Educational Revolution

Educational Revolution Some sociologists even speak of an 'educational revolution'. Driven by

a combination of increasing demand for a highly skilled and

professional workforce and a growing supply of educational

institutions, teachers, etc., educational participation and

educational attainment grew spectacularly from one generation to

another. Secondary school education quickly became the minimal

standard of qualification for almost all youngsters. And from the

seventies on higher education participation started to increase as

well. This process hasn't reached its limits yet. Many governments

have formulated ambitious targets for higher education participation

and attainment rates, and if we want to achieve the Lisbon agenda and

the European knowledge society even more ambitious targets should be

set.

The 'educational revolution' was linked to a change in the ways social

mobility was realised. Merit now was the key to social advancement,

and not family, social background, money or social capital. At least,

that was the ideological message, but there certainly was a lot of

truth in it. Over the generations young people equipped with degrees

acquired social positions (and incomes) their parents only could dream

of. Higher education became the most important channel through which

social mobility could be realised. Families started to invest in

getting the best education available in order to guarantee that their

children would achieve in ending up in higher ranks than themselves.

And thus, unevenly spread financial capital - and as we know since

Bour...

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...ppropriate concept of educational achievement. There are signs that

the value of a degree or diploma as a ticket for social mobility is

eroding, not in favour of the old 'goods' such as money or family

background, but in favour of real competences. Continuous acquirement

of competences through all kinds of learning - formal as well as

informal - may be a better and more modern model of educational

achievement. The idea of lifelong learning also has some social

advantages: people who have not been able to attain a degree in the

first part of their lifespan should have second chances to acquire

competences that enable them to become socially mobile. A well

conceived system of recognition of prior learning thus is a welcome

innovation in higher education, linking achievement both in formal and

informal worlds of learning.