ABSTRACT
All the barriers to opportunity must come down', declared the Conservative Education Minister in 1957, 'whether this is done by providing financial help sufficient to enable students to stay on at school or go to technical college or university, or by ensuring a way forward for those whose talents develop late'. The post-war decade had seen educational administrators and teachers wrestling with the task of implementing the Butler Act, but educational spending had not yet reached a plateau. By any standards, the expansion of higher education was a remarkable achievement. One major cause of this accelerated growth was the belief that shortcomings in the educational system explained the national economic malaise. The Scottish educational system remained different in certain respects. The graduate/age cohort ratio might well be the clue which unlocked the secret of economic success. Fewer Rugby Union players were enticed into the game because, in changing economic circumstances, it could not offer very attractive financial rewards.
