Should we have private schools?

Published: October 19th, 2024

Should we have private schools? And please, before you consider throwing rotten eggs or tomatoes in my direction, consider my views on this thorny topic. 

Private schools have always been a feature of education. The history of private schooling can be traced back the Middle Ages and Renaissance period, often connected with the church. One  of these, Eton College was established in 1440, to provide free education for 70 poor boys. The main seven: Charterhouse, Eton, Winchester, Rugby, Shrewsbury, Winchester, Harrow, have become household names. Eton is reported to be the richest: an estimated half a million sitting on its balance sheet at Aug. 2021. The very first school, founded in 597, was Kings School, Canterbury.

Okay, less of the history and more of the philosophy for my argument. Basically, private schools, also known as independent, charge fees instead of being funded by the government. On this basis it can be argued that they save the government money. Yet, the argument for private schooling to exist is complex. 

What are the pros of being sent to a private school? Research informs us that the few, privileged young people who are educated in private schools achieve far better than those in state schools, and consequently go on to obtain better employment. These children begin their learning from the top of the educational tree – and end up at the top of that same tree. They receive:

• The best education from the best teachers;
• Superior teaching facilities, with better sports facilities also;
• Improved security;
• Better student-teacher relationships;
• Improved relationships between teachers and parents;
• Better social culture, as well as learning environment. 

These, of course, are the pros. The cons? All of this is extremely costly for parents. There is no doubt that private education contributes to the inequality of society, based as it is on a tiered system. The comparison between a private classroom with an average of 15 pupils, compared to that of a state school with an average class of 27, speaks for itself, and supports the argument.

What is the purpose of education? Should schooling generally help to develop children’s social skills, as well as their academic skills? If it did, then far fewer pupils would end up on the wrong side of society – in gangs, or even prison. 

This article is inspired by the issue of VAT charges for private schooling, leading to the argument that extra cash could then be given to improving state schools. Naturally, the parents of privately educated pupils would disagree. 

Should the UK take its cue from Finland, reported in 2018 by the World Economic Forum to be the ‘Best in the World’? Children begin schooling at the age of 7, and the charging of fees for education is prohibited by the Finnish constitution. 

Is this unequal playing field partly linked to politics? Should the conservative government have invested more into the state educational system? Definitely! Will Labour now begin to make up for previous failures? We wait and see. 

Only by abolishing a system of privilege, can the UK education system start to focus on equal opportunities for all young people. 

PS. Sylvia Edwards is author of fourteen books on education (Routledge), mainly on literacy and Special Educational Needs and Disabilities (SEND), plus a further five for parents. Now retired, she remains interested in, and passionate about, improving the educational outcomes for all young people, especially those with SEND. Sylvia’s latest educational book is nearing completion: A Simple View of Reading aims to raise reading standards and enable all children to become accomplished readers. 

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