ABSTRACT
Underwriting any educational system are two alternative principles. The first principle is that of providing the right cadre of leadership and knowledgeable governance for management of the nation’s structures. This leads to the provision of a necessary elite group able to move the economy and services forward. This principle is often that needed in the early days of developing an organised society when resources are limited and insecure. This does, however, maintain the dominance of those who have access to the education system and does not encourage the development of a democratic and equal opportunities society. Modern societies need more than a small educated elite if they are to flourish and thus the commitment to universal education has arisen. It was in this context that the second principle of ‘education for all’ arose and with it the notion of equality of access and opportunity. It is from this second principle that the commitment to educating all citizens to the best of their abilities emerged, and of attempting to combat discrimination in terms of opportunities brought about by class, caste, wealth, religion or hereditary power. It is this commitment which promoted and encouraged the development of comprehensive schooling in the UK and common schooling in India. It also encouraged for a time the introduction of ‘mixed ability’ classes in English secondary schools, though the wide variations in achievement proved too difficult to manage in some subjects, notably mathematics and foreign languages. Within primary education, however, most classes remain ‘mixed ability’ and a sense of common community is engendered which can be retained in neighbourhood secondary schools.
