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Changing Inequalities in Education?

When Halsey wrote those words in the context of Educational Priority Areas most people thought of inequality in terms of social class and/or economic differences. Since the 1970s class differences and inequalities have become less central concerns both politically and socially and within social science, perhaps because of developing interest in these features of gender and ethnicity. Yet the conventional empirical realities of class in Britain remain, as is amply illustrated in the latest survey of research in the field (Reid, 1998). There also remains the reality that there are intimate relationships between the forms of social stratification, in much the same fashion as individuals are members of each. The nature of, and change in, the manifestations of social stratification are clearly related to the social and political context in which they are situated. For a long time those interested in tackling social class inequality viewed the Labour Party in Britain as a likely ally, and some, perhaps naively, saw the election result of 1997 as heralding an era in which this and other inequality issues would be addressed. Hence the first book reviewed in this essay, while not having as its main theme this concern, provides a range of valuable insights into the relationships between contemporary politics and educational policy. The apparent intransigence of social class differences and inequalities in Britain and its education system is in considerable contrast to the situation in respect to male and