	in	this	month	or	beyond,	please	contact	themat	Lsereviewofbooks@lse.ac.uk.	Natasha	Codiroli	Mcmaster	is	a	PhD	student	based	at	the	Institute	of	Education,	UCL.	Her	research	focuses	oninequalities	in	education,	and	her	most	recent	research	considered	disparities	in	students’	subject	choices.	She	hasalso	worked	as	an	analyst	at	the	Department	for	Work	and	Pensions	on	projects	aimed	at	understanding	the	driversand	consequences	of	disadvantage.	Read	more	by	Natasha	Codiroli	Mcmaster.	Similar	PostsBook	Review	|	Social	Mobility	and	its	Enemies	by	Lee	Elliot	Major	and	Stephen	MachinBook	Review	|	Engines	of	Privilege:	Britain’s	Private	School	Problem	by	Francis	Green	and	David	KynastonBook	review	|	Know	Your	Place:	Essays	on	the	Working	Class,	by	the	Working	ClassAudit	2017:	How	effectively	are	class	inequalities	controlled	in	the	UK?The	Prevent	duty	is	two	years	old.	What’s	really	going	on	in	schools	and	colleges?Democratic Audit: Book Review | Miseducation: Inequality, Education and the Working Classes by Diane Reay Page 3 of 3		Date originally posted: 2018-03-24Permalink: https://www.democraticaudit.com/2018/03/24/book-review-miseducation-inequality-education-and-the-working-classes-by-diane-reay/Blog homepage: https://www.democraticaudit.com/

Book review: Miseducation: inequality, education and the working classes by Diane Reay

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Book review: Miseducation: inequality, education and the working classes by Diane Reay

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