Centralization, Devolution and Diversity: Changing Educational Policy and Practice in English Schools

This chapter examines provision for the education of minority ethnic groups within England. It discusses the effects of regional practices since the 1960s which led to different forms of provision in the south of England, where serious attempts at interculturalism, particularly in inner London, provided a model for schools to follow, compared to the increasingly ethnically segregated schools which developed in the north of England. It draws attention to the English system of ethnic monitoring of achievement, which identifies educational outcomes for the largest minority ethnic groups nationally, regionally and by school, and the impact of this on policy and practice. It then considers the way in which England’s ethnic mix is changing as a result of European Union expansion and continuing globalization, and the effects of this on education policy and school practice. Finally, it outlines the current policy shift away from comprehensive forms of education for all, towards ‘diversity’ and ‘choice’ in the types of schooling available to students, including an increasing emphasis on ‘specialist’ and religious foundation schools, and the implications of this move for intercultural education and inter-ethnic understanding.