‘Great expectations’ in the UK education system

Abstract

Throughout 2017 and 2018 the MaCE project team co-created an Equalities Literacy Framework (henceforth EQL) (Stuart et al., 2019). This paper focusses in on one element of the EQL framework – that of technologies of oppression and liberation in order to more fully develop an understanding of what does and does not work for young people, from a youth perspective, in the UK education system. One aspect of this work is discussed, the expectations of young people from the education system. The paper draws on data collected by two academics in the Marginalisation and Co-Created Education (MaCE) project. The data were collected using an Indirect Approach with individuals and small groups of young people. The participants included five young people in a housing scheme for homeless youth (The Foyer) and five from a Church funded secondary school. The data corpus was abductively analysed which revealed a theme of ‘expectations’ as a significant technology of oppression. The range of expectations placed upon young people in schools is presented in this paper.